OPPO F1 Philippines Price is Php 11,990 : Selfie Expert Camera Specs, Actual Unit Photos

Yesterday - February 17, 2016, I graced OPPO Mobile Technology Inc. Philippines' warm invitation for the official launch of their latest selfie-centric smartphone - the midrange powerhouse OPPO F1 - held at the Activity Center of Trinoma Mall in Quezon City.

My traditional TechPinas pose with the Selfie Expert, OPPO F1. Still doing it after all these years.

The event commenced at 6:30 PM with Mr Garrick Hung, Operations Manager of OPPO Philippines, welcoming bloggers, members of the media, and the crowd.

Donning an official suggested retail price of Php 11,990, OPPO F1 is a mid-level release that's crafted for consumers who want a great-looking smartphone with stellar selfie-capture capabilities that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

As I've shared earlier, the handset flaunts a CNC-prepared anodized aluminum shell that gives it an air of both durability and elegance.

And frankly, in some angles, it looks like the Apple iPhone 6s -- which is certainly not a bad-looking handset, right?

Let's talk about technical specifications. OPPO F1 sports a 5-inch IPS HD display that's protected by scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass 4 touchscreen, a 13 MegaPixel f/2.2 autofocus camera at the back, Full HD video recorder, and non-removable 2,500 mAh battery pack. The highlight of this model, of course, is its 8 MegaPixel front selfie cam that comes with a slew of beautification features for users who love to take such shots.

At its heart, OPPO F1 runs its Color OS 2.0 flavored Android 5.1 Lollipop OS with the new Octa Core Qualcomm MSM8939v2 Snapdragon 616 chipset that incorporates four 1.7 GHz ARM Cortex A53 CPUs, four 1.0 GHz ARM Cortex A53 cores and an Adreno 405 GPU, has 3GB of RAM (which is a treat at this price point), and comes with 16GB of ROM that you can easily augment using the secondary nanoSIM slot that also supports microSD card memory expansion.

OPPO F1 will be officially up for purchase at all OPPO Concept Stores, kiosks, and authorized retail partners - especially those located in SM CyberZone branches across the country starting this week.

The 'Selfie Expert' Android smartphone is currently available in just two luxurious colors: Gold and Rose Gold.

At the event, Ms. Alora Uy Guerrero - Digital Marketing Manager of OPPO PH - gave a keynote presentation on the key specs of the handset as well as the capabilities of its 13 MegaPixel rear camera, including HDR Mode, Super Macro, Super GIF, and Slow Shutter.

On the other hand, Mr. Stephen Bryan Cheng - Brand Marketing Manager of OPPO PH - talked about the great selfie capture features of the 8 MegaPixel front cam including Real Time Beautification and something similar to Apple's Virtual Front Flash, where the screen lights up to illuminate the face of the user when snapping self-portraits.

There are three levels of instant beautifications: Weak, Medium, and Strong, which describe the intensity of evening out or clearing of skin imperfections and facial contouring.

The models and Stephen taking selfies on stage. Oh, and shown on the screen, Kapamilya Star Miss Sarah Geronimo is the official celebrity endorser of OPPO smartphones in the Philippines.

OPPO F1 is the first device by the Chinese electronics company to be offered by the Philippines biggest network, Smart Communications, as a bundled handset with Smart Postpaid Plans. You can get OPPO F1 for free when you sign up for Smart Plan 1200. Sweet!

Is OPPO F1 the right handset for you? To be honest, there are many incredible handsets by various device manufacturers - local and international - in this price point that you can choose from. But if you want one from a multinational brand that's fairy affordable yet already has a very high-end look and feel in the hand as well as amazing selfie-capture enhancements, you'd do well to include this model in your list of gadgets to check out this year.

TechPinas Smartphone Technical Specs Table (TSTST)
Name	Oppo F1 Philippines
Type	Slate Form Factor (Full Touchscreen)
Price Category	Midrange
Dimensions	143.5 x 71 x 7.3 mm
Weight	134 grams
Available Colors	Gold, Rose Gold
Operating System	Android 5.1 Lollipop with Color OS 2.1 UI
Display	5.0 inches (~67.6% screen-to-body ratio), 720 x 1280 pixels (~294 ppi pixel density), IPS, capacitive touchscreen, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors, Gorilla Glass 4
Processor	Octa Core = Quad Core 1.7 GHz ARM Cortex A53 + Quad Core 1.0 GHz ARM Cortex A53, Adreno 405 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8939v2 Snapdragon 616 chipset
RAM	3 GB RAM
Internal Storage	16 GB, expandable via hybrid microSD card slot (secondary nanoSIM) supporting up to 128GB
Camera	Main: 13 MegaPixels, 4128 x 3096 pixels, f/2.2 aperture, phase detection autofocus, LED flash Front: 8 MegaPixels, f/2.0, 1/4" sensor size,
Video Capture	Full HD 1080p 30 frames per second for main camera, Full HD for front camera
Audio and Video Playback	MP4, WMV, H.264, MP3, WAV, WMA, eAAC+, FLAC
Ports	microUSB v2.0, 3.5 mm audio jack
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot, Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, EDR, LE, 4G LTE Cat4 (150/50Mbps), 3G HSPA+, LTE Cat4, NFC
GPS	Yes, with GLONASS and A-GPS
FM Radio	Yes
Sensors	Accelerometer, Digital Compass, Proximity
Network	2G Network GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900, 3G Network HSDPA 850 / 900 / 2100, 4G LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 20(800), 28(700), 38(2600), 39(1900), 40(2300), 41(2500)
SIM Card Type	Dual SIM = microSIM + hybrid nanoSIM
Battery	Non-removable 2,500 mAh Li-Po battery
Uptime	TBD
Value-Added Features	Metal Frame, Selfie-Centric features, Color OS Interface
Announcement	Philippines: February 17, 2016
Availability	February 2016
Price	Official SRP: Php 11,990 FREE with Smart Postpaid Plan 1200