Smartphone manufacturers are known to take inspiration from their competitors. We have had many brands that blatantly copied the design of the iPhone and even the look of the iOS icons. Now, a new patent filed by Oppo shows a phone that looks suspiciously like the Huawei Mate 40 Pro, but with obvious changes.
This patent was spotted on Chinese National Intellectual Property (CINPA) by 91Mobiles shows a smartphone that has yet to be released with a circular rear camera module housing three different sensors and an LED flash. This sort of setup was recently seen on Huawei’s flagship phone, however, the inner circle of Oppo’s design is a tiny secondary display.
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According to patent documents, the secondary display is supposed to show the date and time. Checking notifications on such a small screen could be extremely tricky, so we’ll have to wait for the company to show us how they intend to use the screen. Patent documents and phone images do not show the presence of a selfie camera, suggesting that this secondary display can also serve as a viewfinder for the camera to help take selfies.
Other takeaways from the patent document include the presence of a curved display on the front, USB-C for charging and connectivity, a SIM card tray and a speaker mounted on the bottom. At the top, there could be an infrared sensor for the built-in remote control.
While it’s only a patent at this point, this phone may never see the light of day. However, given that it’s not a very extraordinary design, there’s a good chance Oppo will eventually launch the phone. And while it’s far too early to predict, saying it could be part of Oppo’s Find Series might be a safe bet.
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