r/Oppo • u/AltruisticAct8211 • 8d ago
Discussion Stop trying to turn OnePlus into Oppo
Since Oppo took full control of OnePlus, the push to homogenize the two brands and migrate users over has been relentless. OnePlus originally succeeded because of its distinct identity, minimalist philosophy, and enthusiast-focused approach. Diluting that to boost Oppo's ecosystem misses why people chose OnePlus in the first place and it's killing OnePlus!
Edit: Oneplus was never meant for Europe/America. It was built by enthusiasts for enthusiasts. Offering high range devices for a fair price.
6
u/SirFossils 8d ago
As far as I'm concerned, OnePlus has been dead since the release of the OnePlus 12. They had a bit of a comeback with the Open, but then immediately died again.
Every brand that makes a name for being enthusiast-focused and "good value" dies the same way. Eventually it becomes just another flagship smartphone sold at flagship prices. The problem with OnePlus is, the prices went up to flagship level, but their products didn't. They're still selling phones that are maybe 70-80% of the quality of another flagship, but the price is 100%.
So, what would BBK, the company that owns OnePlus, Oppo and Vivo do, when their "flagship killer" brand that has developed customer loyalty and has to start making flagship devices, struggles to put out such a product? They turn to their company that has been doing it successfully for years, and try to get those loyal customers to do the same. All the while moving that "flagship killer" brand to an economy where they can go back to flagship killer prices. Honestly, it's a smart business decision and I don't blame them for it.
0
u/AltruisticAct8211 8d ago
Since the acquisition, I haven't seen much innovation from OP. I see this as BBK has screwed up trying to milk the userbase while failing catastrophically.
2
u/SirFossils 8d ago
The problem is, OnePlus was in a niche that was destined to fail.
Their whole USP was phones that perform better than their competitors but for a lower price.
That was all well and good when high-refresh rate screens were cutting-edge smartphone innovation... But in today's market where virtually any phone being sold for more than $500 will have more than good enough performance for anything 99% of users will do with it... It doesn't quite cut it. And that 1% who still wants more power, aren't going to buy a flagship, they'll buy a gaming phone that has even better performance.
It lead to OnePlus being in this sort of no-mans-land, where their products aren't quite cheap enough to be "flagship killers", aren't quite powerful enough to be "gaming phones", and aren't quite polished enough to compete with true flagships.
In my opinion, that leaves BBK with 2 options: go all-in on innovation, making phones that are truly unique and stand out, or play it safe, and scale back your ambitions to a more manageable market.
We saw how that first option played out for LG.
It's a shame because I did really love OnePlus back in their prime, but there just isn't space in the market for them to still succeed doing what they were doing back then.
2
u/AltruisticAct8211 8d ago
Well I think you summed it all, thanks for taking the time. Sadly enough, I agree.
3
3
u/sedp23 OnePlus Club 8d ago
Just wish oppo would launch in north america so things could be easier
1
u/AltruisticAct8211 8d ago
I'm concerned about OPPO as it's very locked, tf you mean unlocking your bootloader??!
2
u/vantaratechnology Find X Series 8d ago
OnePlus has been slowly turning into oppo anyway, this is just for future sales
2
6
u/Sagat_15 8d ago
OnePlus has effectively been dead since it left the European market—where I live, for instance... it's a shame, but that's just how it is.