Tag Archives: OnePlus

OnePlus Teases A Foldable Phone

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OnePlus LogoIn true company fashion, OnePlus has announced at MWC that it will be launching a foldable smartphone in the second half of 2023. That’s it. No name, no product, no render, but it does come from the President and COO of OnePlus, Kinder Liu. He said, “Our first foldable phone will have the signature OnePlus fast and smooth experience. It must be a flagship phone that doesn’t settle because of its folding form, in terms of industrial design, mechanical technology, and other aspects. We want to launch a device that aims to be at the pinnacle experience of today’s foldable market.”

Given the absence of any real facts, we might consider looking elsewhere with the BBK group. OnePlus already has strategic relationship with OPPO, who in turn have a neat foldable already on the market, the Find N2 Flip. Personally, I don’t think it will be this form factor because it’s just not “flagship phone”. Fantastic for fun loving folk but not flagship, at least not to me.

I’d like to think it will be something more like Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold4. That’s more like it.

Having said that, I’m still in two minds about foldables. I’ve seen a first generation Galaxy Z Flip and the crease hadn’t lasted a year, so I’d still be a bit wary. Microsoft’s Surface Duo series seemed to be the way to go but I never actually bought one. It’s difficult to get away from the smartphone plus tablet pairing and so much of the choice is about the camera.

No doubt we’ll continue to hear more about the upcoming OnePlus foldable until it’s finally launched. This is the way.

OnePlus 11 Concept Unveiled at MWC

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OnePlus LogoWith the OnePlus 11 out of the door, the company’s been teasing its thoughts on the next generation of smartphone with the OnePlus 11 Concept. Much like a concept car, the 11 Concept shows off what might be the future.

Revealed at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, the most obvious feature is an icy blue flowing back which accentuates the round camera array of the 11. However, this isn’t only for looks, it’s an active cooling system called CryoFlux which can reduce the phone’s temperature by slightly over 2°C during gaming and 1.6°C during charging.

Active CryoFlux is a miniaturisation of the technology used in gaming PCs to keep the CPU and GPU cool: a piezoelectric ceramic micropump circulates the coolant through the pipelines on the back and the clear rear cover provides a beautiful view of the CryoFlux pipelines redistributing heat away from hot spots and critical areas.

In addition to the 11 Concept, the standard OnePlus 11 will be on show, demonstrating the phone’s considerable power from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 mobile platform alongside the XR2 AR wireless smart viewer to offer an outstanding AR experience. The 11 is the first Snapdragon Spaces-ready phone which offers an AR experience with glasses driven by the smartphone.

If you want to know more or see some of OnePlus’ recently announced products, including the OnePlus Pad and Buds Pro 2, the company is at Mobile World Congress from Monday 27th February to Thursday 2nd March in booth #3M10 in Hall 3.

OnePlus Delivers a Vision for the Future

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OnePlus LogoRight on cue, OnePlus delivered its largest launch event showcasing the OnePlus 11 5G smartphone, Buds Pro 2 earphones, Pad tablet and the Keyboard 81 Pro. In some respects there were no surprises but the big takeaway was OnePlus’ ambition to build an ecosystem with phones at the centre.

OnePlus has always had a strong fan base or “community”, as they’d probably prefer but even I was surprised by the numbers. The OnePlus Red Cable Club has 30 million members and you actively have to join; you aren’t automatically enrolled. In comparison, OnePlus has sold 55 million phones, which is nothing compared to Apple’s 2 billion phones, but it means that nearly 55% of owners are in the Club. I think that’s impressive and important. And over 14,000 people watch the live event broadcasting from New Delhi, India.

OnePlus’ new cryptic legend is “1+4+X”. 1 is the phone at the heart of the ecosystem, 4 are the categories of TV, wearables, tablets and earphones. X is entertainment, efficiency and health. There we have it – OnePlus’ strategy for the next few years. It’s not an entirely new approach as there have been hints of this as far back as the early Nord phones.

For comparison, Samsung’s been at this for awhile and have been very successful at it, though some of their gear only interoperates with other Samsung products, cf SmartTags, which I find frustrating. Xiaomi is another useful comparison but hasn’t been as successful in building an ecosystem. Xiaomi have lots of products in different categories but they don’t present as a unified system.

As OnePlus unveiled new products, the presenters often emphasised the interoperability between, say, the Buds Pro 2, and the OnePlus 11. Having devices from the same stable is now an advantage and while the event was really about the high-end offerings, I imagine this will trickle down to the Nord phones and lesser Buds.

