Oppo N3 to get aircraft grade alloy body?

AndiSeptember 23, 2014

New details reveal what we can expect from Oppo’s next camera centric Oppo N3 smartphone device.

Weibo posts from Oppo have suggested that the next generation camera phone from the company could use an aircraft grade alloy body to keep the frame narrow, protect and also reduce the weight of the device.

The N3 will be the 3rd ’N’ series phone, behind the original Oppo N1 and N1 Mini, and is thought to retain the rotating camera feature of the older models but in a more compact structure.

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We loved the Oppo N1 when we reviewed it earlier this year, but ultimately we gave it up due to the sheer size of the phone. Hopefully the new model will also get an upgrade to LTE and retain the Oppo Find 7’s fast charging feature.

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About the author
Andi

Lerel Ashley
September 23, 2014
Oppo is horrible with updates best if you’re buying this to expect a final stable version in a few months to luckily even a year. The find 7 Gets screwed over a lot by lack of responsive interaction with customers who have problems although they do try sometimes but it’s not always.
- - - www.zixuntop.com
      September 23, 2014

Konstantinos Natsios
September 23, 2014
the vooc (fast charge) is a feature all new phones should have, if it wasnt for oppo’s high pricing the find 7 would be a valid option, now it isnt…,also it has not unified space and that hurts the apps.
- September 23, 2014
  Actually, I think it’s the software that does them in. They’re outclassed by LG with the G3, and they put the final nail in their own coffin with the stubborn adherence to their own Color OS.
  The smart money is betting on moving away from OEM customizations and sticking closer to stock Google. With Android “L” it’s going even more this direction.

balcobomber25
September 23, 2014
I keep hearing the term “aircraft grade” thrown around but that is nothing but marketing hype. As someone who worked on FA 18’s in the Navy I can tell you there are dozens of different types of aluminum used on aircraft and some it is no better than normal everyday aluminium. Just like some phones are built better than others, some aircraft are built better than others. Is this the “aircraft grade” of China or of Sweden? Because there is a huge difference in the quality of the planes made in those two countries.
- September 23, 2014
  When you buy something in the supermarket thats labeled as “homemade”, it clearly wasn’t made in someone’s home, and nobody actually thinks it was. The overuse of the term “homemade” in the US sparked a new word, “housemade”, that showed up on restaurant menus and meant that it was “homemade” and REALLY made in the restaurant and not in a factory that labels things “homemade” (despite the irony of a restaurant NOT being a home, so it isn’t “homemade” there either!).
  But I digress… I think that, these days, the term “aircraft grade aluminum” has a different meaning when applied to consumer electronics. It seems to mean that the exposed parts are milled from a block of aluminum rather than pressed and bent for some other metal. So far, that’s all there is. My guess is that if people start noticing that some gear labeled as “aircraft grade” isn’t so good, then perhaps some manufactured will start using the actual code number for the grade they’re using. But we’re not there yet. We’re still at the “homemade” phase, and haven’t reached “housemade” yet. 😉
- Angry Mobile Nerd
  September 23, 2014
  “Aircraft grade” aluminum usually refers to 6061 aluminum or it’s variant T6-aircraft aluminium which was the buzzword with bicycle manufacturers throughout the 90’s and pretty much anyone else who made accessories out of aluminum. I thought this marketing buzzword was dead until Oppo decided to revive it, just goes to show how out-of-date their marketing team is. Next I predict they’re going to boast about how they use lead-free solder as they run out of ideas.
  There might be some truth to this, however, with the recent developments of iPhone 6 Plus’ bending reports surfacing — maybe Apple didn’t use “aircraft grade” aluminum in the iPhone’s construction? ha.
  - balcobomber25
    September 23, 2014
    6061 (and to a lesser extent 6063) is the most common but it is not the only one, the 2000 and 7000 series of aluminium are also used in aircraft construction. 7000 is mainly used on the frames of aircraft due to their high resistance to corrosion.
    Today though just about every series of aluminum is used in some way, shape or form in Aircraft and each aircraft uses a different type depending on the purpose of the craft. A 747 will have much stronger aluminum than a light aircraft.

Dave Weinstein
September 23, 2014
hmmm… It seems that Oppo really doesn’t like even numbers. I guess it’s some strange form of Numerophobia, there isn’t a name for fearing only the even (or odd) numbers.
Tetraphobia (fear of the number 4) is widely practiced in China and Triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13) is also practiced in China but more as a courtesy to westerners. 😉
Regardless, we’re not getting a N2, Find 6, Find 8, and definitely not a N4 or Find 13!
With regards to the rumor, it’s not worth speculating about. If Oppo stays true to form, then they’ll have an official release as soon as they have engineering samples and stable software. Then, even though the phone has technically been released, it won’t ship to anyone other than the press for months. ZTE’s been just as bad with the X6 and Z7 (not the deprecated Z7 Max that’s actually LESS than the regular Z7).
I’m usually the first in line for a bit of Apple saucing, but at least those guys actually are ready to ship when they make a release!