Another sign of the times. I remember when Oppo's were one of the few (if not only) players to play burned CD's. There's just not enough of a "mid-market" enthusiast crowd left - someone that wants a hardware player, won't splurge on the big names, but willing to spend more than what a local retailer (or Best Buy?) has. Wonder what that says for mid-range speaker makers?
Audio seems to be getting more personal now. Now that everyone can have just about every song ever, nobody wants a shared listening experience anymore. Half the reason to have a great stereo was because people couldnt afford tons of content to play, so having a nice room filling stereo meant others could hear and enjoy it too. I have fond memories of my uncles listening room. He was a tube amp hi-fi junky and every visit included at least an hour of deep listening sessions.
> because people couldnt afford tons of content to play
You'd save for a while to buy a vinyl LP, choose it carefully (besides radio play, you could also ask to play it for a bit at the store), take it home and listen to it a score of times in a row, perhaps in company.
Then lend it to the friend(s) who also loaned you their LPs. Eventually the LP would come to its place of honour on a shelf with a couple dozen others, to be played when the mood struck.
In headphones? Mid-market is truly emerging. Beats has introduced people into spending more than 50 dollars on a headphone and companies such as Audeze, Sennheiser, Beyer-Dynamic and others are really expanding. The high end is also expanding but headphones are becoming a geekdom.
Just as an example. I guess senn and Beyer are considered big names at this point but in the scheme of things, Senn has 2000 employees and Beyer has around 300.
They have a series of headphone enthusiast conferences called CanJam. I put mid-market as under 500 but others would put it under 1000, where the most interesting headphones are emerging.
Passive speakers are becoming more and more of a niche (compared to various categories of powered speakers, mainly Bluetooth [and Echo]). But it's still a very real market.
As a younger generation starts buying homes, the passive speaker market benefits. But many remain happy with the convenience of portable/small speakers, so it's still a way smaller market than it once was.
Source: I work for a competitor of OPPO (still sad to see them go in a way).
Oppo makes a great product but the thing that set them apart for me was their ability to play SACD disks. The number of players that can play this format have been dwindling and Oppo's demise is just a sign of the times. I wonder if physical media for very high resolution audio (and video?) would be as far removed a memory as sony beta or if the vinyl sales trends would imply a reversal of fates down the road, vindicating the high resolution video and audiophile crowd.
I am a very satisfied owner of the PM3 myself, I was glad finding it a year ago after a long search. Now what? Should I resume search when my headphone wears out or unfortunately get broken or lost? I was relaxed that I always can buy a new one or even an improved one after that happens. Maybe I should buy a reserve now!
Maybe! Or maybe just wait - one thing we know is that technology will continue to improve, and there may be a headphone in the future that appeals to you even more by the time your PM3 gives out.
... Or maybe it's worth buying a reserve just as an investment. Some people regarded the PM-3 as one of the best value closed-back headphones on the market now[1][2]; there's a chance it may increase in price?
It's a good question - I don't think there's a currently a competing headphone in it's category (Portable, closed back Planar Magnetic driver) that's been as well received, other than perhaps the more expensive Audeze Sine.
The main thing I'm worried about is the ear pads perishing over time - replacements will be quite difficult to find I think, once Oppo close up shop.
For those who don't know, OPPO's main line of business is selling cellphones now. They seem to do pretty well in China, and they are the parent company of OnePlus, which many thought is a competitor to OPPO. It's actually not easy to find information of OPPO and OnePlus's relationship unless you query the commerce database in the Chinese government, where you will also fine that VIVO and OPPO are affiliates..which are under control of BBK Electronics, who shipped 56.7 million smartphones in 2017 Q4 surpassing both Huawei and Apple to become the 2nd largest smartphone manufacturer in the world, just behind Samsung.
So that explains why there are so many OPPO and VIVO phone stores in Manila malls. I always viewed them as a crappy brands but I'm quite impressed to see that they are part of the second largest mobile phone maker.
It's almost news to me that they manufacture phones (I happen to remember some sort of Oppo smartphone with a camera that you can physically rotate to take front/back photos, but that's about it). My only real experience with them has actually been their AV equipment.
Just a small clarification. Oppo (phones) is not the parent of OnePlus in the sense that Oppo (phones) controls anything with OnePlus.
The relationship is more that Oppo (phones) is owned by Oppo Electronics, which also owns a part of OnePlus. So OnePlus is kind of a competitor to Oppo, just not very fiercely.
