Carbon

If that wasn’t enough, Lamborghini has tweaked the Sian’s 3D-printed air vents, where it has a partnership with Carbon. On the roadster, each buyer will be able to personalize them with their initials, extending a design decision that its makers had already promised would make each vehicle unique. As far as the price, don’t bother asking. Autoblog points out that the coupe version was rumored at around $2 million to start, and for the roadster Lamborghini said it’s already sold all 19 of them.

The first thing you’ll notice about the Find X2 Pro is that it has a somewhat plain appearance compared to the legendary Find X. There are no hidden pop-up cameras; instead you’ll find three of them lined up on the back. There’s also a punch-hole camera at the top left corner of the curved screen.

Admittedly, the Find X2 Pro’s design didn’t surprise me as much as its predecessor’s, but that’s not to say it’s bad. The phone comes in black ceramic or orange vegan leather with a rose gold frame (China gets a grey vegan leather edition, too). Personally, I prefer the masculine ceramic edition. The back is etched with fine curvy lines, which form a wave pattern when you tilt it under the light. The downside, though, is that this glossy surface picks up fingerprints.

People used to the likes of regular-sized phones — the iPhone 11 Pro, Galaxy S20+ or smaller — may find the 207-gram (7.3-ounce) Find X2 Pro a little heavy. (The leather edition weighs 7 grams less.). That said, it’s still lighter than the likes of S20 Ultra and iPhone 11 Pro Max. For me, the Find X2 Pro feels just right for its size, weight and build quality.

What truly makes the Find X2 Pro stand out from the crowd is its 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 flash charge, making it the third device to benefit from Oppo’s handy feature after the Reno Ace and Realme’s X50 Pro. In this case, it takes 38 minutes to juice up that 4,260mAh battery, which is quite fast considering how other flagships take about an hour or more for a full charge. Another benefit of VOOC is that the phone doesn’t heat up that much while charging, so it’s totally fine to use it while plugged in.

This new Oppo phone has all the guts you’d expect from a 5G flagship. There’s a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset, 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, 512GB of storage, in-display fingerprint reader, Dolby Atmos stereo speakers and triple-mic noise cancellation. It also packs a 6.7-inch Quad HD+ (3,168 x 1,440) AMOLED screen with an impressive 120Hz refresh rate — a rare combination in today’s market. With the periscope telephoto camera on the back, the Find X2 Pro is basically the Galaxy S20 Ultra’s brother from another mother.

The imaging similarities end there, as the Find X2 Pro has a totally different set of camera sensors. While the telephoto camera here also offers 10x hybrid zoom (16mm-160mm), it uses a 13-megapixel sensor with f/3.0 aperture and optical stabilization. The app switches to this camera for 5x zoom (optical) and beyond (hybrid). You can push all the way to 60x zoom if you really want to, but you’re not going to get anything Instagram-worthy.

As for the 48-megapixel f/1.7 main camera, it’s powered by Sony’s new IMX689 sensor, which offers “All Pixel Omni-Directional PDAF (phase-detection autofocus).” In a nutshell, rather than using just 3 percent of the pixels to focus, here all the pixels take part in a faster and more reliable autofocus, especially in the dark. Additionally, there’s optical stabilization plus laser autofocus, and these cameras can use the color sensors on both sides of the phone for more accurate brightness and color temperature measurements. The main camera also does 12-bit RAW capture for greater color depth, which Oppo claims is a first for smartphones.

The last of the rear cameras is a 48-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide camera with a 120-degree field of view. It can also be used to take macro shots at down to 3cm, as well as offering extra stabilization for video capture. Much like the S20 Ultra, the Find X2 Pro’s rear cameras can make use of the triple microphones for clearer audio recording and audio zoom, but they can’t do 8K recording — just up to 4K at 60fps.

On the other side, there’s a 32-megapixel f/2.4 selfie camera punched into the top-left corner of the screen. Here you get the usual beautification options, as well as screen flash and gesture control. It also does 1080p video capture at 30fps.

An Oppo spokesperson told me that the rear cameras here were built based on the learnings of the earlier Reno 10x Zoom, which also had a periscope camera. The company claims that we’ll see better uniformity across all three cameras, especially when it comes to auto white balance, HDR photography and the new Ultra Night Mode — this is sometimes an issue for smartphones packing so many different camera sensors.

I asked Oppo why the company chose to ditch the Find X’s legendary pop-up cameras, and the reason was partly about achieving an IP68 dustproof plus waterproof rating. Also, the design team wanted a camera module small enough that it wouldn’t call too much attention to itself. Fair enough. And of course, the fewer mechanical parts there are, the less wear and tear users will have to worry about in the long run.

