At Paris Photo 2023, one of the world’s largest international art fairs dedicated to photography, OPPO and Hasselblad announced, last November, the co-development of a next-gen HyperTone Camera System and added that the 2024 smartphones coming from OPPO would show that and much more. The company starts 2024 with the introduction of two smartphones that may well take the industry to a whole new level: the OPPO Find X7 and the OPPO Find X7 Ultra.
The OPPO Find X7 is a more common model, that follows what is expected from a company that uses the partnership with Hasselblad to promote the idea that cameras are a key part of their models. The OPPO Find X7 features a 50-megapixel wide-angle camera, a 50-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, and a 64-megapixel periscope telephoto camera, a setup that is now becoming the norm for many high-end models.
The OPPO Find X7 Ultra is the surprise model, as it has not three but four 50MP cameras with large sensors. The primary camera (wide, 23mm equivalent) uses a second-gen Sony LYT-900 1-inch sensor, a 50MP sensor with f/1.8 aperture lens and OIS; the ultra-wide camera featuring a 50MP 1/1.95-inch Sony LYT-600 sensor has a f/2.0 aperture and 14mm equivalent focal length, and can focus as close as 4cm, making it ideal for both macro and landscape photography. They are impressive, but not much different from what other companies are offering.
Two periscope telephoto cameras
The real innovation is the introduction of two periscope telephoto cameras. The 65mm 3x periscope camera with 1/1.56” Sony IMX890 from the OPPO Find X6 Pro returns here, but OPPO added a 135mm 6x telephoto camera with a 1/2.51” Sony IMX858 sensor. OPPO claims that with this setup the OPPO Find X7 Ultra can cover anything from 14 to 270mm – although with some use of digital trickery – a value that goes beyond the 230mm optical offered by Samsung in the S23 Ultra.
“Find X7 Ultra’s world-first Quad Main Camera will change the way people take photos forever. It removes limitations, unleashes creativity, and with next-generation HyperTone Image Engine and our partnership with Hasselblad, introduces a respect for photography as an art form like never before. Premium, sophisticated style and best-in-class features only add to its game-changing status. It’s a true Ultra.” Said Pete Lau, Senior Vice-President and Chief Product Officer, OPPO.
Now for some interesting numbers that photographers will appreciate: the 65mm 3x periscope camera with f/2.6 aperture and OIS can focus as close as 25cm, while the 135mm 6x telephoto camera, with an aperture of f/4.3 and OIS, can focus as close as 35cm. For anyone working with close up subjects, these distances, the high-resolution of the sensors and the option to add some magnification through digital – up to 270mm, suggested by OPPO – sound like a good option to consider when buying a smartphone to be used as a camera.
The quad-lens system in the OPPO Find X7 Ultra looks like a huge step forward regarding what the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra offers now. The upcoming Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, which is said to have a 5x telephoto, meaning it will have a 115mm optical instead of the 230mm – optical – in previous versions, but paired with a 50MP sensor, may change opinions, but we’ll have to wait until January 17th to know what it really offers.
One more thing to consider: as the OPPO Find X7 Ultra also includes a the 65mm 3x periscope camera with a 50MP sensor against the 70mm periscope camera with a 10MP sensor on the Samsung S24 Ultra – the same as the S23 Ultra -, OPPO appears to offer the best package in terms of cameras.
The OPPO Find X7 Ultra represents the new era in computational photography that OPPO and Hasselblad mentioned last November. Powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, it introduces the next generation of HyperTone Camera Systems that ensures natural-looking photos without compromising quality, uninterrupted zoom, which OPPO claims allows users to use the range from 14mm to 270mm without loss of quality.
Hasselblad’s presence is also felt in the Hasselblad Portrait Mode and Master Mode included. In addition to JPEG and RAW capture, Master Mode also debuts RAW MAX (Hasselblad Master Mode RAW MAX capture will be available in an OTA software update shortly after launch). Capturing 50MP RAW photos that deliver the full benefits of computational photography, RAW MAX photos have 13 stops of dynamic range and 16-bit color depth in BT2020 color space.
Now for the bad news: unless you’re in China, you can not get your hands on the OPPO Find X7 Ultra as the model is only available there. OPPO has no plans for distribution in North America or the rest of the world.