Oppo Introduces 10x Optical Zoom Triple-Camera Smartphone

[jgdeschamps]

"But that's only if you are talking about audio quality, and yes, I know the HomePod offers great advantages for Apple services integration cases as well as being a competent (not high-end,) no-complications "music as background" speaker."


And that's the main point of HomerPod.

I also have studio monitors (Yamaha) and of course they offer better sound. But they're pretty much hard-wired into my desktop computer and not easily moveable to another room. Also, I'd need to keep my desktop computer powered on 24/7 waiting for a verbal Siri command from across the room, without the benefit of HomePod's dynamic beam formed microphone array that can isolate verbal commands spoken at a normal speaking level from loud interfering sources, including the music being currently played.

What makes HomePod great is that it is self-contained, powered on 24/7, waiting for commands to play whatever music I want to play. It's also very portable. And Siri's HomePod UI to play music works very well. All without needing a powered-on computer.

Also..I can easily move HomePod to another room, where it will automatically assess the acoustics/reflections, and automatically equalize the room. And I don't need a computer powered up to drive it, or an old AirPort Express to wirelessly drive better speakers that are not very mobile.

That's the beauty of HomePod. It just works, is compact, is easy to use, sounds pretty good for its physical size, and, is well-priced considering the above benefits, level of innovation, and performance.

You know what would be perfect for mobility? If the HomePod had a rechargeable battery. It would be completely independent on wether you had a wall wart or not. Hence, it's not as portable as you may think. I do see the advantages, though, like you quoted from my post. Still, not enough for me. Those $350 bucks could go somewhere else regarding audio/tech expenses instead of HomePod.
Now, a genuine question for you as owner of Yamaha studio monitors (which are great, by the way! I owned a pair of NS10Ms and they do live up to their rep... I was young and stupid when I sold them.) Anyways, regarding quality... don't you think it's overkill spending $700 on a stereo HomePod setup, regarding sound quality to price ratio? They would too be tethered to one place, probably alongside an Apple TV, just as your Yamaha monitors. Would you rather pay Yamaha or HomePod quality?

 

[Baymowe335]

Oppo is the fifth biggest smartphone makers and Apple is the third. Not really a player anymore either?

Depends on how you measure a player. Oppo gives their phones away while Apple makes almost all the profit in the industry. Can’t compare Apple with Android handset providers.

Apple is by far #1 in making money, so yes, they are the bully of the industry.

 

[citysnaps]

You know what would be perfect for mobility? If the HomePod had a rechargeable battery. It would be completely independent on wether you had a wall wart or not. Hence, it's not as portable as you may think. I do see the advantages, though, like you quoted from my post. Still, not enough for me. Those $350 bucks could go somewhere else regarding audio/tech expenses instead of HomePod.
Now, a genuine question for you as owner of Yamaha studio monitors (which are great, by the way! I owned a pair of NS10Ms and they do live up to their rep... I was young and stupid when I sold them.) Anyways, regarding quality... don't you think it's overkill spending $700 on a stereo HomePod setup, regarding sound quality to price ratio? They would too be tethered to one place, probably alongside an Apple TV, just as your Yamaha monitors. Would you rather pay Yamaha or HomePod quality?

For my needs. HomePod is portable enough. Every room in my house, the garage, as well as exterior walls, has multiple electrical mains outlets. HomePod is not something I would take to the beach.

Speaking of wall-warts...that's another thing I like about HomePod - there is no wall-wart. Its power supply is built in.

Regarding spending $700... I guess it depends on how much value you place on the features that make HomePod so appealing; stand-alone, always on, not needing a separate computer sourcing music, compact, dynamic room equalization, robust spoken command spatial location, low quiescent power, excellent spoken UI, etc. I have other speakers for my television. The monitors are attached to my desktop computer on my desk (and thus not ideal for casual room music listening).

 

[jgdeschamps]

For my needs. HomePod is portable enough. Every room in my house, the garage, as well as exterior walls, has multiple electrical mains outlets. HomePod is not something I would take to the beach.

Speaking of wall-warts...that's another thing I like about HomePod - there is no wall-wart. Its power supply is built in.