To help show off the Find X2 Pro’s photography prowess, Oppo picked this particular “True Billion Color Display” from Samsung. The panel’s 8+2 bit color depth means it delivers 64 times more colors than conventional 8-bit displays. Oppo also worked with color tuning experts to add screen calibration process — an extra 20 seconds for each device — to the Find X2 Pro’s production line, in order to ensure a low JNCD (Just Noticeable Color Difference) ratio of no greater than 0.8 in default display mode. As phone nerds might know, this is the same standard that OnePlus teased for its upcoming smartphone, which isn’t surprising given that Oppo does the manufacturing for it.

Oppo also added a clever trick to accurately control the screen’s brightness and color temperature. Rather than relying on a single sensor, the Find X2 Pro uses the color sensors for both sets of cameras for 360-degree detection. This means the screen will less likely jump to maximum brightness when you walk under a street light at night. Additionally, the system will also learn your brightness preferences according to the current app and sensor data and automatically adjust for you in the future.

To further leverage this 120Hz, HDR10+ display, Oppo added a proprietary feature called the O1 Ultra Vision Engine, which is mainly for upscaling to HDR and boosting frame rate in video playback (you can toggle these two features individually). While I appreciate the HDR upscaling option, I find that this engine isn’t necessary for most clips; in fact, artificially boosting the frame rate appears to reduce the sharpness slightly. In response, Oppo claims “the smoothness matters the most” for our overall viewing experience, and recommends trying this engine with action sequences with a frame rate of under 30fps.

Oppo is also taking full advantage of this 120Hz screen with its revamped, more lightweight ColorOS, based on Android 10. I’m liking it so far. The interface looks clean and the animations feel smooth, so much that it actually reminds me of the latest OnePlus phones, which isn’t a bad thing.

As a finishing touch on the UX, Oppo equipped the phone with a custom X-axis linear motor for vibration functions, which the company claims is the largest of its kind amongst Android phones. Compared to most other phones I’ve come across, the vibration here feels crisper, which is great for typing and gaming — I could really feel the difference.

If you’ve been wondering why there’s a “Pro” in the name, there is indeed a “regular” Find X2 as well. It’ll obviously be cheaper, but you’ll mainly be missing out on the camera specs. The periscope telephoto camera is replaced with a fixed telephoto shooter, and the main camera uses an older 48-megapixel sensor (it’s the same IMX586 as the Pro’s ultra-wide camera). While the ultra-wide camera here only shoots 12 megapixels, it’s actually powered by Sony’s new IMX708 sensor, which makes up with native 16:9 capture and 4-in-1 pixel binning. You also only get 256GB of storage, the more common Z-axis vibration motor, a lower protection rating of IP54 and a choice of either ceramic or glass only. The rest is pretty much the same, though.

Alen Wu, Oppo’s President of Global Sales, told me that there are no plans to bring the Find X2 series to the US, which isn’t surprising given that the company has yet to properly enter the US smartphone market. He added that much of his company’s focus in the West is in European countries like France, Italy, Spain, UK and more. And for the first time, sales outside China accounted for more than half of Oppo’s total numbers last year. As for 2020, Oppo will be making its Latin America debut in Mexico. One step closer to the brand’s eventual arrival in the US?

Update 3/6/20 5:15AM ET:: In terms of pricing, the Find X2 Pro is asking for 6,999 yuan (about $1,010) or 1,199 euros. Like the original Find X, the Find X2 Pro also comes in a Lamborghini edition, with design inspirations taken from the Aventador SVJ Roadster. The damage? A mere 12,999 yuan or about $1,880, which includes special edition accessories plus a pair of true-wireless earbuds. If you want something a little more affordable, though, the Find X2 starts at 5,499 yuan (about $790) or 999 euros.

With the exception of the Lamborghini edition, the Find X2 series will be available in Europe from as soon as early May.

With a name that means “flash or lightning” in the Bolognese dialect, the Sian is the latest supercar to get the hybrid treatment following Porsche and Ferrari vehicles. But being the automaker wasn’t content just placing a battery in its latest vehicle. Instead, it’s using a supercapacitor to propel the vehicle forward.

The Sian has a 48-volt motor that’s added to the gearbox adds an additional 34 horsepower to the V12 engine. It helps propel the vehicle at lanches and gives the Sian immediate torque while punching the accelerator.

Yet it does this with a supercapacitor instead of the typical lithium-ion battery pack. Lamborghini says it’s “three times more powerful than a battery of the same weight and three times lighter than a battery producing the same power.” When you building something that goes incredibly fast reducing weight while adding power is the name of the game. Lamborghini seems to have done that with updated tech it borrowed from the Aventador.

Plus, whenever the brakes are used, the supercapacitor is fully charged so it’s always ready for takeoff.

The combined powertrain produces 819 horsepower and shoots the Sian from zero to 62 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds. if you’re in the market for one, you might want to hurry, the automaker is only building 63 Sians that will be individually styled by the owners. In other words, it’s pricey.

The Sián is also noteworthy in how it stores and recharges power. Rather than rely on lithium-ion batteries like most other hybrids and EVs, this car uses supercapacitors that are three times more powerful than batteries of similar weight and three times lighter than batteries with similar power. The approach not only helps keep the overall weight down, but allows the storage to fully charge every time you brake. You shouldn’t have to worry about losing that hybrid boost when you’re completing a lap on the track.

