This Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra rival is launching outside China for the first time and it wants to 'be your next camera'

Date:
Fri, 06 Mar 2026 20:04:38 +0000

Description:
Chinese phone giant Oppo has confirmed that it's launching its flagship
camera phone outside China for the first time and it has camera-sized aspirations.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get the TechRadar Newsletter Sign up for
breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter The Oppo Find X9 Ultra will get a global release soon This Android powerhouse
will rival the Galaxy S26 Ultra Leaks claim it could have 200MP periscope telephoto with an f/2.2 aperture If you're a keen watcher of the increasingly competitive battle to create the world's best camera phone , you'll be glad
to know that a new contestant is about to enter the arena.

Chinese phone brand Oppo, a name you might recognize for its UEFA, Wimbledon, Roland-Garros and ICC sponsorships as well as its flashy Android phones , has confirmed that its most premium mobile yet is about to get a global release. And we know its name: the Oppo Find X9 Ultra. This will mark the first time that one of the brand's 'Ultra' phones has released outside China. The brand sells lots of its phones in Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia (not the US, though it's possible to import them), but its most feature-flush phones have typically only sold on home turf. You may like Ive tried the best phone cameras in 2025 here's what the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra needs to bring to the table in 2026 This iPhone 17 Pro Max rival could soon steal its crown as the worlds best camera phone, thanks to a unique sensor and 35mm Zeiss lens The Xiaomi 18 Pro could be the first phone with two 200MP cameras

For now, we don't know a whole lot more about the phone, including when it'll show up or what it'll be like. However, the reliable leaker Digital Chat Station (via Android Headlines ) claims it'll have a 200MP periscope
telephoto sensor with a large 1/1.28-inch sensor size and f/2.2 aperture.
That combination, particularly the telephoto's bright aperture, could theoretically produce some class-leading results.

The Find X8 Ultra released in China in April, so we could hear about it imminently, although Oppo is one of the many Chinese phone brands which releases its tech in China before rolling it out globally. In other words, stay tuned for more. Analysis: The age of Ultra camera phones (Image credit: Future | Alex Walker-Todd) For the moment, the Oppo Find X9 Ultra specs have been kept under wraps. But judging by the name alone, it should have a more advanced camera set-up than the Find X9 Pro .

That phone had a 50MP main camera, a 50MP ultra-wide and a 200MP telephoto camera, the latter of which hit 3x zoom. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Those are impressive specs, but don't match some 'Ultra' phones we've seen. The Xiaomi 17 Ultra (above), for example, has those same specs but the main camera has a 1-inch sensor, and the telephoto zooms continuously between 3.2x and 4.3x, with Leica having designed the lenses.

Another recent mobile, the Vivo X300 Ultra, has a 200MP main, 50MP ultrawide and 200MP periscope camera, the latter of which zooms at 3.7x and is designed to shoot in a special macro mode.

And the handset you've likely heard most about, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra
, has a 200MP main camera, a 50MP ultrawide, a 50MP telephoto for 5x zoom,
and a 10MP telephoto for 3x zoom. What to read next Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra leak reveals its big camera overhaul here are 5 changes to expect Camera upgrades are tipped for the Samsung Galaxy S26 and the OnePlus 16 Xiaomi 17 Ultra hands-on: 3 upgrades I love and 2 things it's missing

It's clear from those specs that zooming is the name of the game, with a handful of new phones like the Vivo coming with telephoto lens add-ons that you can buy separately.

Rather than bump the megapixel count of any of the Pro's cameras, the Oppo Find X9 Ultra will likely add some unique and bespoke tech, like the Xiaomi's Leica-made continuous zoom. Hasselblad has helped out with past Oppo phones, contributing color calibration tech to the Find X9 series, and any serious hardware change will likely bear its name.

Phone camera hardware from Chinese brands like Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi has become incredibly competitive recently, with each stumbling over each other
to offer mind-bending tech. If the X9 Ultra matches these other powerhouses, I'll swap out my Galaxy S26 Ultra for the chance to see something new. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

And of course, you can also follow TechRadar on YouTube and TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.



======================================================================
Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/phones/this-samsung-galaxy-s26-ultra-rival-is-launch ing-outside-china-for-the-first-time-and-it-wants-to-be-your-next-camera


--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A49 (Linux/64)
* Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)