Oct 26, 2020
Oppo’s entry in the South African Smartphone Market!
Oppo is one of the few brands that has not launched any device in the Africa Smartphone market. But that is going to change soon as Oppo gears up to launch three smartphones for its African consumers. It is expected to launch three Smartphones, the Oppo A72, A53s, and A15 in October 2020.
And as per certain reports, Oppo will be testing the market by launching three mid-range phones before venturing into flagships. If the reports are true, Oppo will be launching new flagships in the country going forward. Also, the report says that the Oppo A72 will be priced at R7000 (ZAR- South African Rand). The main focus of this launch is being put on this phone although it comes as a little on the steeper side in terms of price.
Oppo A72 is a known smartphone but the Oppo A53s and the Oppo A15 are new launches. I personally think that Oppo devices powered by Mediatek will have a concrete base as not only is mediatek a well-known brand in the region but it also makes the devices affordable without compromising on performance. Snapdragon-powered phones end up being less accessible because their prices are always steep compared to their features because of their high-cost manufacturing process.
Oppo A15 shows quite a lot of potential even for an affordable device. It is expected to be a single variant smartphone with the Mediatek Helio P35 chipset. I will write a standalone blog on this phone once the specifications are launched. The Oppo A53s however could be better in terms of its integrated Snapdragon 460 processor. Both of these smartphones are expected to have a price point of less than 7000R.
There are quite a lot of expectations from Oppo as soon as it declared its plans on launching and operations in the region. I do think that there is a high possibility for Oppo to gain success with their camera-centric smartphones in the affordable ranges. The combination of Mediatek and Oppo has been reliably successful in Asia because it becomes more accessible to a larger number of consumers. The same can also be expected in Africa, in my opinion.
I am excited to see Oppo’s journey in this vast market and whether it is able to navigate it in order to gain the advantage that it is looking for. Only time will tell but the fact that the brand is hoping to launch flagship phones as well in the first quarter of 2021, does speak of its long-term plan. What do you all think of this new (in terms of the region) brand in the market?