The design has some roots in the Terzo Millennio concept from 2017, including both a handful of design cues (such as the Y-shaped headlights) and the supercapacitor storage, although it’s not a pure EV and omits particularly exotic elements like the self-healing carbon fiber.

There’s just one problem with the Sián, apart from its likely astronomical (but unspecified) price tag: it’s already spoken for. Lamborghini is making just 63 units, and all of them have been sold. While this is an honest-to-goodness production hybrid, it’s more a peek at Lamborghini’s long-term strategy than anything. It doesn’t have much choice. With Europe and other regions pushing for stricter emissions and fuel economy targets, the brand will have trouble relying solely on monster gas engines going forward — and it can’t rely on VW’s electric cars to compensate.

Ever since Lamborghini showed off its wild MIT-collaborated Terzo Millennio concept we’ve been waiting to see what a production version could look like, and we might find out soon. Autoblog points out this teaser image posted to the company’s Instagram page which shows the logo, a silhouette and some Y-shaped LEDs that harken back to the 2017 concept.

Features like a self-healing carbon fiber shell, in-wheel electric motors and supercapacitor energy storage probably aren’t ready for prime time yet, but Lamborghini has seemingly been preparing for a limited edition follow-up ever since.

The Aventador and Huracan are scheduled to get hybrid drivetrains eventually and Lamborghini’s Asterion concept showed one possible future, but this could give an early preview of the technology. Whatever the vehicle is, we should see more of it at the 2019 Frankfurt Auto Show that officially begins September 12th.

That said, I fit just fine in the new Lamborghini Huracan EVO. The latest supercar variant from the Italian automaker is jam-packed with tech that keeps it on the road and the person behind the wheel happy. Again, I have plenty of leg and head space to comfortably drive the rocketship with four wheels. That is, until I have to wear a racing helmet. Then, no so much.

Lamborghini invited me to Willow Springs International Raceway in the Mojave desert to try out their new 5.4-liter, 10-cylinder, 640 horsepower monster. But this beast has a leash with two leads: one controlled by the driver and one by the automaker’s new LDVI system (that’s short for Lamborghini Dinamica Veicolo Integrata). The onboard computer keeps track of everything the person behind the wheel and car are currently doing and predicts what’s going to happen next. It sounds a bit like witchcraft, but while crammed into a Huracan EVO at Willow Springs International Raceway, I was able to get around the track’s toughest corners thanks to a little help from the CPU.

LDVI is a processor that works by constantly monitoring the vehicle’s all-wheel drive, all-wheel steering, grip and suspension systems. It also gets orientation data from the Lamborghini Piattaforma Inerziale (LPI), a series of gyroscopes and accelerometers that sit in the Huracan’s center of gravity. The supercar is also reading data from the driver: whichever mode they’ve put the car in, their use of the brake and accelerator and of course, their steering.

It’s a huge flow of data, and the LDVI interprets it in just 20 milliseconds and then uses that info to adjust the car’s trajectory. If it were a reactive system it would be, well, fine. Adjustments after the fact can be helpful if they can right the vehicle after, say a steering mistake. Instead, Lamborghini says it created a predictive system, something that takes in a ton of information and knows what’s about to happen next. It’s a bold promise and in my testing, they’ve succeeded.

I learned this while wearing a helmet that suddenly consumed any headroom available in the Huracan EVO. An hour earlier (before I donned the helmet) I was comfortably sitting in a supercar going through a slalom and learning about one of the more difficult turns at the track.

But if I wanted to get any track time, I had to wear a helmet and suddenly my sitting position including scooching my butt to the edge of my seat so that bumps wouldn’t snap my neck. My knees were essentially touching each side of the steering wheel and my arms were bent at a weird angle and instead of a light touch on the steering wheel, I was gripping it like a mad man to overcome any friction from my knees which were also in the way when I went around sharper turns. I looked like a curled-up shrimp in a polo shirt.

The result of this lower-back torturing position was that I was that my driving was subpar, to say the least. But, to the LDVI’s credit, it corrected my many errors in real time. It adjusted my trajectory ever so slightly around a sharp downhill corner multiple times where I just couldn’t get the right line.

The adjustments never felt overbearing or impeded my input. Instead, it was tiny corrections to a series of less-than-stellar laps around a technical track by a man hunched over in the fetal position behind the wheel. If you’re someone who can throw down $260,000 for a car but your driving skills don’t include time behind the wheel of a powerful vehicle, LDVI can help. It won’t cure bad driving, but it will help correct small issues while you progress.

So, while I was unable to experience a Lamborghini while driving at my full potential, I was able to test out the automaker’s impressive supercomputer. It still delivered an enjoyable drive and is a good reminder that eventually that tech will make its way into the cars that regular people can afford. Not so much for track driving, but for safety.