Regarding spending $700... I guess it depends on how much value you place on the features that make HomePod so appealing; stand-alone, always on, not needing a separate computer sourcing music, compact, dynamic room equalization, robust spoken command spatial location, low quiescent power, excellent spoken UI, etc. I have other speakers for my television. The monitors are attached to my desktop computer on my desk (and thus not ideal for casual room music listening).

Yes, of course it depends on your priorities.
But you know what I just got from this conversation? I was also posting in another thread my opinions on what Apple could do regarding innovation, and reading your posts that reminded me of all the sensors and mics the HomePod has... you know what could be extremely interesting? If they integrated that to a mixing/mastering workflow within Garageband or Logic.
Picture this: you are new to mixing/mastering your demos. You don't know about speakers... get a pair of HomePods! Their speakers, sensors and integrated microphones could be hooked up to all of Logic's channel strips. Let's say you record with your own mics your buddies drum kit, guitars, bass, voice, etc (not using loops) and that you have the choice to specify that a channel strip's recording should focus on kick drum sound, another on a guitar of certain style, your singer's voice on another, etc. And when you play back your recording, HomePod's microphones and sensors not only allow for room compensation EQing for monitoring the mix, but also listens to itself to send EQ and volume info back to the channel strips to mix your song automagically using another similar hit song EQing and volume levels that you choose or that Apple Music's AI could find in its library. I would pay $700 bucks for that pair of HomePods immediately. That's the type of added value Apple imprinted on their stuff. Solves something extremely complex without you knowing about it.

 

[citysnaps]

Yes, of course it depends on your priorities.
But you know what I just got from this conversation? I was also posting in another thread my opinions on what Apple could do regarding innovation, and reading your posts that reminded me of all the sensors and mics the HomePod has... you know what could be extremely interesting? If they integrated that to a mixing/mastering workflow within Garageband or Logic.
Picture this: you are new to mixing/mastering your demos. You don't know about speakers... get a pair of HomePods! Their speakers, sensors and integrated microphones could be hooked up to all of Logic's channel strips. Let's say you record with your own mics your buddies drum kit, guitars, bass, voice, etc (not using loops) and that you have the choice to specify that a channel strip's recording should focus on kick drum sound, another on a guitar of certain style, your singer's voice on another, etc. And when you play back your recording, HomePod's microphones and sensors not only allow for room compensation EQing for monitoring the mix, but also listens to itself to send EQ and volume info back to the channel strips to mix your song automagically using another similar hit song EQing and volume levels that you choose or that Apple Music's AI could find in its library. I would pay $700 bucks for that pair of HomePods immediately. That's the type of added value Apple imprinted on their stuff. Solves something extremely complex without you knowing about it.

That's an outstanding idea! And maybe... Use HomePod's room acoustics assessment data to help modify/correct your real monitor's acoustic room equalization.

 

[Avon B7]

You do realise last year was a S model upgrade....

And 'S model' upgrade equivalents is precisely why Apple ends up trailing the rest of the big players. Presenting three phones, (only one or two of which are true Apple flagships) and just once per year, leaves them so far behind the competition that, to give one example, means that the first tri-camera phone is nearly a year old and Apple won't have one until the end of this year!

It's behind on modems, WiFi, battery and charging, low light photography, AIIS and even exterior design.

 

[jgdeschamps]

That's an outstanding idea! And maybe... Use HomePod's room acoustics assessment data to help modify/correct your real monitor's acoustic room equalization.

Exactly! Apple devices have so many sensors now and they are being wasted by marketing ideas on very frivolous things, instead of helping us save time, or improve quality on our beloved hobbies or work.
Do they still include that reminder on their official written disclosures where they state that Apple began the revolution of desktop authoring? That is such an empowering idea, and they are not following it anymore with the passion they used to. That's why I think their value is suffering.

 

[satchmo]

Apple has been widely rumored to be including a triple camera system in their 2019 iPhones. The mosts recent rumor from Ming Chi Kuo indicates that the new iPhones will have a "wide, telephoto, and ultra-wide lens". Apple describes the current iPhone XS as having "Dual 12MP wide-angle and telephoto cameras".

Tim always say Apple makes the best device at the time of what's available. Yet other manufacturers seem to be able to have a feature set that are much more substantial. Apple's minor incremental upgrades each year seem to happen so they have room for another minor upgrade the following year. It's just the annual milking of their cash cow.

