Bucket Tech: OPPO Find X

OPPO took to the stage recenlty at the Snapdragon Summit 2022 to introduce a collaboration between OPPO and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. in ray tracing graphics for mobile devices. The two companies have been collaborating since early phase of the next-gen driver development. Thanks to the great effort, users can experience a fully optimized hardware-based ray tracing feature on the flagship Snapdragon® 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform when it releases. At the Snapdragon Summit, OPPO also demonstrated the breakthroughs achieved in its collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies and Google to implement Google Vertex AI Neural Architecture Search (Google NAS) on a smartphone for the first time. The new solution will boost energy efficiency and latency of AI processing on mobile devices. 

As a long-term partner of Qualcomm Technologies, OPPO has also announced that it will use the latest launched premium Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform in its next Find X flagship devices, delivering a leap in video, gaming, and connectivity experiences for mobile users worldwide.

OPPO’s next Find X flagship smartphone will be one of the firsts to be powered by the Premium Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform ）

Pete Lau, Senior Vice President and Chief Product Officer at OPPO, said: "OPPO’s collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies has reached a new stage. Together, we have carried out research into several cutting-edge areas of technology that will support the development and implementation of innovative technologies on mobile devices. Drawing on OPPO’s extensive experience in mobile graphics and AI, and the powerful capabilities of the new flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, OPPO and Qualcomm Technologies have delivered a breakthrough in mobile ray tracing technology and brought Google NAS to smartphone for the first time. We look forward to extending our cooperation with Qualcomm Technologies as we redefine the smartphone experience and place more cutting-edge technology into the hands of millions of users around the world."

“We are excited to work with OPPO to bring hardware accelerated ray tracing experience to mobile games," said Ziad Asghar, Vice President of Product Management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. "The collaboration between Qualcomm Technologies and OPPO in this area allows game developers to take full advantage of desktop-level quality ray tracing to provide the highest visual fidelity, life-like aliasing free shadows, reflections on curved surfaces and global illumination to unlock next-level gaming experience on mobile, all in real-time at usable frame rate. The collaboration covers the entire render stack, this is a significant step in driving forward the mobile gaming ecosystem. We look forward to deepening our cooperation with OPPO, to further explore the possibilities of innovation landing on mobile devices powered by premium-tier Snapdragon platforms."

OPPO and Qualcomm Technologies deliver breakthroughs in mobile graphics processing and AI through underlying technology optimizations

As the first smartphone manufacturer to provide an open-sourced ray tracing solution for mobile, OPPO has collaborated with Qualcomm Technologies to conduct software optimizations based on the new generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform. These optimizations enable OPPO’s ray tracing technology to be applied to complex, large-scale game scenes on mobile devices.

Visitors to the Snapdragon Summit 2022 were able to experience this ray tracing technology on live game demos, making OPPO the only smartphone manufacturer at the Snapdragon Summit to demonstrate such technology on handsets powered by the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform. 

Running on a device powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform, with multiple ray tracing effects turned on, top mobile games can run at a steady 60 FPS while providing life like soft shadows and reflections for the highest gaming visual quality. Compared with previous software only generation, ray tracing render efficiency increased by a factor of 5 and reduced the CPU workload by 90%1. These advances will enable the mobile game industry to step away from its reliance on using software simulation to achieve ray tracing effects, and instead bring advanced, ultra-realistic lighting to complex, large-scale game scenes on mobile devices.

OPPO was the first smartphone manufacturer to develop ray tracing technology on mobile devices through software. Since 2020, OPPO has been building an open ecosystem around the technology that brings together creators, game developers, and game engine developing platforms with the PhysRay SDK — the first open-sourced ray tracing solution on mobile devices released by OPPO. To better cater to the various needs of developers, OPPO has continued to optimize the PhysRay engine for enhanced compatibility between different hardware and software configurations. The Open, Convenient, Adaptive and Balance ray tracing solution acts as a much-needed bridge between hardware and software when implementing ray tracing on mobile devices. 

In addition to the cooperation in mobile ray tracing technology, OPPO has been working with Qualcomm Technologies and Google to enhance future AI capabilities on mobile devices. Under the collaboration, OPPO has successfully integrated the hardware power reward into Google NAS for the first time. Through optimizations to the AI algorithms based on the specific chip characteristics, OPPO’s implementation achieves a 27% reduction in power of the target detection algorithm and a 40% reduction in computing latency. Together, these improvements will enable AI models to be trained with greater energy efficiency and hardware friendliness in a shorter timeframe2. 

With ‘Inspiration Ahead’， OPPO is working with Qualcomm Technologies to bring more innovative technologies to mobile devices

OPPO and Qualcomm Technologies’ efforts in ray tracing technology and AI are part of a long-standing collaboration between the two companies. Snapdragon flagship mobile platforms have featured on several OPPO smartphones, through which they have brought 5G mobile experiencers to more users worldwide. In 2022, OPPO Find X5 Pro flagship smartphone was one of the firsts to be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, delivering unprecedented experiences in connectivity, AI, gaming, video, audio, and security. Earlier on, OPPO released many smartphones that feature Snapdragon 5G mobile platforms, including the Find X3 Series and Reno6 Series.

