OPPO Reno Series Western Launch: A Live Blog (2pm CET)

08:21AM EDT - Following the launch of the Chinese Reno variants last week, OPPO is in Zurich today with the variants for the western markets, with a few differences specific to the European and North America markets. Follow along with our live blog, starting at 2:30pm Central European Time.

08:21AM EDT - Starting in 10 minutes.

08:25AM EDT - We're expecting about 150-200 press, and a similar number of partners

08:26AM EDT - We haven't covered OPPO as much in recent years, however the company is expanding beyond its traditional base of China/India into Europe, the Middle East, and North America

08:27AM EDT - They've also invested in regional PR, to ensure their contact with local press across those regions are being kept up to date with OPPO's product portfolio

08:27AM EDT - Ventures into 5G for example are a hot topic of late

08:28AM EDT - OPPO was part of the Swisscom event a couple of weeks ago where NSA 5G was enabled in over 30 different locations across Switzerland

08:28AM EDT - Of course, people are still waiting on devices to take advantage of the technology

08:29AM EDT - Should be almost ready to start now

08:31AM EDT - Here we go

08:31AM EDT - Intro video with lots of circles

08:32AM EDT - Vincent Huang to the stage

08:33AM EDT - European President of OPPO

08:33AM EDT - Announcing the beginning of a new chapter for OPPO and the smartphone industry

08:33AM EDT - The next 10 years of intelligence and connectivity

08:33AM EDT - Oppo launched its first phone 10 years ago

08:34AM EDT - Oppo's unit trajectory makes it different to others

08:34AM EDT - Oppo is user experience focused in a high gross market

08:34AM EDT - 'Transition from Wi-Fi to smartphone' ?

08:34AM EDT - Today, the first interaction with the internet is through the smartphone, not the PC

08:34AM EDT - Digital is now native

08:35AM EDT - Smartphones have a high quality base for launching products

08:35AM EDT - Two main targets - battery and camera

08:35AM EDT - Everyone wants the best of both

08:35AM EDT - First series of camera smartphones in Asia

08:36AM EDT - Also VOOC super charging - 5 minutes charge for 2 hours talk

08:36AM EDT - Oppo identifies and solves critical customers needs, challenging the existing smartphone standards

08:36AM EDT - Oppo is on a quest to develop high quality smartphones for consumers around the world

08:37AM EDT - It shapes the company, the DNA

08:37AM EDT - European expansion in 2018

08:37AM EDT - France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands

08:38AM EDT - Sliding camera smartphone: Find X with SuperVOOC

08:38AM EDT - 0 to 40 percent in 10 minutes

08:38AM EDT - Trajectory in Europe has been smooth and stable

08:38AM EDT - Enormous support since the european launch from partners and creators

08:38AM EDT - Swisscom, Orange, Telefonica, T-Mobile

08:39AM EDT - 2019 is a very special year for OPPO

08:39AM EDT - Expansion into Europe coincides with a new era of innovation beyond connectivity

08:39AM EDT - 2019: UK, Poland, Turkey, Switzerland

08:39AM EDT - Now in 40 markets worldwide

08:39AM EDT - 250m OPPO users globally

08:40AM EDT - Focus on the next decade is important

08:40AM EDT - 5G development

08:40AM EDT - 5G standardization team in OPPO since 2015

08:40AM EDT - 5G is the new challenge and opportunity for OPPO

08:40AM EDT - Ambition to find tangible benefits for users

08:41AM EDT - Showcased phones with 5G with Swisscom two weeks ago

08:41AM EDT - Oppo will expand into IOT devices

08:41AM EDT - (where are the audio equipment and DVD players?)

08:42AM EDT - Creating value for users

08:42AM EDT - Want to become the favorite brand in Europe

08:42AM EDT - It will determine the future technology

08:42AM EDT - New products and services

08:43AM EDT - $1.5B USD investment R&D for 2019

08:43AM EDT - covering smartphone, 5G, IoT, services

08:43AM EDT - Now for Reno series

08:43AM EDT - Marketing Manager Sanya Chen to the stage

08:43AM EDT - Phones for real life

08:44AM EDT - Product optimization has become a race for specifications

08:44AM EDT - Oppo is full of energy and creativity

08:44AM EDT - Create a product to get people excited

08:44AM EDT - Going beyond the obvious in innovation and design

08:45AM EDT - Smartphones are connected to our lives. Every one is unique, because of the owner, not the brand