 

[LovingTeddy]

Depends on how you measure a player. Oppo gives their phones away while Apple makes almost all the profit in the industry. Can’t compare Apple with Android handset providers.

Apple is by far #1 in making money, so yes, they are the bully of the industry.

I simply do not understand why Apple fans keep bringing profit as argument. It is like Apple has nothing to be proud of other than have boat loads of money.

As a consumer, I care less about how Apple or Oppo makes. I want good products at decent price. Apple or Oppo who makes more money is irreverent with me. I don’t understand why number one is such important thing for Apple fans. If Apple ships most products, Apple fans will trush other products are garbage. If Apple does not ship most products, Apple fan will claim Apple makes most money.

Please explain to me, why revenue is such important thing for consumer? It isn’t like Apple makes the most money and it spend most in R&D...

 

[fuchsdh]

Apple really should have added a super-wide-angle lens instead of a telephoto lens first. Super-wide-angle lenses are so much more useful than telephoto lenses.

I think it really depends on what you're shooting. I'd say for the vast majority of people telephotos are more useful—think of all those tourists trying to take an actually recognizable shot of something behind a fence or on a boat. If you're trying to set up portraits the telephoto is again more useful.

In what ways to do you think wide-angle lenses are more useful for the average person's photos?

 

[cmaier]

Tim always say Apple makes the best device at the time of what's available. Yet other manufacturers seem to be able to have a feature set that are much more substantial. Apple's minor incremental upgrades each year seem to happen so they have room for another minor upgrade the following year. It's just the annual milking of their cash cow.

Yet 90% of the time these “features’ on competitor devices are half baked and don’t work well. Three cameras, or night vision, but after a few months it takes 45 seconds for the camera app to launch. Iris scanning that is so insecure banks wont allow you to use it. Folding screens but the software is so horrible they wont let anyone in the press touch the device. 5G but power consumption is horrible, and there are no 5G networks yet, and 5G offers little for mobile use anyway. (Same thing happened at 4G - lots of competitors released with power sucking chipsets before there were any networks).

I buy Apple stuff because they don’t load the devices up with pointless gimmicks that don’t work right; when they put it in, it actually does something more or less useful.

 

[cyb3rdud3]

I hate to repeat myself but that isn’t how zoom is calculated. It’s simply the longest focal length divided by the shortest focal length. A 10x lens can be either a 16-160, a 24-240, a 50-500, or some other combo like that. A 500mm prime lens isn’t a 10x lens, it’s a 1x lens because it can’t zoom. To be fair the optics in this OPPO phone are actually only 5x and they are using 2x of digital zoom, similar to how Apple gets to 5x zoom with theirs.

Edit: just an fyi the actual focal lengths in this phone are probably more like 1mm to 5mm which is multiplied by the tiny sensor, just like any phone.

The phone doesn't have any zoom at all. It has three different lenses at different focal points

 

[cmaier]

The phone doesn't have any zoom at all. It has three different lenses at different focal points

It’s like a Leica Tri-Elmer.

Except instead of three focal lengths, it’s actually three cameras.

 

[I7guy]

I simply do not understand why Apple fans keep bringing profit as argument. It is like Apple has nothing to be proud of other than have boat loads of money.

As a consumer, I care less about how Apple or Oppo makes. I want good products at decent price. Apple or Oppo who makes more money is irreverent with me. I don’t understand why number one is such important thing for Apple fans. If Apple ships most products, Apple fans will trush other products are garbage. If Apple does not ship most products, Apple fan will claim Apple makes most money.

Please explain to me, why revenue is such important thing for consumer? It isn’t like Apple makes the most money and it spend most in R&D...

Revenue and counter to the endless repetition of the meme that "apple is doomed". No more no less. Apple has no innovation, TC must go, Apple can work on ios upgrades or emoji, memoji sucks the resources out of apple, the followers will buy anything with a logo etc. It's a counter to unproductive criticism of how apple is doing. It's not about the consumer and more about the MacRumors poster.

 

[AZ63]

Apple really should have added a super-wide-angle lens instead of a telephoto lens first. Super-wide-angle lenses are so much more useful than telephoto lenses.

Parents at their children's events would, I think, strongly disagree with you.

 

[hans1972]

Do my eyes deceive me? Are some of ya'll actually saying that optical zoom is not useful?

