Oppo has launched a brand new smartphone series in India, which is focused at bringing the latest technology at affordable prices – a success formula implemented by brands like Xiaomi and Samsung recently. Oppo K1 is a feature-packed mid-range smartphone ready to take on its rivals in the sub-Rs 20,000 price range with attractive features.
Oppo K1's biggest highlight, which was already confirmed by the company before its launch, is the in-display fingerprint scanner. But the list doesn't end there as Oppo has shown some real effort in making the K1 smartphone.
Price, availability and offers
Oppo K1 is priced at Rs 16,990 and it goes on sale in India starting February 12 exclusively via Flipkart. As a part of launch offers, Oppo K1 is available with 90 percent buyback value for up to 8 months, which means buyers can avail Oppo K1 effectively for free, as well as no cost EMI facility. Citi Bank credit and debit cardholders can avail additional 10 percent discount on the phone.
Is Oppo K1 worthy?
Oppo has a solid presence in the offline space in India, but to compete in the online segment the company needed to up its game. Hence, Oppo K1 is the company's answer to the online shoppers who understand and compare specs, features and value-for-money factor before purchasing a smartphone.
Oppo K1, as mentioned before, has an in-display fingerprint scanner integrated within the 6.41-inch AMOLED Full HD+ screen protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5. The display has a 91 percent screen-to-body ratio with a waterdrop notch up top to host the front camera.
Speaking of the front camera, Oppo K1 comes with a capable 25MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture on the front with AR Stickers support. On the back, there are dual cameras with 16MP and 2MP sensors, although their real-world performance is yet to be tested.
Under the hood, Oppo K1 packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor with 4GB RAM and 64GB expandable storage. There's a 3,600mAh battery, but there's no mention of any fast charging tech available for the phone. Another disappointing feature is that the handset still runs the ageing Android 8.1 Oreo-based ColorOS 5.2. If you can overlook those factors, Oppo K1 is a decent, well-balanced package to attract the masses in India.
At this price point, Oppo K1 is positioned against some of the popular choices, including Xiaomi Poco F1, Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro, Nokia 6.1 Plus, Mi A2 and others. What's your choice?