Through its brand proposition of ‘Inspiration Ahead’ OPPO will continue to collaborate openly with industry leaders like Qualcomm Technologies to provide more enhanced experiences to users worldwide through advanced technologies on mobile devices.

Bucket Tech: HUAWEI Nova 9

So a few weeks back I attended the official launch of the HUAWEI Nova 9, the flagship device in the Nova range so far and while I did give you key product highlights of the phone I thought it would be a good idea to do a proper review, not so much an in-depth one as I would need to have one on test to do that. So what is the Nova 9 all about? Well it has a host of features but one that stands out the most is the flag-ship grade camera technology, one which will rival some of the best phones in the market. What makes it so special you may ask? Well it boasts a Quad lens camera system that features a powerful 50MP ultra-vision camera, as well as an ultra-wide angle camera, a macros camera and a depth camera. The camera system include a colour filter array and an XD Fusion Engine, which help you to capture impressive stills and videos, even in low-light settings, it also automatically enhances the images detail and quality. On the front end, the phones selfie camera is a 32MP high-resolution camera that supports 4K video recording with built-in AI image stablisation, enabling you to record high quality videos that would be perfect for Insta stories and TikToks without the use of a hand held gimbal or tripod. Thanks to continuous front/rear recording, you can also switch between the front and rear cameras, fluidly capturing your story in a single video file.

Huawei have always maintained that their Nova series has been focused on the youth, as it combines powerful performance and beautiful aesthetics at a reasonable price tag. That has been evident throughout the range and is no different with the Nova 9. The design is sublime, with a 6.57" curved display fitting onto a metal unibody and comes in an eye catching new colour, Starry Blue which adds a unique texture to the chassis. Apart form just looking good the device has a powerful chipset, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 4G, the HUAWEI nova 9 also intelligently prioritises tasks and optimises performance for a seamless gaming experience. Its powerful processor is complemented by an equally powerful cooling system, which is designed to dissipate heat fast and efficiently. This means that your device can run at full throttle while staying cool to the touch – even after hours of gaming or streaming videos.

The 6.57-inch Original-Color Curved Display with a tapered surface that minimises the left and right bezels for a more immersive viewing experience. It can display over one billion colours and features a refresh rate of up to 120Hz and a touch sampling rate of 300Hz. Gamers will know exactly what these specs are all about. Every single one comes together to ensure a spectacular gaming experience with smooth visuals, vivid colours, incredible details and ultra-fast response times.

Buy the HUAWEI nova 9 now, priced at R12,999 and you’ll receive a HUAWEI FreeLace valued at R1,499. Ts and Cs apply.

Bucket Tech: Nokia 8

Some of you may remember in January this year I did a post on the Nokia 6, while we were all excited that Nokia had resurrected themselves and got back into the market, our joy was soon turned to disappointment when it was announced that the phone would only be available in China. Then even worse news came out, they remade the 3310, and it was crap! Look, for what it's worth, the 3310 does the job but guys, no, the phone in our modern day lacks what we all need in a phone. While Nokia's new lease on life in the mobile industry looked dead an dreary. this week they released its flagship device, the Nokia 8. 

They didn't have to try hard to impress us after releasing the 3310 but from what I've read about the 8, it sounds like a fantastic device. First lets start off with the manufacturing process of the device. The Nokia 8 undergoes a rigorous 40-stage process of machining, anodizing and polishing, this makes for a very attractive looking product. The entire unibody is made from polished aluminium and available in a host of colours. Nokia say the phone is designed to fit into the palm of your hand. 

While the primary use for a phone would be to make phone calls, in the era we living in, it seems like the primary use is to capture lifes moments. Yes, everyone loves to document their daily activities, whether they're stuck in traffic, eating some thing that looks good and tastes good, or just take selfies with friends. If you're one of them, you'll be glad to know that Nokia's partnership with Zeiss optics still exists, and the Nokia 8 comes with a 13MP Zeiss optics camera...on the front and back. Why you ask? Well another common feature from Social Media apps that is taking off is the live feature, with the Nokia 8, it features dual image fusion, where it combines the rear and the front facing camera and splits the image in half, one half showing what the rear wide angle dual lens see's and the front showing whatever the front camera see's. Its pretty cool and works great with broadcasting live. 

With recording, the Nokia 8 records everything in 4K and features Nokia OZO spatial 360 degree audio. Nokia believes that videos aren't always about what you see but also what you hear, with this new feature it will focus on audio that happens around you and accentuates the right sounds while reducing ambient sounds or background noise. The screen on the Nokia 8 is a 5.3" 2K display that offers ultra-vivd colours and superb clarity. 

