18'

Hey! Where are iOcean?

AndiOctober 1, 2015

Chinese phone maker iOcean have been extremely quiet for the past few months! What could have happened to them?

iOcean have been a smartphone brand that we can always rely on being there. They were one of the first Chinese phone brands to gain international recognition (with the iOcean X7), and this year they have released a number of flagship phones. So where are they now?

iOcean kicked off this year with the iOcean MT6752 Rock. It was one of the first Mediatek MT6752 phones to launch, had 3GB RAM and featured an ‘interesting’ design. At the time of launch JiaYu also launched the S3 and there were other more capable and better looking models offered so the Rock lost favour with customers.

After the iOcean Rock came the iOcean X9. The X9 saw a huge improvement in design, boasting a slim 6.5mm alloy body, with hardware that was basically the same as the Rock (MT6752 and 3GB RAM) only the display was switched to a 5-inch FHD unit. A compact alloy flagship! It had potential. Then there were rumours that iOcean were preparing a 2K phone with top of the range flagship features, 2K display and Mediatek MT6795.

After such launches, and preparations the company has gone strangely quiet!

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The last time I head from iOcean was sometime back in July, and checking their official Facebook Page we can see that their last update was around the same time (28th July) it read;

It’s now 1st October (2 months after their holiday message) and no one has had an update from them. We have reached out to our contacts at iOcean for comment, but so far there hasn’t been a reply but we are going to try again after this weeks Chinese National Holiday.

What do you think has happened to iOcean? Are they playing it quiet? Are they getting ready for a big surprise launch? Or has this iconic Chinese phone maker gone the way of the Dodo?

Disclaimer: We may be compensated by some of the companies whose products we talk about, but our articles and reviews are always our honest opinions. For more details, you can check out our editorial guidelines and learn about how we use affiliate links.

About the author
Andi

This is weird, indeed. Maybe gone…
Yury
October 1, 2015
They are gone. Quietly. Made bad phones with many issues and no support. I read about their holidays 2 month ago and this makes me laugh on them.
Why holidays lol when Xiaomi and Co doing extremely fast expansion the same time??? The answer is clear. RIP.
- Steven Fox
  October 1, 2015
  Actually the Rock went on sale for just 139,99$ at a time and it was a criminal deal, but I read about overheating and battery issues and decided to skip.
  What iOcean should have done is just decrease the resolution to 720p with a software update and that would have solved the battery and the heating issues.
  - Tremaine Underwood
    October 1, 2015
    I bought one at that price. I was actually pretty blown away by it, Kit Kat absolutely flies on it. Its the most responsive phone I have fiddle with.. see Andi’s review of it, he was pretty impressed at the time. I gave it to my mother she loves it, no issues. The only potential issue I saw was the Battery life, but I see they sell a 3000mah replacement(if the capacity is real). Oh and it uses on screen buttons but it has a massive chin.

Cpaun
October 1, 2015
Most probably they are out of business. Hopefully Jiayu won’t follow them soon.
fido futte
October 1, 2015
Maybe very loooong holiday is good ?
Alexis T
October 1, 2015
Seriously, who gives a fukc about iOcean ? 😀
Tell us about oppo ! Where is the damn Find 9 ? 🙂
- - Alexis T
    October 1, 2015
    It looks like they’re waiting to integrate SD 820 instead of SD 810… or waiting to maximize ROI on R7 series. I hope they’ll come with something great, like Find 7 in its time. Most chinese brands don’t have anything new to sell, just cheap knock-off… so i’ll wait for Oppo’s next move to replace my Find 7. Patience ^^
- Cpaun
  October 1, 2015
  Yes that’s a phone I expect for a while. Also Vivo Xshot 2.
- Kitten
  December 24, 2015
  - Alexis T
    December 29, 2015
pa5t1s
October 1, 2015
This is weird, indeed. Maybe gone…
mf1gt3r
October 1, 2015
- FAEA doesn’t exist anymore.
- Airyl
  October 1, 2015
Yury
October 1, 2015
They are gone. Quietly. Made bad phones with many issues and no support. I read about their holidays 2 month ago and this makes me laugh on them.
Why holidays lol when Xiaomi and Co doing extremely fast expansion the same time??? The answer is clear. RIP.
- Steven Fox
  October 1, 2015
  Actually the Rock went on sale for just 139,99$ at a time and it was a criminal deal, but I read about overheating and battery issues and decided to skip.
  What iOcean should have done is just decrease the resolution to 720p with a software update and that would have solved the battery and the heating issues.
- Tremaine Underwood
  October 1, 2015
  I bought one at that price. I was actually pretty blown away by it, Kit Kat absolutely flies on it. Its the most responsive phone I have fiddle with.. see Andi’s review of it, he was pretty impressed at the time. I gave it to my mother she loves it, no issues. The only potential issue I saw was the Battery life, but I see they sell a 3000mah replacement(if the capacity is real). Oh and it uses on screen buttons but it has a massive chin.