08:45AM EDT - Reno is built for its unique users and self expression

08:45AM EDT - So many ways to see and experience the world

08:45AM EDT - Bring the inside of the phone to the outside

08:46AM EDT - co-creation platform with Creative Communities

08:46AM EDT - R&D center in Europe to develop expression and innovation for creation

08:46AM EDT - Reno is aligned with the interests of its users

08:46AM EDT - rooted in contemporary culture

08:46AM EDT - Reno is ready to go, and you can count on it

08:46AM EDT - Make your story unmissible

08:47AM EDT - Excited to push limits, embrace transformation

08:47AM EDT - video time

08:48AM EDT - Fuel your imagination, make your story unmissible

08:48AM EDT - Andie Cheng, PM at Oppo

08:49AM EDT - A smartphone is for work and for leisure. It should be a source of delight and inspiration

08:49AM EDT - Announcing the 'Reno 10x Zoom'

08:49AM EDT - Yes, that's its full name

08:49AM EDT - 3D glass on rear

08:50AM EDT - O-dot on rear for camera protection

08:50AM EDT - Bold use of color

08:50AM EDT - Color inspired by nature - Jet Black, Ocean Green

08:51AM EDT - Matte texture beneath the surface

08:51AM EDT - Notchless 6.6-inch OLED full screen display

08:51AM EDT - 1.66mm side bezel, 3.5mm bottom bezel

08:51AM EDT - 93.1% screen-to-body ratio

08:51AM EDT - (it's quite nice)

08:52AM EDT - AMOLED with DCI-P3 gamut

08:52AM EDT - Blue filtering enhanced by 56%

08:52AM EDT - Gorilla Glass 6 on front

08:53AM EDT - DC Dimming switch for flicker free eye care

08:53AM EDT - in-screen fingerprint display (Goodix I think)

08:53AM EDT - Custom solution for fingerprint brightness and speed

08:53AM EDT - Speed increased by 20-30%

08:53AM EDT - Front camera pops up

08:54AM EDT - 11 degree elevation, 0.8 seconds to appear

08:54AM EDT - Passed 200k times

08:54AM EDT - That's 5 years of use at 100/day

08:54AM EDT - Drop protection mechanism will retract the camera automatically

08:55AM EDT - Announced 10x zoom at MWC

08:55AM EDT - It's on the Reno 10x Zoom

08:55AM EDT - Solves all your zooming problems

08:56AM EDT - (it does 6x optical, 10x hybrid)

08:56AM EDT - 48MP main lens, 13MP telephoto, 8MP wide angle

08:57AM EDT - 13MP telephoto uses periscope technology

08:57AM EDT - allows for larger aperture

08:57AM EDT - (this is similar to the P30 Pro, but with better raw optical zoom)

08:57AM EDT - This camera has OIS

08:58AM EDT - Ultra wide angle does 120-degree

08:58AM EDT - Ultra Night Mode 2.0

08:58AM EDT - 48MP is Sony IMX586 with f/1.7 and 0.5-inch sensor

08:59AM EDT - AI processing acceleration

08:59AM EDT - In hand held, HDR enhanced mode uses 5 photos. In tripod mode, takes 17 photos

08:59AM EDT - AI algorithm achieves clearer images

09:00AM EDT - Software detects precise edge of human heads and adjusts appropriately to define the edges

09:00AM EDT - Dazzle Color Mode

09:00AM EDT - Portrait Mode

09:01AM EDT - Night HSL Restoriation Technology

09:01AM EDT - Front camera also supports Portrait Mode

09:01AM EDT - Front facing soft light can enhance light in low-light conditions

09:02AM EDT - Collaborate with Magnum Photos

09:02AM EDT - Magnum photos to the stage

09:05AM EDT - Partnership with Oppo

09:05AM EDT - Trevor Wang to the stage, talking software

09:06AM EDT - Qualcomm Snapdragon 855, LPDDR4x

09:06AM EDT - 'LPDDR4x efficiency increased by 17%' ?

09:06AM EDT - Battery charging has been a focus for OPPO

09:07AM EDT - VOOC 3.0 for Reno 10x Zoom

09:07AM EDT - 4065 mAh battery on Reno 10x Zoom

09:08AM EDT - New trickle charge algorithm, to reduce 90-100% charge time by half

09:08AM EDT - Reno is Hi-Res Audio certified

09:09AM EDT - Dolby Atmos support on the 10x Zoom

09:09AM EDT - It's your handheld dolby studio

09:09AM EDT - With headphones on (so, headphones only?)

