Oppo Find N5 May Arrive Soon To Take Lunch Money From Folding Phone Rivals

Foldable smartphones may still be niche products, but they've become tech showcases for their respective brands. Chinese phone maker Oppo is arguably one of the forerunners in this aspect and if rumors of the upcoming Find N5 are any indicators, this foldable will be the most potent of its kind come 2025. With more models launching next year, however, it's hard to see Oppo holding on to that claim for long. 

According to a tip by Smart Pikachu on Weibo, the follow-up to last year's Oppo Find N3 is expected to drop by the first half of 2025. Not only does that provide further proof that Oppo's taking a year off between models, but also that the N5 may be released later than the initial Q1 2025 rumor.

Smart Pikachu also suggests that the circular camera island will make a return, headlined by three 50-megapixel camera sensors. Horsepower will come from a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, noted as the most powerful and exciting development in mobile chipsets of this generation. The tipster also mentioned an "enhanced metal texture," so pointing either to a unique variant  or a new surface treatment for the all N5s.

One of the best bit of (possibly false) information is that the N5 will feature wireless magnetic charging. Besides the obvious, could this also mean compatibility with Oppo's magnetic charging cases, like that of the Find X8? Curiously, the tip also states compatibility with Apple's ecosystem, so maybe they're talking about the ability to leverage MagSafe accessories.

Beyond this leak, the Oppo N5 is thought to feature a better IP-rating (the N3 has IPX4) plus a stronger and thinner frame. Some have said that Oppo intends on challenging the Honor Magic V3 for thinnest foldable in folded/unfolded modes.

This bit of news may have less impact on U.S. readers, although reading between the lines, we can postulate that the OnePlus Open 2—the corporate sibling to the N5—could ship around the same time as well, if not later. Like the N5, the Open 2 has been assumed to drop in March, but that timeline seems hazier now. The OnePlus Open is still regarded as the best foldable sold in North America even after the launch of Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Google's Pixel 9 Pro Fold.