Zoom can be detrimental to amateur photographers. Zoom with your feet is good advice and lack of zoom will force people to get nearer the subject.

 

[Gudi]

I’m so glad my XR has only one camera lens. It gives me peace of mind.

 

[hans1972]

BBK ( Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus ) , Samsung, Huawei. This isn't 7 years ago when everyone were copying Apple, they are actually putting effort into putting R&D.

Have you looked at MIUI and ColorOS? They sure look like trying to create an Android version of iOS even in the newest versions.

 

[Delgibbons]

Android smartphone manufacturer Oppo has introduced a 10x optical zoom camera system that is said to be shipping in the spring. Engadget describes the system:

Both the main camera and zoom camera come with optical image stabilization, and the phone interpolates between fixed zoom settings to provide continuous "optical" zoom from 1x to 10x.

Oppo allowed hands on time with prototypes of the device with early software. GSMArena and PCWorld provide some sample zoom shots from ultra-wide to 10x zoom.

10x zoom sample shot via PCWorld​

Apple has been widely rumored to be including a triple camera system in their 2019 iPhones. The mosts recent rumor from Ming Chi Kuo indicates that the new iPhones will have a "wide, telephoto, and ultra-wide lens". Apple describes the current iPhone XS as having "Dual 12MP wide-angle and telephoto cameras".

Beyond the presence of the three cameras, the exact advantages to Apple's new system has not been fully articulated. The most concrete features described of the new camera system came from Bloomberg:Apple's next generation 2019 iPhones are expected to launch this fall.

Article Link: Oppo Introduces 10x Optical Zoom Triple-Camera Smartphone

Aaaaaand Samsung already bought the company that designed this technology for $155 million. Coming soon to a galaxy near you

https://www.timesofisrael.com/samsung-said-to-acquire-israels-phone-camera-startup-corephotonics/

 

[danielsutton]

Everybody's innovating while Apple only knows how to raise the price.

Apple is innovating too, and the iPhone is very good, but I agree with you, the prices are getting to be out of sight. If the upward trend in pricing continues, the iPhone will become the best smartphone that nobody wants to buy.

 

[SreeV]

Why isn't anyone talking about the patent infringement or the possibility ?

https://petapixel.com/2016/04/21/apple-patent-shows-apple-may-add-optical-zoom-iphone-7/

 

[9081094]

Everybody's innovating while Apple only knows how to raise the price.

Yeah, I already predicties that by the time Mobile World Congress in Barcelona takes off, the gap between Apple and the rest will only widen. It’s pathetic to see that if I order the new Samsung S10 which will come free with their new air buds, it’s only € 4 a month more than an ancient iPhone 8 and far cheaper than the iPhone XR. What in the hell is Apple thinking with their pricing.

I can honestly predict iPhone sales will make a nosedive over here.
[doublepost=1551040679][/doublepost]

Apple is innovating too, and the iPhone is very good, but I agree with you, the prices are getting to be out of sight. If the upward trend in pricing continues, the iPhone will become the best smartphone that nobody wants to buy.

For your information the new galaxy S10 which comes with free air buds included will be only € 4,- a month more expensive as the ancient iPhone 8. Cheaper than the XR. Who in the hell will chose an iPhone.

But Timmy will only deliver the best and doesn’t care about numbers (his words)

 

[B4U]

It sure is, which is a good thing, right? I remember we used to have phones from Ericsson, Nokia, Siemens, Motorola, Apple. They are all gone. Well, Apple is still fighting but the trend is clear. Now we have Samsung, LG, Huawei, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi.

Considering those companies are controlled by the Communist party, I would avoid them like plague.
Meanwhile, Ericsson's share got bought out by Sony from Sony Ericsson and they still make phones with great specs, but their marketing people is still failing.
Nokia just revealed their new phone that triggers trypophobia symptoms.
Siemens got sold to BenQ and went belly up a long time ago...
Motorola got bought out by Google and then dumped to Lenovo which is another company in China, even though they still exist.

 

[filmshoot]

And why aren't any of these so called innovators, creating lens covers on their precious inventions??

 

[GoodWheaties]

The phone doesn't have any zoom at all. It has three different lenses at different focal points

I know that. It’s all interpolated between.