With Nokia adopting the Android OS now, this is their most powerful device they have built for this software. The Nokia 8 has a Qualcomm Snapdrago 835 Mobile Platform, engineered to deliver exceptionally long battery life, something that we need dearly right now and they also added a full length copper cooling pope with graphite shield to dissipate system heat across the body of the phone, so you won't have your phone heating up, which is also a common problem in most smart phones on the market. The phone comes with 64GB of storage space and with all the Google add on's that come with the OS, you'd have access to Google Drive with ample space on your cloud. If you require more space, the Nokia 8 also can take a MicroSD card with support up to 256GB. 

The talk about this phone sounds really impressive, while Nokia isn't as Swedish as we know it to be with a large majority of the company being owned by a Chinese company, they certainly look like keeping up that legacy with this device. Pricing on the phone doesn't seem to bad either with suggested pricing in the region of R9,499 on Prepaid or about R449 a month on contract from Cellucity, ask confirmed by MyBroadband

Bucket Tech: Huawei G8

When I attended the launch of the Huawei Mate 8 last month, they also revealed another range of devices that they were introducing to the market, the G Series. Huawei said that the G Series was aimed at the youth market with the phone offering more in terms of a playful creative nature compared to their other phones which are made more for the business individuals. It seemed to make sense seeing that kids mainly use their phones for taking pictures, listening to music, and being on the social media stream, so would they really need the hardcore processing power and the rest of the jazz that goes into the high end smart phones when they could really have their own which would cost significantly less? Well the answer is yes, although it did have me wondering, how much did Huawei compromise on their product to make the G series what it is? Well a couple weeks ago they sent me the G8, the "top of the range" if you may call it, from the lot, with the others being the G3, and G5 to test out and this was my experience with it.

Quality

Since the package arrived I tried to see where the manufacturer tried to make the device different form the others, the packaging still looking sleek and typical of their devices so no cost cutting there. Once opened, and removed the phone, I was surprised at the weight, as it was quite heavy compared to your normal phone but the reason behind this was the massive screen, unlike the P8 and P9, the G8 comes with a 5.5" screen instead of a 5.2" as found on the other 2 devices. The build quality seems great as well, just as all their other devices so definitely no cost cutting on that part of the phone. The finish is exquisite and high quality as well, really gives off that premium feel to it.

Design & Dimensions

When compared to the the P series, the G would be slightly bigger due to the screen size which see's the overall dimensions of the phone at 152 x 76.5 x 7.5mm which still is a comfortable size to fit into the palm of your hand. The beveled edges also help with this as it gives the phone a less edgy feel and therefore a better grip for the user. The 360 touch finger print recognition has improved in leaps and bounds since the P8. With it taking a full scan of your finger , thus improving scanning speeds to milliseconds upon touch.

Taken with the Huawei G8

Camera

The G8 comes with a 13 megapixel primary camera, with auto focus and dual LED flash. Huawei takes it's camera's very seriously and the quality on this one is just as great as the others. I love the features it comes with one of my favourite being the time-lapse. I even recorded my entire flight from Johannesburg to Durban which you can find below. I wish they could give you ways in which you can control the frames per second though, I mean the 50 odd minute flight only was a 1 minute video, most of it was boring but it would be nice to slow down certain aspects of the video and speed up the rest. The front facing camera is a 5 megapixel lens and has the smile detection feature which is perfect for selfies.  

       

Performance

Now many might be reading and thinking, if this phone is aimed at the youth and would be more affordable, how exactly did they do it if Huawei didn't compromise on build quality or features, well I'll tell you where they saved the cash, it was in the processing power. Whilst their top phones come with the powerful HiSilicon Kirin chipsets, the G Series opts for the Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets. While there is a significant difference between the two, the Qualcomm Snapdragon is still a quality chip with 1.5GHz Cortex - A53 & quad-core 1.2 Ghz Cortex-A53 CPU. It's more than sufficient to deal with the demands for what the phone was made for. 

Taken with the Huawei G8

Display

As mentioned before on the post, the G8 does come with a larger screen, a 5.5" ISP LCD capactivie touchscreen to be exact. It has 16 million colours to mesmerise your eyes with a resolution of 1080 x 1920 so, you have a full high definition experience. The touch screen is multi touch capable and has an Emotion UI 3.1 rating for protection, hence the added weight of the phone which is 167g in total. 

Taken with the Huawei G8

Verdict

While the manufacturer has compromised on performance for this device, it's acceptable when looking at the overall phone and what it's purpose is meant for. Certainly everything else is up to scratch with other devices in the market with some aspects being even better than their competitors flagship devices. The phone still offers the same great UI with a host of themes and settings to make yours unique and there are 3 colours for you to chose from. I quite enjoyed my time with the G8, more so because I used it for all my social media activities and capturing pictures and video with it and it did that perfectly, battery life was surprisingly great as I thought with the larger display it would drain it quite quickly. It's certainly a great phone if you're looking at getting one for those specific purposes or something you want to get for your kid.

Taken with the Huawei G8