OPPO’s Find X9 Pro: A Flagship Powerhouse Lands in South Africa

On the 5th of November, OPPO officially launched its new flagship, the Find X9 Pro, at a charming restaurant tucked in the heart of Melrose. It was an intimate media gathering, complete with good food, warm conversation, and a sense of anticipation that built up to the moment the device was unveiled.

The Find X9 Pro is the first device from OPPO’s global Find X Series to officially launch in South Africa, and it marks a major milestone for the brand; a confident leap into the country’s premium smartphone market.

As the dishes arrived, so did the stories. I found myself seated next to Bradley Young, OPPO South Africa’s Head of Retail and Product, who spoke passionately about the phone’s incredible battery life. He had been using the device throughout the day, taking photos and videos before the event, and by the time we were seated, his phone was still sitting comfortably at 92%. Meanwhile, my own device (admittedly four years old) had dipped below 50%. It was a small but telling moment that underscored how far OPPO has come in pushing mobile endurance.

And rightly so. The Find X9 Pro packs a 7,500 mAh Silicon Carbon Battery, the largest ever in an OPPO flagship. It’s designed to maintain over 80% of its capacity even after five years of use, a rare claim in today’s smartphone market. When it does need charging, 80W SUPERVOOC wired and 50W AIRVOOC wireless charging make downtime almost negligible.

But if there’s one thing that truly steals the spotlight, it’s the camera. Co-engineered with Hasselblad, the Find X9 Pro’s imaging system is a masterpiece in itself. The 200 MP Hasselblad Telephoto Camera delivers breathtaking clarity, whether you’re shooting sweeping landscapes or intricate macro shots. I was especially impressed by how seamlessly the phone transitions between lenses; there’s no visible jump or shift, just a smooth, fluid adjustment that keeps every frame consistent.

The photos are crisp and lifelike, even in challenging lighting conditions, and the zoom performance stands out. The detail retention in close-up shots is genuinely impressive; on par, I’d argue, with the iPhone 17 Pro Max, if not better in some scenarios. OPPO’s LUMO Image Engine also plays a big role here, enhancing tone and texture for a natural yet cinematic finish.

Under the hood, the Find X9 Pro runs on the MediaTek Dimensity 9500 processor paired with ColorOS 16, making it a powerhouse for both productivity and creativity. New AI features, like AI Mind Space for intelligent memory collection and AI Portrait Glow for low-light portraits, add layers of smart functionality that feel genuinely useful rather than gimmicky.

Visually, it’s a sleek piece of engineering. The Titanium Charcoal variant, the only one launching in South Africa, looks and feels premium, with flat edges, ultra-thin bezels, and an IP69-rated build for real-world resilience.

The OPPO Find X9 Pro is available exclusively at Vodacom stores nationwide, featuring 16GB of RAM (expandable to 28GB) and 512GB of storage, priced at R29 999 or from R1 399 per month on contract. Each purchase comes with an Exclusive Gift Box valued at R9 999, which includes an 80W SUPERVOOC charger, a 50W AirVOOC wireless charger, a magnetic case, the OPPO Watch X2, and an OPPO Care VIP package worth R9 000.