> It's actually not easy to find information of OPPO and OnePlus's relationship unless you query the commerce database in the Chinese government, where you will also fine that VIVO and OPPO are affiliates
Oneplus sold its phone on the back of the fact that it was a "startup". Then came this:
According to the Chinese government's documentation, the only institutional stockholder in OnePlus is Oppo.Although Lau initially denied that OnePlus was a wholly owned subsidiary of Oppo, upon release of the regulatory filings they admitted that they are owned by Oppo and are "in talks with other investors" (although nothing has been announced to date).
The amazing thing about the scam is that Chinese companies were filing correct numbers in China and fake revenue numbers in US. But with information not easily accessible people got away with it.
So actually their ceo is a liar who tells stories of a small company worthy of support by idealistic customers while being funded by a billion dollar enterprise? Happy i didnt buy their phone...
One Plus have the easiest phones to unlock the bootloader and play around with roms. Along with being amongst the few phones out there with an official ubuntu port. Guessing with a stock OS its likely not good, but they make life easy for the average tinkerer as opposed to many other phone companies.
It's common knowledge for those who are familiar with Chinese tech industry that OPPO, VIVO are originated from a company called BuBuGao(BBK in English) which is created by a guy name Duan Yongping (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duan_Yongping). One plus is founded by another guy that BBK invested as a VC.
Does this mean some or all of Elephone, Doogee, Xiaomi, Ulefone etc are BBK brands?
I have seen the cheap prices for all sorts of Chinese Android phones on online shops, and wondered if each brand was real. It seems less likely knowing that OnePlus wasn't quite as it appeared.
Kudos to OnePlus marketing team I guess - certainly had a few people thinking they were a startup for sure.
>Based in the heart of Silicon Valley, OPPO Digital designs and markets high quality digital electronics that deliver style, performance, innovation, and value to A/V enthusiasts and savvy consumers alike. The company's attention to core product performance and strong customer focus distinguishes it from traditional consumer-electronics brands.
>With products that speak for themselves and relying on word-of-mouth, OPPO Digital does not have any dedicated Marketing and Sales personnel. We have spent most of all energy on product design and customer service. We pride ourselves on servicing all our customers right here in Menlo Park, California.
>Disclaimer: OPPO Digital USA does not carry any mobile phone products. We are not able to respond to any inquiries related to mobile phone products.
OPPO Digital (Chinese: OPPO影音)[1] is an independently operated overseas division sharing the brand name OPPO with OPPO Electronics, both owned by Chinese company BBK Electronics
A pity - I'm surprised they didn't use their expertise to get into the set top box business. Roku - as the only independent box maker vs FireTV, Google TV, Apple TV - needs some competiton.
Nvidia shield tv is tops. I think Oppo probably hit something a lot of companies are, which is that quality is losing value. People are less able to discern quality so making top notch products at top notch prices is a weakening strategy.
Because people don't care about quality, only cheap prices. Audiophile/Videophile market is tiny in comparison. The general public is happy if they can see the picture, and hear the sound.
Why would OPPO discuss that? My girlfriend is completely happy with just hearing the words being sung. She understands my obsession, and recognizes things do sound and look a bit better. But she doesn't care as long as the basic idea gets through.
Because they talk about having people who love their products.
Aren’t they worth a word of explanation why the products they love are withdrawn from the market? I don’t see whom it could hurt to spend a sentence on saying something like „but unfortunately the enterprise of giving you such high quality products didn’t lead to economicall success as we need it to sustain the business, and therefore took the hard decision to stop...“
I'm saddened to read this. I've had their blu-ray player (BDP-103) for many years now, and it has been a pleasure owning a piece of electronics that is designed to not be disposable. Continued firmware updates (for years), solid hardware, and feature-rich. They'll be missed, at least by a niche community of a/v enthusiasts.
I have happily owned a BP-83 for many years. But this is a very strange announcment. Apparently, everything will continue has usual: firmware upgrades, customer support, warranty repairs, returns and even sales. So from a (naive) customers perspective, OPPO will become a company that will continue indefinitely, with no products and no means of making money! Even knowing that OPPO owns or has shares in other companies, this is hard to figure out. I would love to know the inside story. Someone, somewhere is not happy.
I've had the pleasure of working with OPPO Digital on a couple of joint projects. They were the best, most put-together company I've ever worked with.
They made, hands down, the best Blu-ray player. I've worked with every blu-ray player under the sun. Theirs was fast, featureful, and stable. It was something to be proud of; their engineering team always out-did themselves.
and express your interest by giving them your email address. I've got my fingers crossed!
