What's as thin and light as the 6.9-inch iPhone 16 Pro Max and yet opens into a huge 8.1-inch display and carries a much larger battery? Why, the new Oppo Find N5 foldable phone that launches today, of course.
At 4.21mm when opened, this is the thinnest phone with one hinge, and even when closed it is the slimmest foldable, beating the previous Magic V3 record-holder. If Apple plans to release a foldable iPhone next year indeed, one look at the Find N5 should send it scurrying back to its suppliers and ask them to do better.
Can phones get any thinner?
As our Find N5 review demonstrated, carrying the newest foldable from Oppo is no different from carrying a regular phone. Granted, there is one phone that is thinner when opened, the Mate XT, but it is a tri-folding device with two hinges that is much bulkier and heavier than the Find N5 to lug around.
Oppo achieved this record slimness by waiting around for two years after its last foldable was released, until a critical mass of engineering innovations was achieved by its suppliers, and it could make exactly what it wanted, the world's thinnest foldable.
The Oppo Find N5 foldable phone is one of the slimmest pieces of consumer technology ever created.
Oppo, February '25
First off, they had to be able to make a much more compact yet 36% tougher hinge that was crafted out of light and durable titanium. Oppo then went on to shave fractions of a millimeter everywhere it could, down to the impact-resistant display packaging, or the new ultrathin silicon carbon batteries with record silicon content in the electrode that are slimmer than a penny.
To pack the higher energy density allowing it to fit 5,600 mAh in an impossibly thin package, Oppo pressed suppliers to gun for a revolutionary chemistry that uses 10% silicon in the electrodes for the first time, up from 6% in previous phones with the innovative battery technology.
When asked why it didn't go higher in a recent interview, the lead Find N5 engineer said that 10% is already the highest that current technology can go and still remain stable during the phone's fast 80W charging sessions, and still come with the record charge-discharge cycle degradation guarantee that Oppo offers for its phones.
The sheer fact that Oppo had to reinforce the USB-C port to hit that never-before-broken 9mm threshold on the way down, shows that the Find N5 might be as thin as it gets, unless a new, slimmer charging standard comes along.
The Find N5 is so thin that its USB-C port comes reinforced. | Image credit – PhoneArena
Breaking the conformist annual upgrade cycle paradigm
Oppo, however, is of the opinion that, yes, phones can get thinner than the Find N5, and that is exactly what it will do if the chance presents. We sat down for an interview with the Find N5 chief engineer and product manager at the launch event in Singapore, and asked them if Oppo will again wait for another critical mass of engineering breakthroughs to be reached before it releases its next foldable, or is it now planning to launch a new foldable flagship in the Find N-series every year.
Recommended Stories
The answer was pretty intriguing. Oppo, it turns out, works with component companies on developing meaningful innovations and as soon as its supplier managed to craft a 26% thinner hinge by 3D-printing a titanium alloy casing and wing plate that resulted in 36% higher deformation resistance, the phone maker immediately sprang into action to order the so-called Titanium Flexion Hinge that the Find N5 centers around.
Armed with other engineering breakthroughs that happened since its last foldable, like the silicon carbon batteries that offer the same energy density in thinner packaging, or the new elastomer cover film of the 8.12-inch inner screen that allows it to be made thinner yet 70% more impact-resistant, Oppo then decided to make something that really stand out.
Will it do it again? Sure, Oppo told us, if and when there are enough meaningful innovations to put in a Find N5 successor, rather than simply slap a new processor in, and call it an N6 (looking at you, Samsung) just to satisfy the annual upgrade cycle mantra.
Follow us on social media to catch the latest trending stories, watch exclusive videos, and join the conversation with our vibrant community!
Daniel, a devoted tech writer at PhoneArena since 2010, has been engrossed in mobile technology since the Windows Mobile era. His expertise spans mobile hardware, software, and carrier networks, and he's keenly interested in the future of digital health, car connectivity, and 5G. Beyond his professional pursuits, Daniel finds balance in travel, reading, and exploring new tech innovations, while contemplating the ethical and privacy implications of our digital future.
Recommended Stories
Loading Comments...
COMMENT
All comments need to comply with our
Community Guidelines
Phonearena comments rules
A discussion is a place, where people can voice their opinion, no matter if it
is positive, neutral or negative. However, when posting, one must stay true to the topic, and not just share some
random thoughts, which are not directly related to the matter.
Things that are NOT allowed:
Off-topic talk - you must stick to the subject of discussion
Offensive, hate speech - if you want to say something, say it politely
Spam/Advertisements - these posts are deleted
Multiple accounts - one person can have only one account
Impersonations and offensive nicknames - these accounts get banned
Moderation is done by humans. We try to be as objective as possible and moderate with zero bias. If you think a
post should be moderated - please, report it.
Have a question about the rules or why you have been moderated/limited/banned? Please,
contact us.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: