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The Find N, Oppo’s first folding smartphone in an attractive compact format, is reserved for the Chinese market. However, we took the time to try it out and evaluate the most important elements of the device in the laboratory: its two screens.
Oppo Find N
The first folding smartphone from Oppo, the Find N has the main drawback of not being marketed in our regions. But the world number four will not stick to this first attempt reserved for the Chinese market and should, probably by the end of the year, unveil a more widely available device.
We were therefore able to test the smartphone which, remember, is equipped with a high-end technical sheet. The sad spirits may reproach him for relying “only” on a Snapdragon 888 chip, and not on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 formalized in December by Qualcomm, but it must be admitted that the chipset is not yet outdated. . It is flanked by 8 to 12 GB of RAM, 256 to 512 GB of storage and, to support it, a 4500 mAh battery. The manufacturer indicates that this one, for lack of space, is satisfied with a fast charge at 33 W (15 W in wireless), honorable despite everything. Note that the smartphone offers a triple rear photo module, which has a 50 Mpx sensor with a wide-angle (f / 1.8), a 13 Mpx sensor with a telephoto lens equivalent to 52 mm (f / 2.4) and a 16MP sensor with ultra-wide-angle optics (equivalent to 14mm, f/2.2). If this block resembles, in terms of integration, that of the Find X3 Pro, its characteristics are revised downwards with regard to the ultra wide-angle.
We underlined it in the video: it is above all its format that challenges. This Find N is indeed equipped, on the outside, with a 5.49-inch screen (988 x 1972 pixels, 402 dpi), which allows it to display dimensions of 132.6 x 73 mm. Attention: if it can be used with one hand without difficulty, the device is of course thicker than a traditional terminal – count 15.9 mm (and a weight of 275 grams). The folding screen of the smartphone hides inside. This displays a diagonal of 7.1 inches (1792 x 1920 pixels, 370 dpi) and an 8.4: 9 ratio, that is to say that it is almost square.
If there’s one thing to remember about it, it’s Oppo’s handling of crease: the manufacturer relies on a hinge designed in such a way that almost no marks are visible in the middle of its screen and that ‘you can barely feel this fold under your finger.
Oled inside and outside, but variable fluidity
These two screens share common specificities, since they are two OLED panels. However, they should not be thought of as equivalent, at least on one of the most popular characteristics of the moment: the refresh rate. The outer screen of the device has a 60 Hz panel, that is to say the standard refresh rate for mobiles. Its interior panel, for its part, benefits from LTPO technology, which allows it to offer adaptive refreshment, capable of varying between 1 and 120 Hz. What must therefore be remembered is that, whatever the colorimetry or deltaE of these two displays, only the folding screen of the Find N will offer enough to take advantage of an effect of increased fluidity and the best possible comfort in game. Let’s not be in bad faith: a 60 Hz display is not not really penalizing.
The folding screen tested by our probes
For its first folding screen, has Oppo been able to demonstrate control? The Find N that we had in our hands showed great qualities. Like any screen in its class, it benefits from protection, here a 0.3 mm thick glass whose durability we will refrain from commenting on.
This screen, according to Oppo, should reach a peak brightness of 1000 nits. On our side, we measured an excellent score of 850 cd / m², very close for example to a Galaxy Z Flip 3 and its 928 cd / m2. It’s no more prone to glare than other smartphones, with its 48.9% reflectance, and can drop down to 2.1 cd/m² as needed for comfortable reading in the dark.
This slab is equally mastered in terms of colors. The drifts are very contained, even with its “Vivid” mode selected by default: the deltaE measured under our probes does not exceed 2.7 and the color temperature, admittedly a little cold, is 7534 K, against 6500 K for reference video standard. But selecting the “Natural” mode drops these two data in one click to 1.4, as far as deltaE is concerned, and 6865 K, for the temperature: it’s excellent. For comparison, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, once calibrated, reaches a dE of 2.2 and a temperature of 6648 K.
On the other side of the hinge
Unlike the Galaxy Z Fold 3 precisely, the exterior screen of the Find N sports a conventional display ratio (18:9). This 5.49-inch screen, compact by market standards, is surrounded by visible borders, but occupies almost the entire front of the smartphone. It is also protected by Gorilla Glass Victus, the strongest Corning to date, and adopted by many premium terminals.
The differences are slim between this panel and the interior screen of the Find N. Its maximum brightness could be measured at 819 cd / m² and its minimum brightness at 2.1 cd / m². Suffice to say that reading comfort is essential, in full sun and in the dark.
Like its folding counterpart, this Oled screen offers good calibration. Its deltaE of 2.9 and its temperature of 7287 K in “Vivid” mode selected by default give way to even more convincing values in “Natural” mode: the deltaE goes to 1.7 and the color temperature to 6656 K In “Pro” mode, it even stands at 6574 K, the deltaE then being 2.9. Below 3, the human eye not perceiving drifts, this mode can be chosen without fear.
The question of uses
These two good screens logically serve as an interface to switch the elements displayed on one to the other by opening or closing the screen, which works well. The inner screen, meanwhile, plays the multi-windowing card, offering a few gestures to easily create floating windows or split the display into two areas.
Some apps tested on this large, almost square screen take advantage of the entire display area (like Call of Duty Mobile), but the challenge for Oppo will be to convince developers to adapt their titles to this type of panel when a future folding smartphone is released internationally. Until then, Google will however be present in support since Mountain View is working on an Android 12L adapted to folding screens and should present the final version shortly.