Oppo has just released the first-ever dual periscope cameraphone, setting a new bar in mobile photography.
The latest flagship camera from Oppo, the Oppo Find X7 Ultra, was released in China yesterday (January 8), and it looks set to become one of the best camera phones for photography. The new Android phone has a total of four 50MP rear cameras, each with a different optical zoom, meaning that the quad-cam setup offers a consistent zoom between 14mm and 270mm, 'without degradation in image quality'.
The Find X7 Ultra incorporates a dual-periscope camera, making it the first smartphone ever to do so. It retains the 65mm 3x perioscope from the Oppo Find X6 Pro providing a bright aperture of f/2.6. The second periscope camera comes in the form of a 135mm 6x telephoto camera, with an in-built OIS and a minimum focusing distance of just 35cm.
The other two cameras consist of one wide camera with a second-generation 1-inch Sony stacked sensor, an aperture of f/1.8 and OIS, and an ultra-wide 14mm f/2 equivalent with an impressive minimum focusing distance of just 4cm!
Another reason to be excited about this camera is that Oppo has continued its partnership with Hasselblad and the portrait sample images provided, may just be the best photographs I have seen taken on a phone. Granted, great lighting conditions, photographer, and subject are a huge part, but how the camera seems to render the depth of field looks more medium format camera-like than a camera phone.
The 65mm and 135mm focal lengths are perfect for portraiture, enabling enhanced subject compression and depth of field fall-off. Portraits are also now said to be easier to capture in low light, with improved ISO, large sensors, and wide apertures.
Smart capture also lets you focus on humans and animals, recognizing both with ease. The cameras render the bokeh and out-of-focus areas naturally, without the odd blur that is often produced in portrait modes on other phones.
In addition to the natural-looking background blur, another reason why I think the sample images sing is the color tones. I have always had an appreciation for Hasselblad's color science, and it appears to have been replicated in the Oppo cameras. Skin tones appear natural and the depth in color tone is exceptional.
The Oppo Find X7 Ultra enables more refinement in its Master Mode developed by Hasselblad. This is a pro capture mode where you can refine settings, much like on a mirrorless camera, and control RAW shooting with RAW MAX.
The Oppo Find X7 Ultra is out now in China, and unfortunately, there is no news or scheduled release for the US and Europe. Hopefully, this may change moving forward, or perhaps Oppo is working on another camera for these regions that incorporate the same camera tech, as I will be first in line to test it out.
You can find out more about the Oppo Find X7 Ultra on the Oppo website.
You may also be interested in our guides to the best phone for vlogging and the best stylus phone.