With the strategy out of the way, let’s talk about the products, pricing and availability. The specs are well covered elsewhere so I’ll highlight a few of the main features only.

The Phone
The OnePlus 11 5G is largely as expected with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 powering a 6.7″ fluid AMOLED QHD+ display with 120 Hz refresh. Two colour ways, Eternal Green and Titan Black. There’s Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos and plenty of clever AI trickery called RAM-Vita to compress unused apps and reserve RAM for particular apps.

Inside is a 5000 mAh battery that will charge from 1 to 100% in 25 mins using the 100W SuperVOOC charger supplied in the box. While OnePlus reckons you’ll get at least 4 years of good battery health, I’m disappointed that there’s no wireless charging – I think that feature was last seen on the OnePlus 9. The phone is WiFi 7 ready and has dual WiFi acceleration to improve download speeds.

The 11G’s cameras are managed by Hasselblad’s 3rd generation of mobile software with hardware assistance and computational photography. The three cameras offer 50 MP OIS for the main lens, a 32 MP 2x optical zoom for portraits (and bokeh) and an ultra wide 48 MP lens. In addition there’s a new colour calibration sensor that really should ensure colours are true to life.

Pricing is
US$699 / 829€ / UK£729 for the 8GB+128GB version
US$799 / 899€ / UK£799 for the 16GB+256GB
Pre-orders are open now with shipping in around 20th February.

The Tablet
The OnePlus Pad is the first tablet from the company and I get slightly mixed messages on this device. OnePlus tout the entertainment credentials of the Pad – big screen, hi-resolution, large battery for video, great sound – but Pad also comes with a stylus and a magnetic keyboard, which makes me feel they’re going after the more work-like Samsung Tab S series. As pricing and availability hasn’t yet been announced we’ll have to see.

The Pad is powered by the Dimensity 9000 chipset with up to 12 GB RAM. The screen is 11.6″ with a 2800×2000 pixel resolution which ought to look lovely. There’s an unusual 7:5 screen ratio and from the pictures, it’s clear that OnePlus expect the Pad to be used in landscape orientation and it comes in a lovely Halo Green to match the Eternal Green of the 11.

There’s a large 9510 mAh battery which will take advantage of 67W SuperVOOC to charge rapidly but the most interesting part is that allegedly the Pad will retain power for a month on standby.

The OnePlus Pad will only be offered with WiFi connectivity as owners are expected to seamlessly connect through to their OnePlus phone.

No details on price but pre-orders are expected in April.

The Earbuds
There’s nothing much to say that hasn’t already been covered in previous articles here on GNC. The Buds Pro 2 will come in three colours; Arbor Green, Obsidian Black and Misty White. Co-created with Dynaudio, the Buds Pro 2s have dual drivers for exceptional sound reproduction and with three external mics, there’s up to 48 dB of a active noise cancellation. When used with the charging case, there’s up to 39 hours of listening and 10 mins of charge gives 10 hours of music.

Pricing is $179 / 179€ / UK£179 and pre-orders are open.

The Keyboard
The OnePlus Featuring Keyboard 81 Pro is an interesting addition to the portfolio. Yes, it’s a high-end mid-sized keyboard with some cool features but it doesn’t really seem to fit into the ecosystem. Yes, it will work with PCs, Macs and other devices but I don’t see what makes this OnePlus special other than a couple of red keycaps. The premium materials are lovely and there are some nifty features like the metal stand, but it would have been nice to see some customisation for the 11 or the Pad. One for the fans, I think.

Price and availability to be announced later.

Conclusion
Overall, a solid launch event from OnePlus with an exciting long term vision for the future and some pretty cool products as well. Hopefully I’ll be able to get a few of them in for view from the nice folks at OnePlus.

OnePlus Extends Support and Shows Future of OxygenOS

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OnePlus LogoAt a OnePlus’ community event in London, the company revealed its roadmap for OxygenOS 13.1 and beyond. For the first “Open Ears” event in two years, the Oxygen OS team shared upcoming changes and developments for both OxygenOS 13 and 14. As a bonus, OnePlus committed to offering four generations of OxygenOS and five years of security updates on selected devices launched in 2023 onwards. This brings it in-line with the Samsung’s policy and exceeds Google’s promises.

Before looking to 13.1, the company reviewed some of the new features in OxygenOS 13 which is currently rolling out to supported devices like the OnePlus 9.

  • AI System Booster
  • Homeland Always on Display
  • Spotify Always on Display
  • Spatial Audio developed in conjunction with Google
  • Private Safe 2.0
  • Aquamorphic Design

Although I’ve not yet seen it in action, I think the best one of these is the Private Safe feature which alerts you to instances when you might be taking a screenshot with personal information in it and auto pixelates the data. It can be overridden but it’s good feature to avoid embarrassment.

