OPPO targets bigger share in smartphones

MANILA, Philippines — Smartphone brand OPPO aims to capture a fifth of the market in the Philippines this year through the sale of the latest flagship model F7 and improved after-sales support.

Philippine OPPO Mobile Technology Inc. vice president Garrick Hung told reporters the company intends to increase its share of the smartphone market in the country to 20 percent this year from 15 percent previously.

“Year-on-year, based on data we are seeing and internal analysis, we are growing. So, we’re hoping that we’d be able to increase continuously our market share in the Philippines,” he said.

OPPO, which started operations in the Philippines in 2014, is currently the second biggest international smartphone brand in the country, trailing behind Korean brand Samsung.

Hung said the company is banking on the launch of the F7 to help the company increase its share in the country’s smartphone market.

There’s been strong interest in the F7 with pre-orders reaching 25,133 units as of April 19.

“We’re seeing there’s more interest, more purchases or pre-orders made as compared to its predecessor F5. We’re seeing it’s going to be accepted more by the market,” Hung said.

The F7 brings a new standard to smartphone photography through its 25-megapixel front-facing camera and artificial intelligence (AI) beauty technology for natural-looking selfies.

Aside from the selfie technology, the F7 comes with a 6.23-inch super full screen display and is powered by a 12nm Octa-Core processor with two dedicated AI cores and 4GB RAM, as well as upgraded storage of 64 GB, with an option to expand with a MicroSD card.

Available in solar red and moonlight silver, the F7 retails for P17,990, while the 128GB and 6 GB RAM variant costs P21,990.

Customers can opt to get the phone through Plan 1499 either through Smart Communications Inc. or Globe Telecom Inc.

Hung said the company is also focusing on after-sales to increase its market share.

He said the company may open three to five new service centers this year, to add to the existing 30 nationwide.