The Oppo N1 has been an incredibly interesting device from the day it was first teased. While that teaser was just 2 weeks ago, we’ve seen many snippets of information come across the newswire including removable/upgradable camera lenses and a rear touch panel. Just yesterday we found out that the N1 will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 2.3GHz quad-core processor, and will even come with removable microSD card support. Now we’re finding out from Phone Arena through a post by Oppo on Twitter that the Oppo N1 is going to actually be a phablet-sized phone, with a rather large 5.9-inch screen. The Twitter picture shows that the 5.9-inch screen will be taking up the majority of the body of the N1, and even appears to be packing software buttons unless the drawing is just being deceiving. This means incredibly thin bezels on either side of that screen, and likely a body size akin to the Galaxy Note 3. Oppo’s Twitter post also says “Expect Big things September 23rd,” which confirms that Oppo will be officially announcing the N1 at their September 23rd show.
What’s particularly interesting now is just how useful the rear touch panel will become now that we know the N1 is a large-sized device. LG’s G2 has rear buttons to aid in comfort when using their 5.2-inch phone, but with the N1’s 5.9-inch phone rear buttons and navigation will become even more important. Manufacturers are finding newer ways of making the phablet-sized phones more comfortable and user-friendly than they are. While many people complain about the inability to one-hand these sized devices, things like a rear touch panel and other gesture type innovations are helping. The rear touch panel can be used for all sorts of things from scrolling to taking pictures, and anyone who has used a phablet device can attest to how difficult it can be to take selfies with the phone facing the opposite way. Don’t forget about the interchangeable camera lenses either, as Oppo is really trying to make a name for themselves by starting something completely new with the N1. Will this be a more important innovation than Sony’s QX lenses? September 23rd and beyond will surely let us know.