OPPO ColorOS 7 with Android 10 announced for global markets

Android 10 is the latest version of the world's most popular operating system, and OEMs have been working hard to roll out the same to their portfolio of devices. OPPO recently announced that its custom UX, ColorOS, will also be making the jump to Android 10 with ColorOS 7. After unveiling the same in China, OPPO has now announced ColorOS 7 with Android 10 for markets outside of China, at an event in New Delhi yesterday.

ColorOS 7 attempts to reforms OPPO's custom UX with a focus towards efficiency, convenience, and simplicity. OPPO is employing what it calls "Infinite Design", which is a more lightweight visual design with fewer distractions and a greater focus on the content on hand. Modal Pages incorporated throughout the UX help to reduce the clicks needed to get basic tasks done, as well as making it easier to get things done when using the phone with just one hand.

Example of Modal Pages The icons within the UX have been updated with all new designs, implementing layers that allow for greater adaptability and customizations.

ColorOS 7 has also been updated with new sound effects, wallpapers, and live wallpapers, with special localized content for India such as the Hawa Mahal Live Wallpaper that changes appearance throughout the day.

Android 10's Dark Mode also makes an appearance within ColorOS 7, of course. But OPPO has added onto the experience by enabling it on several popular apps, like WhatsApp, that don't have Dark Mode rolled out yet.

Android's screenshot functionality is also seeing an upgrade in ColorOS 7. You can take screenshots with the three-finger swipe down gesture, but you can also choose to take long screenshots, as well as short screenshots.

If you seek more customizability, ColorOS 7 also incorporates what OPPO is calling "Universal Theme", which allows you to theme various aspects of the UX without needing to resort to other complex solutions. You can choose one of the several themes available in the Theme Store.

Or, if you cannot locate the one that fulfills your needs, you can always create your own theme through OPPO's Theme Editor.

Beyond the visible UI, OPPO is also employing other solutions in ColorOS 7 to make the experience more responsive, faster and smoother to use. Cache Preload attempts to improve app cold starts by as much as 25%; while oSense is a scheduling mechanism that gives priority to front-end and user-related threads to optimize touch response and frame rates; and oMem is a priority management solution that allocates higher priority to the most frequently used apps. OPPO also talked about a System Anti-aging Solution called UFS+, though details are sparse on how exactly does it help keep the system fresh and away from eventual slowdown.ColorOS 7 also comes with changes and improvements to the imaging experience on OPPO smartphones. Night Mode has been upgraded to Ultra Night Mode, focusing on optimizing the clarity, brightness, and color of photos taken at night through multi-frame HDR and AI algorithms. Post-processing durations also see improvements as photos are claimed to be generated within 2.5 seconds on select phone models in Ultra Night Mode. Smart AI noise cancellation is also another imaging-related feature, claiming to repair pixel-level defects by anticipating noise areas. AI Beautification 2.0 focuses on image sharpness and finer tuning for natural photos. OPPO also invited attention to the previous Google CameraX API that will allow third-party applications to use camera functions such as HDR and more.

Gaming optimizations also make their way to ColorOS 7 in the form of improvements to oSense, Game Space, and Game Assistant. oSense aims to improve touch response by ~21% and frame rates by ~38%. Game Space is a space to manage and quickly launch games, while Game Assistant provides features such as split-screen and DND support within games.OPPO's ColorOS 7 also provides privacy protection features such as the ability to provide blank data when apps request for user data. Private Safe protects user-selected files by transferring them to a folder where they cannot be accessed, read, or modified by other applications.

Users in India can also enjoy Doc Vault, which has been developed in collaboration with DigiLocker, Indian digital document issuing platform, allowing users to store and access digital versions of their official documents and certificates from within the phone.

ColorOS 7 also comes with OPPO's own Soloop application, which allows users to create social media-friendly videos with relative ease.

Other key highlights for ColorOS 7 include Riding Mode, which allows you to focus on driving by allowing calls only from specified contacts and muting other notifications; Music Party, which allows you to pair with other smartphone and play music in sync; and Smart Assistant, which aims to be a one-stop-shop for less experienced users to get information at a glance and do common actions.

OPPO ColorOS 7: Rollout

OPPO ColorOS 7 begins its global rollout with the OPPO Reno and OPPO Reno 10x Zoom, with the update already arriving on these devices in a staged manner. Devices like the OPPO Reno2, OPPO F11 series will get the update next month, while devices like the OPPO Find X series, OPPO Reno Z, OPPO Reno R17 series will get the update in Q1 2020. The fourth batch of devices will get their updates by Q2 2020. Though for all of these batches, expect beta versions to arrive prior to the stable update to select users.