Unveiling the Oppo U701 Ulike Specs Pricing Pros & Cons

Overview of Oppo U701 Ulike

The Oppo U701 Ulike, released in June 2012, is a smartphone that catered to users seeking an elegant design paired with decent specifications for its time. Running on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), it is equipped with features tailored for basic smartphone needs, with a focus on affordability and user-friendly functionality.

Design and Build

Oppo U701 Ulike boasts a sleek design with dimensions of 123 x 64 x 9.7 mm, making it a compact and lightweight device at 130 g. The aesthetics of the phone were simplistic yet appealing, featuring a clean white color. The build, while not metal, offered a sturdy feel and was comfortable to hold in hand, thanks to its ergonomic design.

Display

The device features a 4.0-inch IPS LCD display with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels, providing a pixel density of approximately 233 ppi. This display size and resolution, quite standard for 2012 smartphones, aimed to deliver a decent viewing experience for web browsing, video playback, and general app usage, although it was not suited for HD video consumption.

Performance

Under the hood, the Oppo U701 Ulike is powered by the Mediatek MT6575 chipset based on 40 nm technology. The CPU is a 1.0 GHz Cortex-A9, coupled with a PowerVR SGX531 GPU. Although it offers moderate performance suited for casual usage, such as browsing and social media apps, it is not designed for heavy multitasking or gaming.

Memory and Storage

The phone comes with 512MB RAM and 4GB of internal storage, which can be expanded via a MicroSDHC card slot. While the RAM seems limited, it was typical for devices during its launch year. Users could expand the storage to accommodate more media files by using a microSD card.

Camera Capabilities

On the optical side, the Oppo U701 Ulike sports a single 5 MP camera with autofocus and LED flash, capable of also recording videos. For selfie enthusiasts, it offers a 2 MP front-facing camera, a reasonable feature at the time of release for video calls and basic selfies.

Battery Life

The device is powered by a Li-Ion 1710 mAh battery, promising a standby time of up to 400 hours on both 2G and 3G networks, and talk time of up to 9 hours and 20 minutes on 2G and 7 hours on 3G. While these figures are moderate, they were acceptable for the demands of average usage patterns of the period.

Connectivity

For connectivity, the Oppo U701 Ulike supports GSM and HSPA technology with 2G and 3G band compatibility. It includes Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with hotspot support, Bluetooth, GPS for positioning, and a microUSB 2.0 port. However, it lacks NFC and FM radio capabilities, common omissions in budget devices of the era.

Additional Features

The smartphone is equipped with standard sensors such as an accelerometer, proximity sensor, and a compass. These sensors enhance user interaction with apps that depend on physical orientation and movement data, providing a more integrated user experience.

Price and Market Position

Initially priced at about 80 EUR, the Oppo U701 Ulike was positioned as an affordable option for users looking for a stylish device without breaking the bank. Although it has been discontinued, it served as a competitive entry in the budget smartphone category during its time.

Conclusion

Overall, the Oppo U701 Ulike was a valuable addition to the budget smartphone market in 2012. Its design, coupled with basic but reliable specifications, provided users with a device capable of handling essential mobile tasks. While technology has dramatically advanced since then, the U701 remains an example of a straightforward, user-friendly design philosophy that targeted users seeking functionality over top-tier specifications.