09:09AM EDT - Stereo speakers on both ends it looks like

09:10AM EDT - ColorOS6, built on Android P/9

09:10AM EDT - Optimized for full screen

09:10AM EDT - Using grey lines so give more plesant visual experience

09:11AM EDT - More detailed animations when button presses etc

09:11AM EDT - Supports OPPO cloud services

09:11AM EDT - Can synchronize photos, contacts, audio, wifi passwords

09:11AM EDT - Can take to the next phone

09:11AM EDT - 5GB of free space per user

09:12AM EDT - HyperBoost 2.0

09:12AM EDT - A number of boost algorithms to speed up UX

09:12AM EDT - interacting with apps and games

09:13AM EDT - TouchBoost

09:13AM EDT - Improves touch priority in games

09:13AM EDT - FrameBoost

09:13AM EDT - Frame rate acceleration

09:14AM EDT - Reallocates system resources to maintain frame rate

09:14AM EDT - 'If the system knows in advance'

09:14AM EDT - Thermal performance is also important

09:15AM EDT - Tri-cooling

09:15AM EDT - A heatpipe and graphite sheets

09:15AM EDT - (they said liquid cooling. It's not liquid cooling, stop calling it that)

09:15AM EDT - TUV certification for games

09:16AM EDT - passed 55 tests in 31 categories in 4 dimensions

09:16AM EDT - All of these are part of ColorOS

09:17AM EDT - Video time

09:18AM EDT - Neil Yang, 5G engineer at Oppo

09:18AM EDT - Evolution from 2G to 3G to 4G to 5G

09:18AM EDT - Oppo has always partnered with carriers and developers for each new technology

09:19AM EDT - Defining the next ten years

09:19AM EDT - 5G will take digital transformation to a new level

09:19AM EDT - Making AI a global reality

09:19AM EDT - OPPO Reno 5G

09:19AM EDT - with 10x zoom

09:19AM EDT - working with Swisscom

09:20AM EDT - 1.5 Gbps or higher

09:20AM EDT - Immersion in AR and VR over 5G

09:20AM EDT - perfect for gamers

09:21AM EDT - Partnering with companies about 5G gaming - bandwidth, latency, lag, experience

09:21AM EDT - Oppo wants to be a co-part for online battle arena games

09:21AM EDT - 5G will connect everything around us

09:21AM EDT - Oppo will be at the center of intelligent GUIs

09:22AM EDT - Qualcomm to the stage

09:22AM EDT - Oppo is extracting all the performance and features embedded in the Snapdragon

09:23AM EDT - 5G is the step forward

09:24AM EDT - Switzerland is leading Europe in 5G, but other countries are catching up with spectrum auctions

09:25AM EDT - Achieved 1.86 Gbps in Zurich on 10th April with Oppo

09:28AM EDT - Oppo 5G Landing Project

09:28AM EDT - new partners

09:29AM EDT - Orange too

09:29AM EDT - Reno 5G will be on EE in UK

09:29AM EDT - this summer

09:30AM EDT - Photo time with partners

09:31AM EDT - Swisscom on the stage

09:32AM EDT - Looking for pioneers for 5G

09:32AM EDT - 5G for all of Switzerland by end of 2019

09:33AM EDT - First commercial 5G in Europe enabled last week

09:33AM EDT - Coping with the growth of data

09:34AM EDT - two variants: 5G fast and 5G wide

09:34AM EDT - 5G fast at 3.5 Gbps, 5G wide at 1.86 Gbps

09:34AM EDT - (that's actually smart branding for mmWave and sub-6 variants)

09:35AM EDT - Using 4G and 5G simultaneously

09:36AM EDT - Still a lot of curiousity from end users about 5G

09:36AM EDT - 5G devices coming in May, according to this guy

09:37AM EDT - Oppo, Swisscom, and Ericsson who do the infrastructure

09:37AM EDT - Early may in Swisscom shops

09:37AM EDT - No surcharge for using 5G over 4G

09:39AM EDT - Now price for Reno Series

09:39AM EDT - Standard Reno at 499 Euro (no zoom), available 10th May

09:39AM EDT - Reno 10x Zoom, early June at 799 Euro

09:40AM EDT - Reno 5G, available in May, 899 Euro / 999 CHF

09:40AM EDT - That's a wrap