Oppo And MediaTek Say Building A Smartphone Isnt Anything Like Ikea

"It's hard for people to understand how these things are made and how much work goes into making a smartphone. It's not just about taking components out of boxes. We don't go to IKEA to build a living room."

Arne Herkelmann, Head of Product Management at Oppo Europe, smiled as he told me, and I nodded. Making a smartphone is very complex and good partnerships are key to its success.

Digital Trends spoke with Herkelman and MediaTek's VP of Sales and Business Development for Europe, Rob Moffat, about the creation of the Oppo Reno 8 Pro, which ultimately showed how two highly motivated and fast-growing brands work together: win. equipment.

Deer, distance and doe

Herkelmann laughed when asked about the process of building a new phone: "Some people think you open a drawer and say, 'We're building a smartphone today, so get it all together.'" "It's a little more complicated than that."

Oppo chose the MediaTek Dimensity 8100 Max, a high-end mobile chipset, for the Reno 8 Pro, but it wasn't just a pickup. The 8100 Max is one of the latest customizable chips from MediaTek, with manufacturers working with MediaTek to precisely customize chips to requirements through an initiative called Dimensity Open Resource Architecture, or DORA for short.

Herkelman continued, "We knew we wanted to use a MediaTek processor, and we knew we wanted to use the [Oppo-designed] MariSilicon X Neural Processing Unit (NPU) to improve video performance. That means we don't have to. Push the chip as much. MediaTek over the video, and we can let it focus on other areas."

The Oppo and Reno 8 Pro both aim for efficiency, and in my experience, they've been quite successful in this area, with the device amazing in its ability to make the most of its relatively modest battery capacity. Moffat explained that this is all part of the DORA initiative.

"Dimensity 8100 Max is an important part of the conversation," said Moffat. "We work closely at the engineering level [with companies that use DORA chips], some want to focus on AI, some just want to focus on the camera. When Oppo came to us, it was clear that the demand was performance and that there were thousands of hours of research and the development behind [Reno 8 Pro] in terms of chip optimization.”

Herkelmann replied. Oppo and MediaTek have worked together to customize the Reno 8 Pro in terms of efficiency and performance, tuning it the way we want it to run with ColorOS. It's only a 4500 mAh battery and if you just saw it. However, the numbers are quite small and the performance and runtime are much higher than what we get from 5000 mAh battery devices on the market at the moment; It is a coordinated effort by Oppo and MediaTek.

successful cooperation

Oppo and MediaTek are two of the biggest smartphone operators, but there is no doubt that both are more popular in China than the rest of the world. MediaTek, which has recently made great strides in the US, is working with Oppo in Europe, and the Reno 8 Pro is an important collaboration for both companies.

"We've already built a lot of devices with MediaTek in the European market, but we've never done something this big before. Basic phones have fewer features, fewer cameras, don't need customization. What - this," explained Herkelmann. Many or many words. accompanied by colleagues. The Reno 8 Pro was new. It's the first in the European market at this level, and we've adapted it together, and this is the first time we've worked together on software [using MediaTek] to make the chipset do exactly what we wanted it to do . It's also the first time we've brought MariSilicon X to the Reno lineup, and the third [MariSilicon X phone] overall. We were pleased to cooperate and it worked perfectly. . "

The Reno 8 Pro was clearly an important phone for Oppo, and Moffat went on to explain that it was just as important as MediaTek in a different way.

"We've built a lot of resources to support Oppo and others in Europe and deliver these premium devices seamlessly. This was the biggest test [of the new MediaTek resources], but because it was a high-end product from a major smartphone customer, who The first time we used one of our most advanced chips in In the area, it was important to get it right, so we worked closely with Oppo both pre- and post-launch.

Moffat continued, "It takes cooperation and commitment, we have our headquarters and R&D teams working directly with Oppo in China, but more is needed. It requires cooperation between regions to commercialize it."

Association of Startups

MediaTek has long built a strong international reputation, launching cutting-edge chips, innovating in 5G and powering a range of devices sold around the world, from Amazon's Alexa products to the Peloton exercise bike. But Moffat found that working with Oppo on the Reno 8 Pro was a very effective phone card in Europe.

"This partnership shows MediaTek how to do things," he said before talking about his recently opened offices in Dusseldorf, Germany, near Oppo. "Oppo and MediaTek offices are important to us. It is a commitment to support Oppo and others in Europe, where performance must be 100% on time. We are strengthening the team in Europe because this is the way to go. We must to be able to translate how our technology benefits the customer."

This is where Oppo comes in. Although he may not be very well known in the United States, a number of notable sports sponsorships in Europe, from Wimbledon tennis to UEFA soccer, among others, have given him plenty of exposure. Beautifully designed feature-rich phones like the Find X5 Pro have given it credibility. It knows how to sell itself, which MediaTek admits is not very good.

The Reno 8 Pro could be a big step forward for Oppo and MediaTek, but the time has come, Herkelmann explained. “Most of the Oppo A series is powered by MediaTek and for the Find X5 series in China, we launched a variant with a Dimensity 9100 chip inside. The first European smartphone from MediaTek was also Oppo, the Reno 4Z, launched in 2020.

We build for the future

The Reno 8 Pro is one of the best Oppo phones I've used in a long time, and hearing its story explains its success. Moffat explained that while the goal was to make a great phone, he also wanted to showcase its capabilities to you, the buyer; to the final consumer. This time we succeeded and we did very well."

Herkelmann was equally excited about the results and the future of both brands; "We'll keep it going. It's been a very positive experience for both companies. Let's see how it goes."

If the Reno 8 Pro is what two passionate companies can do when they work closely together, we can't wait to see what happens next. The Reno 8 Pro is now available in the UK and Europe, and you can read what we think in our Oppo Reno 8 Pro review.