Oppo launches new camera-centric F series - CNET

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On Thursday Oppo revealed it had sold 50 million smartphones in 2015, with a good deal of those units coming out of South Asia.

It's not so surprising, then, to hear that the Chinese smartphone maker is launching a new line of smartphones designed for India. The camera-focused F1 was released in the populous country on Thursday, with Oppo announcing it would be rolling out a higher spec version of the phone, the F1 Plus, in April.

The F1, which is similar to the A35 launched in China not to long ago, is selling in India for 15, 990 rupees ($235, AU$330, £165), and has been made available for pre-order throughout Europe for €229. The more expensive F1 Plus will retail for 26, 9900 rupees ($400, AU$560, £270).

Oppo is marketing the two phones on the back of their cameras. The F1 comes with a rear facing 13-megapixel and front-facing 8-megapixel combo, as well as a suite of software, including Beautify 3.0, for taking selfies, and PureImage 2.0, for filters. Like Apple's iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, the phone's display also can work as a flash for low light selfies.

This announcement comes on the back of solid progress in 2015 for the Dongguan-based company, who became the world's 8th largest handset maker. India being the first country to get the F1 highlights the growing prominence of the subcontinent amongst phone makers, with IDC predicting that India will overtake the US smartphone market by as soon as next year.