Oppo launches N1 Mini and mid-range R3 smartphones

By Malarie Gokey June 11, 2014

oppo launches n1 mini r3 smartphones n1mini — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Oppo finally launched the mini version of its popular N1 smartphone on Tuesday in China. The new Oppo N1 Mini arrived alongside a mid-range smartphone called the Oppo R3. Both devices wear the company’s signature style, and sport decent specifications.

Oppo N1 Mini

The Oppo N1 Mini has a 5-inch screen with 720p resolution, as opposed to the original Oppo N1, which comes with a larger 5.9-inch 1080p display. Though the Mini is powered by a 1.6 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, instead of the Snapdragon 600 found on the bigger model, it makes up for that by shipping with 2GB of RAM. Oppo gave the N1 Mini just 16GB of storage, and it looks like you’re stuck with that, as it doesn’t appear to have a MicroSD card slot. The N1 Mini runs a customized version of Android 4.3, which Oppo calls Color OS.

oppo-n1-mini-7 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Oppo N1 Mini isn’t quite as slender as the larger N1, but the extra 0.2 millimeters don’t make that much of a difference. The Mini is, of course, quite a bit smaller in terms of height and width. Aside from that, the N1 Mini looks almost exactly like the original. It comes in white, and has the same unique rotating camera that debuted with the N1. This 13-megapixel shooter works as both the Mini’s front and rear camera, which makes it one of the best choices for selfies and group shots.

Recommended Videos

Oppo will sell the N1 Mini in China for around 2699 Yuan, and will be available starting next week. So far, there’s no word regarding a U.S. release.

Oppo R3

oppo-r3 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The R3 was the other smartphone that Oppo launched on Tuesday. The R3 is a typical mid-range device, and wields a 5-inch, 1280 x 720 pixel display. It’s powered by a 1.6 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 quad-core processor, and offers 1GB of RAM. Although the R3 comes with just 8GB of storage, it does appear to have a MicoSD card slot, which allows you to add up to 128GB of storage.

The R3 may not have the N1 Mini’s swivel camera, but it does have a serviceable 8-megapixel shooter on the back, and a 5-megapixel one on the front. It’s also quite thin, measuring just 6.3 millimeters thick. In terms of connectivity, the R3 comes with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, 3G, and 4G LTE. This smartphone is also running Color OS.

Oppo will sell the R3 in China for 2299 Yuan starting sometime this month, which is a pretty good price for a mid-range device like this.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

As DT's Mobile Editor, Malarie runs the Mobile and Wearables sections, which cover smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and…

Mobile

I love the Oura Ring 4, except for one big thing

Oura RIng 4 Silver Size 12 on a shelf

Since I had a heart attack four years ago at the age of 33, the Oura Ring has been a trusty sidekick for managing my health. First, it was the Oura Ring 2, and a few months later, the Oura Ring 3 became my go-to when it launched three years ago.

That’s changed this year as every company competes for a spot on our best smart rings list. The number of smart rings has grown exponentially this year, and many companies are launching first-generation or second-generation smart rings — offering viable alternatives to Oura. The company’s answer? The Oura Ring 4.

Mobile

Don’t buy the Kindle Colorsoft, buy this e-reader instead

dont buy the kindle colorsoft onyx boox go color 7 instead 1

Everyone is talking about e-readers again, and it's because Amazon recently released a whole new bunch of Kindles. Of the new releases, one stands apart as something new for Amazon: The Kindle Colorsoft is the company's first attempt at a color e-ink display, and it replaces the long-forgotten Kindle Oasis as Amazon's new flagship e-reader device. At $280, it's certainly an expensive piece of kit — especially if you consider the basic Kindle costs almost a third of that. But it's quite simply the most advanced Kindle that Amazon has ever made.

So, does that mean you should buy it immediately? Absolutely not; I want you to buy something else instead.

Mobile

Mega gaming phone’s specs look set to crush the competition

The Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro's mini-LED display on the back of the phone.

Asus is preparing to launch the ROG Phone 9 and 9 Pro in November, and we've been given a hint at the specificationa in an extensive leak ahead of the big day. The ROG Phone 9 and 9 Pro will both have 6.78-inch displays with a variable fresh rate up to 120Hz, according to YTechB. However, there's a dedicated "Game Genie" mode (which is an excellent name for a gaming phone feature) that can reach up to 185Hz — perfect for competitive games like Call of Duty Mobile. The screen resolution is 1080 x 2448 pixels, and the phone itself measures in at 163.77 by 76.78 by 8.9 mm.

As far as the processor goes, the ROG Phone 9 and 9 Pro will be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset and the Adreno 830 GPU. Of course, they'll both sport Android 15, too. We aren't sure how many different configurations will be available, but it seems the ROG Phone 9 will have the option of 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, while the Pro model will likely have 16GB of RAM and 512GB storage. It's possible there will be other options, too.