Oppo’s Michael Tran on Flipping the Script With the Company’s Latest Phone

Oppo recently announced that its new Find N2 Flip phone will be hitting Australian shores on March 16 (pre-orders start on March 2) for an RRP of AUD $1499. It’s the first time a foldable device from the company has been available outside the Chinese market, and while the Flip does have some competition, it’s looking to set itself apart through its seamless crease, its 3.26 inch vertically orientated Cover Screen, and its large 4300mAh battery, among other things.

I sat down with Oppo Australia’s Managing Director, Michael Tran, during this year’s Mobile World Congress, to find out a little more about Oppo and the Flip.

IGN: Tell me about Oppo’s beginnings in the Aussie market.

Michael Tran: We launched in the Australian market in 2014… [and] within a period of two years, we became the number three player. At the time when we launched I’d say the one thing that I was really focused on was building the brand in one space. So when I say that, [I mean] it wasn’t trying to be everything to everyone. When we launched, we focused on fashion, we focused on our target demographic, which was women… that was our target audience in China, hence why the devices were done in that particular way, like gold phones and pinks and rose gold. Mint colour devices. 

Things started to change for us when we got into the carriers – the likes of Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone, and that’s when the brand really started taking off. We positioned ourselves as premium without the price tag. It was [about] having all the bells and whistles and making it as affordable as we can and really growing our brand share. 

We positioned ourselves as premium without the price tag.

And then after that we started focusing on that midrange price point to high end. We launched the Find X series in Australia, which… is our flagship device. But the one thing about Oppo was that our flagship device wasn’t a regular thing, where we launched a new flagship every year. So it was very hard for us to build that momentum in [our] brand, because consumers weren’t anticipating next year there’ll be another Find series.

But I think now over the last few years in the Australian market, Australian consumers have seen how Oppo has really won that entry level place and is now moving into that premium price point. We won the Canstar Awards a few times, the WhistleOut awards, so Australian consumers do know us, but really in the entry level place, and now we’re trying to move into the premium [market]. 

I think the Find N2 Flip is what will give us that opportunity [for consumers] to really go, ‘Hey, that’s a brand I’ve already used before, now they’ve got this great new device.’ It’s probably a good opportunity and timing for us to launch this device because, yes, candy bars have been the form factor of the last few years, but maybe flip and fold will become the norm in the next few years. So then it’s who’s going to be first to market to capture that? So you’re front of mind and we are one of a few brands trying to do that now. I’m really confident in this product.

IGN: So why this phone and why now to debut a foldable internationally?

Michael Tran: The previous phone that we launched that was a foldable device was the Find N. And that was launched only… in the China market. I guess the reason for that is, you know, it’s our first form factor device and we want to make sure that it really is a great product before we release it internationally. So when we were given the opportunity to launch the Flip in other markets, I took the opportunity and said yes straight away because Australian consumers are craving that new form factor device, and I thought it was the right time to launch this product in the market. Knowing that the team have put so much effort into R&D and looking at all the pain points from, you know, having a [high capacity] battery [through to] the Cover Screen on the front. All the other competitors have a horizontal screen, but for us it’s a vertical, so it’s more user-friendly and… we are working with app developers at the moment, in Spotify, and hopefully other app developers [who’ll] come on board to help us… [expand the selection of widgets].

IGN: What’s that R&D process like?

Michael Tran: We’ve been working on it since 2018 and we spend 10% of our total global budget on just R&D. And that, for us, is quite important… especially when we were moving into the 5G and 6G space; we were investing quite a lot of money to really work into this area. And actually at the end of this year, we probably will have Inno Day, which is something that we do every year that talks about our upcoming products, what we’ve been working on in the last few years, showcasing things such as fast charging. Last year at MWC we showcased 150 watt charge capabilities – you can charge a phone from zero to a hundred percent in nine minutes. [Fast charging] is something that Oppo’s really been known for. 

We spend 10% of our total global budget on just R&D.

IGN: What do you think are the key things that are going to excite Aussies about the Flip?

Michael Tran: The seamless crease is one thing… the other thing I think is the Cover Screen – other competitors out there have the horizontal screen as I mentioned, but we have a vertical 3.2 inch, which is one of the largest in the market… And the other thing is, as I mentioned, the battery – having fast charging, a larger battery than anyone else in the market will help as well. These are the things that I think consumers will look towards when they look at form factor, especially the flip type of device.

IGN: What do you think the next big things will be in the world of mobile?

Michael Tran: I think in the mobile space, we have 6G coming in the next few years, which is going to be really interesting. I’d say that the form factor again may change. You’ve seen us especially – and I’ve seen other brands do it as well – but have rollable devices come out. So you can think about how compact a rollable device would be. Whether that then translates into wearables as well being mobile devices? These are just things that will happen in the future naturally. But yeah, it’s hard to say… going back to Oppo again, we will always work on new latest and greatest and crazy ideas, but do we bring it to market? I’m not sure – is the consumer ready for it? It’s all about timing for us because we’re not that type of brand to go – let’s just release a product for the sake of releasing it, and it not doing well. 

You can find out more about the Find N2 Flip here. Cam Shea attended Mobile World Congress as a guest of Oppo.