The race to a completely bezel-less phone has forced OEMs to get creative. We’ve seen numerous methods for removing components typically found on the front of a phone. The front-facing “selfie” camera has been especially tricky, bringing forth the infamous “notch,” hole punch, and pop-up mechanism. OPPO is introducing the first under-screen camera to solve this problem.
While notches and hole punches are very common these days, they’ve never felt like a permanent solution. The endgame has always been under-screen cameras. It was just a matter of who could do it first. We know OEMs are working on this and OPPO is the first to show it off to the public.
The company teased the news earlier this month and they finally revealed it at MWC Shanghai this week. The display uses a custom transparent material that works with a redesigned pixel structure. This allows light to get through the display and reach the camera. The section of the display that hides the camera is still fully functional.
There are some pretty big trade-offs with the under-screen tech at the moment. OPPO says the transparent screen does reduce image quality. They have developed algorithms to deal with things like haze, glare, and color bleeding. OPPO claims it rivals current smartphones on the market, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily good.
OPPO says they will launch a phone with this tech in the “near future.” While the photo quality issues are a bummer, that’s the reality of bleeding edge tech. Notches and hole punches aren’t perfect either. We’re still working toward that perfect bezel-less dream.