Dante
October 1, 2015
- Tajwar
  October 1, 2015
Cpaun
October 1, 2015
Most probably they are out of business. Hopefully Jiayu won’t follow them soon.
fido futte
October 1, 2015
Maybe very loooong holiday is good ?
Raul
October 1, 2015
I am more concerned about THL tbh
- balcobomber25
  October 1, 2015
  Couldn’t agree more the 2015 was a pretty good phone but since then there has been nothing.
- Sansa
  October 5, 2015
balcobomber25
October 1, 2015
I think they are prepping for something big, maybe a X10 phone. They were too popular of a brand to have just shut their doors without anyone knowing.
- Joel Adames
  October 1, 2015
  Hey i know this will sound particular but WHAT IS IT that no chinese company is showing a similar design phone (slider) to warmly welcome the BLACKBERRY to the android world??? maybe Iocean is quiet due to that, ^.^ fingers crossed as i really really would like a chinese phone with at least jiayu S3 specs and that cool slider factor of the BB. comments???
  - balcobomber25
    October 2, 2015
    Demand more than anything. Blackberry filled a niche of the market and that niche grew smaller and smaller each year with the advent of newer touchscreens that were more accurate for typing. For a company to produce a phone like that it would have to come from one of the big boys like Lenovo or Huaweii. None of these smaller companies could afford to release such a phone which won’t see major sales.
  - Kitten
    December 24, 2015
    There is NO SUCH THING as a non-Asian phone except the Blackberry. Sadly when THEY go bad, there’s NOTHING one can do about it.
    - Joel Adames
      December 25, 2015
      What i meant is that it is odd that to this point none of the regular cloning chinese companies, none, are cloning or even trying to imitate the slider mechanism of the priv or any… for me it is a chame as i love such things… and so i will have to wait for BB to fix their small glitches in software and get my self a used one, hahahaha
      - Kitten
        December 25, 2015
        I’ve been working for almost 6 weeks now with BB and their phone just doesn’t work.
        The Chinese aren’t clones for sure as they are light years ahead of offerings in North America and Europe….at about a fifth the price (I don’t do locked phones…always buy outright).
        I really love the things Android can do, which is why I have two phones.
        I, personally, find all these products from Asia with big name brands to be VERY sub par. Apple even admits they do that on purpose.
        I just wish I could get the BB to work but it seems quite a lost cause.
        My Android is a 64 bit octocore with 128 GB Ram, a 15 mp back camera and since I’m not one to sit around photographing myself as I eat and brush my teeth, am not even sure what the front facing lens is.
        I guess we all have things that are important and that’s why I had two phones.
        Well, whoever this is from BB trying to make the phone work is quite dedicated.
        Maybe soon I’ll be writing that it actually functions. Ya’ never know!
        BTW, Merry Christmas to you! ⛄????
        
        Joel Adames
        December 25, 2015
        Now you lost me … It has many many reviews on YouTube that I can trust but you say it doesn’t work. Please explain as buttery smooth I know it is not but we are not in this page because we are complete iPhone sheep’s right? So yeah…
        Anyways my point is design wise related to the SLIDER design of the PRIV not any OS on it…
        
