OPPO Find X8's Million Sales and Xiaomi 15's Success: How Android Flagships Are Benchmarking Against, and Even Surpassing, Apple?

OPPO Find X8's Million Sales and Xiaomi 15's Success: How Android Flagships Are Benchmarking Against, and Even Surpassing, Apple?OPPO's Find X8 series, launched globally in Bali and targeting the Asia-Pacific, European, and Latin American markets, recently announced exceeding one million sales in China a new record for the Find series. This marks OPPO's return to its peak performance, contrasting sharply with the explosive sales of the Xiaomi 15 series

OPPO Find X8's Million Sales and Xiaomi 15's Success: How Android Flagships Are Benchmarking Against, and Even Surpassing, Apple?

OPPO's Find X8 series, launched globally in Bali and targeting the Asia-Pacific, European, and Latin American markets, recently announced exceeding one million sales in China a new record for the Find series. This marks OPPO's return to its peak performance, contrasting sharply with the explosive sales of the Xiaomi 15 series. Despite a higher starting price of 4499, the Xiaomi 15 became one of the best-selling Android flagships, surpassing one million units sold within just two weeks, exceeding the Xiaomi 14 series' sales within the same timeframe. The success of both Xiaomi and OPPO has sparked widespread discussion, centering on the question: how do Android flagships become blockbusters? The answer seems to be: benchmark against Apple.

Xiaomi openly declared its intention to "benchmark against Apple," while OPPO used "OPhone" in its marketing, subtly suggesting a user experience comparable to the iPhone. This raises questions: Does benchmarking against Apple guarantee success? Haven't Android flagships always been superior? Why the current focus on benchmarking against Apple?

In reality, "benchmarking against Apple" isn't simply about mimicking its appearance. It's about matching Apple's core user experience, requiring Android manufacturers to strive across multiple dimensions. Apple's long-standing ecosystem advantage encompassing hardware, software, and services is its core strength, not built overnight. However, Apple also provides a successful model for Android manufacturers. The task for Android manufacturers is to build a similar platform and then innovate and surpass it.

Xiaomi's "benchmarking against Apple" strategy traces back to 2021 when Xiaomi Group President Lu Weibing set a goal of comprehensive benchmarking against Apple. The Xiaomi 12 series was the first implementation of this strategy, introducing both large and small screen sizes, successfully attracting more female users who don't necessarily need a large screen. The Xiaomi 13 and 14 series continued this dual-size approach, becoming a crucial driver of Xiaomi's flagship market success. OPPO, vivo, and other brands followed suit in 2024, demonstrating the impact of Xiaomi's successful strategy.

However, Xiaomi's success isn't solely attributed to the smaller screen option. Lu Weibing emphasized that Xiaomi's benchmarking against Apple is comprehensive, encompassing chips, operating systems, ecosystem management, brand image, and target user groups. The Xiaomi 15 is a significant response to the iPhone, featuring fewer hardware upgrades but an exceptional feel that provides a refreshing user experience, highlighting Xiaomi's prioritization of user experience.

OPPO's approach to benchmarking against Apple is more aggressive. The Find X8 series was marketed with "OPhone" prior to launch and utilizes the same manufacturing process as the iPhone 16, improving grip but increasing costs. OPPO focuses not only on user experience but also on full compatibility with the Apple ecosystem. For instance, the Find X8 seamlessly integrates with MacBooks and other Apple products, and accessories like magnetic chargers ensure a smooth transition for iPhone users.

Furthermore, OPPO has enhanced its camera experience. The full rollout of LivePhoto addresses a perceived weakness in iPhone photography, directly challenging a key iPhone feature. However, compared to Xiaomi, OPPO's lack of a robust IoT and PC ecosystem hampers its ability to comprehensively benchmark against Apple. Currently, it mainly focuses on replicating core iPhone experiences. Whether the Find X9 can achieve further breakthroughs in hardware and ecosystem remains to be seen.

Other manufacturers, even without explicitly stating "benchmarking against Apple," are shifting their strategies. Vivo is dedicated to bridging the gap between OriginOS and the Apple ecosystem. After updates, the interconnectivity between OriginOS and iPadOS/macOS rivals that of Apple's own products, a significant achievement. Vivo not only ensures compatibility but also expands its own ecosystem products, with its continuously updated IoT product line significantly increasing its market share.

For Chinese Android manufacturers, the key to moving from benchmarking to surpassing Apple might lie in ecosystem compatibility. Leveraging Android's open nature to ensure compatibility with Apple's ecosystem, Windows, and other systems, positioning the phone as a central hub for different ecosystems, would significantly expand user base and challenge Apple's dominance.

Beyond ecosystem compatibility, AI applications could be a breakthrough area. Apple's AI functionality is not considered ideal, whereas domestic manufacturers are making rapid progress in AI. Xiaomi's Surge OS 2.0 already features several practical AI functions, and OPPO, vivo, and others are accelerating their efforts, using AI to improve various aspects of the phone experience, such as smarter performance scheduling and battery management.

Apple is not invincible. Recent updates to the iPhone's camera and operating system have been criticized, and declining sales figures in the Chinese market reflect this. Apple remains a worthy opponent deserving respect, and domestic manufacturers can learn from Apple's strengths in user privacy protection and overall operating experience. Apple is the perfect "opponent" in the progression of domestic phone manufacturers; ultimately, domestic phones will surpass the iPhone comprehensively.

In conclusion, the success stories of Xiaomi and OPPO demonstrate that benchmarking against Apple isn't about simple imitation, but about learning from Apple's expertise in ecosystem building, user experience, and product design, and then innovating and surpassing it to stand out in the fiercely competitive smartphone market. Android manufacturers need to fully leverage the open nature of the Android system and the advantages of AI technology to build more comprehensive ecosystems and deliver superior user experiences to ultimately surpass Apple.