When I picked up my 1O5D at their headquarters in Menlo Park I was told that there is no relationship with Oppo Asia, the cell phone maker. They are two totally separate companies. They use the Oppo name under license.
Soon as I saw that announcement I got my purchase order in. I knew that was going to sell out fast. I'd been holding out for the last nine months, and knew I'd never get my hands on one if I waited.
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[ 0.24 ms ] story [ 112 ms ] threadYou'd save for a while to buy a vinyl LP, choose it carefully (besides radio play, you could also ask to play it for a bit at the store), take it home and listen to it a score of times in a row, perhaps in company.
Then lend it to the friend(s) who also loaned you their LPs. Eventually the LP would come to its place of honour on a shelf with a couple dozen others, to be played when the mood struck.
[/Flintstone ;-]
Just as an example. I guess senn and Beyer are considered big names at this point but in the scheme of things, Senn has 2000 employees and Beyer has around 300.
They have a series of headphone enthusiast conferences called CanJam. I put mid-market as under 500 but others would put it under 1000, where the most interesting headphones are emerging.
As a younger generation starts buying homes, the passive speaker market benefits. But many remain happy with the convenience of portable/small speakers, so it's still a way smaller market than it once was.
Source: I work for a competitor of OPPO (still sad to see them go in a way).
[1] https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/28569-sacd-r...
I was hoping they would be developing these two further.
Both were well received by the audio crowd at large.
... Or maybe it's worth buying a reserve just as an investment. Some people regarded the PM-3 as one of the best value closed-back headphones on the market now[1][2]; there's a chance it may increase in price?
PM-3 Reviews:
[1] http://www.trustedreviews.com/reviews/oppo-pm-3
[2] https://www.techradar.com/reviews/audio-visual/hi-fi-and-aud...
The main thing I'm worried about is the ear pads perishing over time - replacements will be quite difficult to find I think, once Oppo close up shop.
This announcement seems to be US-centric; doesn't seem they (or OnePlus) will stop making phones.
The relationship is more that Oppo (phones) is owned by Oppo Electronics, which also owns a part of OnePlus. So OnePlus is kind of a competitor to Oppo, just not very fiercely.
Oneplus sold its phone on the back of the fact that it was a "startup". Then came this:
According to the Chinese government's documentation, the only institutional stockholder in OnePlus is Oppo.Although Lau initially denied that OnePlus was a wholly owned subsidiary of Oppo, upon release of the regulatory filings they admitted that they are owned by Oppo and are "in talks with other investors" (although nothing has been announced to date).
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/OnePlus
The opacity of Chinese market was documented in another recent post too:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16726355
The amazing thing about the scam is that Chinese companies were filing correct numbers in China and fake revenue numbers in US. But with information not easily accessible people got away with it.
No. BBK Electronics owns Oppo, Vivo and OnePlus. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBK_Electronics
I have seen the cheap prices for all sorts of Chinese Android phones on online shops, and wondered if each brand was real. It seems less likely knowing that OnePlus wasn't quite as it appeared.
Kudos to OnePlus marketing team I guess - certainly had a few people thinking they were a startup for sure.
>Based in the heart of Silicon Valley, OPPO Digital designs and markets high quality digital electronics that deliver style, performance, innovation, and value to A/V enthusiasts and savvy consumers alike. The company's attention to core product performance and strong customer focus distinguishes it from traditional consumer-electronics brands.
>With products that speak for themselves and relying on word-of-mouth, OPPO Digital does not have any dedicated Marketing and Sales personnel. We have spent most of all energy on product design and customer service. We pride ourselves on servicing all our customers right here in Menlo Park, California.
>Disclaimer: OPPO Digital USA does not carry any mobile phone products. We are not able to respond to any inquiries related to mobile phone products.
I'm pretty sure this is a different OPPO.
[0]: https://www.oppodigital.com/About.aspx
OPPO Digital (Chinese: OPPO影音)[1] is an independently operated overseas division sharing the brand name OPPO with OPPO Electronics, both owned by Chinese company BBK Electronics
[1] http://www.oppodigital.com.cn/
They made, hands down, the best Blu-ray player. I've worked with every blu-ray player under the sun. Theirs was fast, featureful, and stable. It was something to be proud of; their engineering team always out-did themselves.
OPPO Digital will be missed.
https://oppodigital.com/blu-ray-udp-205/lastbatch.aspx
and express your interest by giving them your email address. I've got my fingers crossed!
When I picked up my 1O5D at their headquarters in Menlo Park I was told that there is no relationship with Oppo Asia, the cell phone maker. They are two totally separate companies. They use the Oppo name under license.