        Kitten
        December 25, 2015
        Well, I don’t really know how to address that, Joel, as it didn’t take me long at all to find out BB knew about the issues.
        I have to commend them on that they call practically everyday to try new things to make the device work.
        I’ve owned cell phones since my first, an OKI, in 1987, and many (including BlackBerry since).
        If yours is working well, leave it be until they iron out any kinks. Me? Mine is not usable in any way.
        They won’t take it back for another as I bought it unlocked. I guess they prefer to put remedial action into service provider’s hands.
        If yours is good, don’t let it out of your sight!
        I would be rather upset about the slide though. That issue I actually haven’t heard much about BUT know issues both mechanical and processor relayed are fairly common with other similar products. It’s likely why few exist anymore.
        I’ve grown quite tired if those type of features but then, everyone’s different.
        I wish you the best of luck! I could tell you in a nanosecond how to remedy the issue if it was communication between the slide and the processor but mechanical? Nope…I just hope it doesn’t turn into a huge issue as BB uses Cisco for support and they won’t take the phoneback…you have to pounce!
        I’m lost now! I don’t know WHAT to purchase!
        Yes, I adore my Android but let’s be real…they are (unless one configures the heck out of them and pulls all the bloatware out at the root, they are toys (just my opinion! I stripped and rebuilt mine so de-toy-a-fied it but I’m likely the only person alive that has!
        Take care!
        Joel Adames
        December 25, 2015
        Sorry that I can trust you on that one as most of people in worse case scenario just say is a normal device and after the last update they fixed a lot of bugs as this is their 1st android device … So I make myself a question: why would someone who doesn’t like slider phones go and buy one and without good warranty ??? Unless it was a gift ?? (Unlikely) so prove others that I’m wrong on this one as most YOUTUBE videos say otherwise to what you say.
        I do no have one but unless you show pictures you can’t prove you do either.

