Oppo's boss criticizes Xiaomi 17 Pro Max.

OPPO's head of design has publicly criticized the secondary display design on smartphones, yet the Xiaomi Mi 17 Pro series continues to achieve record sales.

The rear display of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max is the most interesting detail on the new phone. Photo: My Wish List Cyberpower .

Liu Haoran, General Manager of OPPO's Industrial Design Center and chief designer for OPPO and OnePlus, recently caused a stir by strongly criticizing the trend of adding secondary rear screens to modern smartphone designs.

Rear secondary screen

His comments were seen as a direct challenge to the design philosophy applied to the new Xiaomi 17 Pro product line.

"Frankly, I can't understand what they're thinking," Haoran declared, frankly expressing his disapproval of the design.

The designer argued that this feature diminished the overall value and functionality of the device.

According to the designer, the secondary screen on the back of the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max only serves to create a difference. Photo: Wired.

Technically, he asserted that the secondary rear screen "increases power consumption" and warned that it "adds unnecessary costs, making future repairs expensive."

Regarding design philosophy, he argued that this trend "needs a range of additional features to convince users" and noted that it "could cause visual conflict in the future."

Regarding user experience, Haoran acknowledged that "the rear screen makes reading notifications very convenient," but warned that displaying them on the back of the device "may affect privacy." He questioned its practical usefulness, arguing that non-essential information like the clock should be placed on the front main screen.

While acknowledging minor benefits such as customization options and support for selfies using the rear camera, Haoran maintained his original viewpoint. He concluded that this was a "forced" design, not serving the practical needs of users and implemented only to "create differentiation."

"This design is unsustainable and difficult to maintain in the future. It feels like it's deliberately trying to be different, which won't last long. Let's wait and see," the designer commented.

Reportedly, this move by Haoran follows a previous public competition. Specifically, in 2021, ahead of the OnePlus product launch, he caused controversy when he used the official brand account to mock Xiaomi's design taste, stating: "They can't learn it, it's a matter of aesthetics."

This statement triggered a public confrontation on social media with Redmi's former product director. Haoran subsequently apologized to his competitor. This apology was confirmed by Liu Zuohu, then OPPO's Product Director.

Sales say otherwise.

Despite skepticism from the veteran designer, consumers showed great interest in the concept of a secondary screen. The sales figures for the Xiaomi Mi 17 are seen as a strong counter-argument to Haoran's criticisms.

Leaked images reveal the design of the Oppo Find X9 series, a competitor to the Xiaomi 17. Image: Gadget360.

Specifically, this product line achieved extraordinary success, selling over one million units in just 5 days.

Notably, the Mi 17 Pro Max version with the secondary screen accounted for over 50% of the total sales of the entire product line, demonstrating consumer enthusiasm for this design.

This success has led to unprecedented demand for customizable features. Zhang Guoquan, Director of System Software at Xiaomi, noted that user demand for secondary display functionality has "exploded in every aspect," with diverse needs such as displaying stock prices, pet information, or tracking deliveries.

He admitted that the software team was "overwhelmed" by this surge in requests. The enthusiastic user reception suggests that the longevity of the secondary display design is being determined more by market demand than by design concerns.

Source: https://znews.vn/sep-oppo-cong-khai-che-xiaomi-17-pro-max-post1592580.html