Oppo and its subsidiary OnePlus have reportedly decided to wrap up their smartphone business in Europe and leave the old continent behind. Sad news for Oppo and OnePlus fans, as few as they are, but the good news is that there's always a better alternative or two.
So, you're a lost Oppo or OnePlus smartphone user looking for an upgrade within the next year and unsure which brand to pick? Evidently, Samsung is our first recommendation for many reasons we explained before. Not for nothing, Samsung is our favorite brand.
The Korean tech giant offers the best customer support and has the best reputation in the Android world for high build quality, the fastest firmware updates in the industry with prolonged support, a solid repair and retail network across Europe, and overall a fantastic experience focused on apps and services — especially if you're looking to buy more than a phone and plan to use a tablet, smartwatch, TV, a Windows laptop, and smart home devices.
What other smartphone brands should you be aware of in Europe?
By market share alone, Xiaomi is actually the second-largest Android brand in Europe after Samsung. Between February 2022 and February 2023 (via Statcounter), Xiaomi had roughly half the market share that Samsung captured across the European continent within the same 12-month period. And although half might not sound like a lot, it's quite a feat, given how poorly other OEMs perform.
But what if you're done using phones from Chinese OEMs after Oppo and OnePlus abandon the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, and France? What is your next-best option in these markets then? Well, it's none other than Google.
If Samsung is not your OEM of choice, for whatever reason, and you don't want to buy a phone from a Chinese brand anymore, you might want to consider supporting the Android OS maker itself.
Granted, Google is not the most active smartphone vendor in Europe. Far from it. It has the smallest market share among all other vendors, despite it being the Android OS maker. However, the main reason for this is that Google doesn't have a wide retail network.
Google's online hardware store is available in a handful of key European markets. In the rest of Europe, it's not always worth getting a Pixel phone because of retailer markups. But if you're an Oppo or OnePlus user in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, France, and possibly other parts of Europe soon, you might want to consider a Google Pixel phone as your next step. Assuming Samsung is not your cup of tea.
Whether you pick Samsung or Google, you will benefit from decent support and a guarantee that your phone will offer the best Android OS experience, boasting timely firmware updates, access to early Android beta programs (in the case of Google), and the best security from a trusted brand.