NextHype
October 1, 2015
Seriously, who gives a fukc about iOcean ? 😀
Tell us about oppo ! Where is the damn Find 9 ? 🙂
- Andi Sykes
  October 1, 2015
  Very good point! Find 9 is MIA
- Cpaun
  October 1, 2015
  Yes that’s a phone I expect for a while. Also Vivo Xshot 2.
- NextHype
  October 1, 2015
  It looks like they’re waiting to integrate SD 820 instead of SD 810… or waiting to maximize ROI on R7 series. I hope they’ll come with something great, like Find 7 in its time. Most chinese brands don’t have anything new to sell, just cheap knock-off… so i’ll wait for Oppo’s next move to replace my Find 7. Patience ^^
- Kitten
  December 24, 2015
  Apparently you’ve never handled an iOcean phone.
- NextHype
  December 29, 2015
mf1gt3r
October 1, 2015
- FAEA doesn’t exist anymore.
- Airyl
  October 1, 2015
Dante
October 1, 2015
- Tajwar
  October 1, 2015
Raul
October 1, 2015
- balcobomber25
  October 1, 2015
  Couldn’t agree more the 2015 was a pretty good phone but since then there has been nothing.
- Sansa
  October 5, 2015
balcobomber25
October 1, 2015
I think they are prepping for something big, maybe a X10 phone. They were too popular of a brand to have just shut their doors without anyone knowing.
- Joel Adames
  October 2, 2015
  Hey i know this will sound particular but WHAT IS IT that no chinese company is showing a similar design phone (slider) to warmly welcome the BLACKBERRY to the android world??? maybe Iocean is quiet due to that, ^.^ fingers crossed as i really really would like a chinese phone with at least jiayu S3 specs and that cool slider factor of the BB. comments???
- balcobomber25
  October 2, 2015
  Demand more than anything. Blackberry filled a niche of the market and that niche grew smaller and smaller each year with the advent of newer touchscreens that were more accurate for typing. For a company to produce a phone like that it would have to come from one of the big boys like Lenovo or Huaweii. None of these smaller companies could afford to release such a phone which won’t see major sales.
- Kitten
  December 24, 2015
  There is NO SUCH THING as a non-Asian phone except the Blackberry. Sadly when THEY go bad, there’s NOTHING one can do about it.
- Joel Adames
  December 25, 2015
  What i meant is that it is odd that to this point none of the regular cloning chinese companies, none, are cloning or even trying to imitate the slider mechanism of the priv or any… for me it is a chame as i love such things… and so i will have to wait for BB to fix their small glitches in software and get my self a used one, hahahaha
- Kitten
  December 25, 2015
  I’ve been working for almost 6 weeks now with BB and their phone just doesn’t work.
  The Chinese aren’t clones for sure as they are light years ahead of offerings in North America and Europe….at about a fifth the price (I don’t do locked phones…always buy outright).
  I really love the things Android can do, which is why I have two phones.
  I, personally, find all these products from Asia with big name brands to be VERY sub par. Apple even admits they do that on purpose.
  I just wish I could get the BB to work but it seems quite a lost cause.
  My Android is a 64 bit octocore with 128 GB Ram, a 15 mp back camera and since I’m not one to sit around photographing myself as I eat and brush my teeth, am not even sure what the front facing lens is.
  I guess we all have things that are important and that’s why I had two phones.
  Well, whoever this is from BB trying to make the phone work is quite dedicated.
  Maybe soon I’ll be writing that it actually functions. Ya’ never know!
  BTW, Merry Christmas to you! ⛄🎄🎀🎁🎅
- Joel Adames
  December 25, 2015
  Now you lost me … It has many many reviews on YouTube that I can trust but you say it doesn’t work. Please explain as buttery smooth I know it is not but we are not in this page because we are complete iPhone sheep’s right? So yeah…
  Anyways my point is design wise related to the SLIDER design of the PRIV not any OS on it…
- Kitten
  December 25, 2015
  Well, I don’t really know how to address that, Joel, as it didn’t take me long at all to find out BB knew about the issues.
  I have to commend them on that they call practically everyday to try new things to make the device work.
  I’ve owned cell phones since my first, an OKI, in 1987, and many (including BlackBerry since).
  If yours is working well, leave it be until they iron out any kinks. Me? Mine is not usable in any way.
  They won’t take it back for another as I bought it unlocked. I guess they prefer to put remedial action into service provider’s hands.
  If yours is good, don’t let it out of your sight!
  I would be rather upset about the slide though. That issue I actually haven’t heard much about BUT know issues both mechanical and processor relayed are fairly common with other similar products. It’s likely why few exist anymore.
  I’ve grown quite tired if those type of features but then, everyone’s different.
  I wish you the best of luck! I could tell you in a nanosecond how to remedy the issue if it was communication between the slide and the processor but mechanical? Nope…I just hope it doesn’t turn into a huge issue as BB uses Cisco for support and they won’t take the phoneback…you have to pounce!
  I’m lost now! I don’t know WHAT to purchase!
  Yes, I adore my Android but let’s be real…they are (unless one configures the heck out of them and pulls all the bloatware out at the root, they are toys (just my opinion! I stripped and rebuilt mine so de-toy-a-fied it but I’m likely the only person alive that has!
  Take care!
- Joel Adames
  December 25, 2015
  Sorry that I can trust you on that one as most of people in worse case scenario just say is a normal device and after the last update they fixed a lot of bugs as this is their 1st android device … So I make myself a question: why would someone who doesn’t like slider phones go and buy one and without good warranty ??? Unless it was a gift ?? (Unlikely) so prove others that I’m wrong on this one as most YOUTUBE videos say otherwise to what you say.
  I do no have one but unless you show pictures you can’t prove you do either.

Barry
October 1, 2015
- - Barry
    October 2, 2015
    I did a bit of digging and found their last phone on Pandawill for $249 used LOL I think they returned to their core digital audio products
- Raul
  October 2, 2015
Guest
October 2, 2015
- i migth be to new to this as i don’t recall hearing that brand
- Raul
  October 2, 2015
  I remember them they used to have decent devices.
- Guest
  October 2, 2015
  I did a bit of digging and found their last phone on Pandawill for $249 used LOL I think they returned to their core digital audio products

Zaagsel in m'n kop
October 2, 2015
- Alexis T
  October 2, 2015
Guest
October 2, 2015
- NextHype
  October 2, 2015
Max
October 5, 2015
the way of the dodo? gotta remember that line! XD
Steve B
October 5, 2015
according to a review on XDA of the X9 highlighting the unfinished Android software that makes the phone near unusable (only get one if virtually free they say), they claim Iocean went bankrupt in July, hope to restructure and reopen, but unlikely.
- - Steve B
    October 7, 2015
Max
October 5, 2015
the way of the dodo? gotta remember that line! XD
Steve B
October 5, 2015
according to a review on XDA of the X9 highlighting the unfinished Android software that makes the phone near unusable (only get one if virtually free they say), they claim Iocean went bankrupt in July, hope to restructure and reopen, but unlikely.
- Guest
  October 7, 2015