The System Booster works to keep everything buttery smooth, trying to keep the right apps loaded in memory while making sure that games and other high performance apps load swiftly. OnePlus has always had something like this, but certainly it’s changed visually when you start up a game.

The Homeland Always on Display is a little unclear but I think it’s supposed to alert you to the impact of climate change on animal’s habitats. Again, I’m trying to figure out how to use it on the phone.

And in contrast, really not sure what Aquamorphic Design brings to the party other than smaller icons and preponderance of blue. Fortunately, it can be changed back to good old OnePlus red.

For OxygenOS 13.1, which is expected in the first half of 2023, the team are expecting to build on Private Safe with additional privacy focussed features. Another area of focus is improved digital health and well-being with more accessibility features for users with disabilities. Inclusive design can often bring benefits to everyone, not just those initially targeted.

Gary Chen, Head of Software Products at OnePlus, and Crayon Hsieh, Head of OneLab at OnePlus presented at the meeting. Gary confirmed, “OxygenOS is an integral part of OnePlus, co-created by our community members, and as a user-oriented company, we do everything we can to enhance user experience. With more users keeping their devices for longer, we want to make sure we can offer that possibility. This new update policy will give users access to the latest security and functional features required to power OnePlus’ signature fast-and-smooth experience throughout the lifetime of the phone.”

OnePlus Plants Trees for Trade-Ins with Ecologi

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OnePlus LogoEcologi Script Logo on Green and Blue SplodgeTo help reduce the impact of its products on the planet, OnePlus has partnered with Ecologi to plant a tree every time a phone is traded in for a new one. Ecologi is a climate action organisation that helps both individuals and businesses offset their activities through the planting of trees.

Based on the current trade-in rate for new phones such as the 10T, Nord 2T and 10 Pro, OnePlus expects several thousand trees to be planted on its behalf. The trees will be planted in dedicated forest areas around the world and so far, Ecologi has planted over 50 million trees on behalf of its supporters and clients. This represents a reduction of 2.2 million tonnes of CO2.

“At OnePlus we’re renowned for our community spirit, and looking out for our users. By giving OnePlus fans the chance to help the planet every time they get a new phone, we’re helping them make a positive difference to the planet,” said Tuomas Lampen, OnePlus’s Head of European Strategy. “By partnering with Ecologi as part of our wider environmental work we hope to continue to reduce our impact on the world and become a more sustainable business.”

In addition to planting trees, OnePlus has worked to reduce the amount of plastic in packaging, extend product lifecycles and has established recycling schemes. The customer benefits as well, with a trade in bonus available throughout October. When customers trade in an old phone for new phones they’ll receive an additional GB£200 or 200€ back on top of the trade-in value of their phone.

Linda Adams, Head of Partnerships at Ecologi, added: “While there is still work to do in the consumer electronics industry, it’s great to see OnePlus taking important steps to reduce the environmental impact of its products through its trade-in scheme, alongside supporting reforestation projects. Given its global presence and huge customer base, we hope OnePlus can act as an example to other companies in the sector – inspiring them to join the collective fight against climate change.”

If you are interested in offsetting your own personal carbon footprint, have a look at Ecologi. As a social enterprise (they’re not a charity), they work with tree planting partners to reforest local areas with appropriate trees to encourage wildlife and biodiversity. You can take out a subscription to Ecologi to cover part or all of your carbon footprint and there are family options too that will even cover your pets. 85% of the subscription goes to funding trees and similar projects. There’s a bit about the company over over at TechCrunch.

OnePlus 10T Goes On Sale with Free Buds Pro and Trade In Offer

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Never Settle LogoA few weeks after the original announcement, the OnePlus 10T is now on general sale from all the usual outlets including OnePlus and Amazon.

Recapping the specs, the 10T is a 6.7″ 2412×1080 pixels 120 Hz AMOLED display driven by a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, powered by 4800 mAh battery and recharged by 150 W SuperVOOC. Combined with a 3D cooling system, it’s a gamer’s delight and there’s a 50 MP main lens for the ‘Grammers and TikTokkers.

However, if you’ve been on the fence on whether to pick up a OnePlus 10T, this weekend’s offers might just persuade you to buy the new phone. If you buy direct from OnePlus, they’re throwing in their top end OnePlus Buds Pro for free and if you trade in an old phone, you’ll get an extra £150 on top of the value of your old phone. There are more details on the 10T page.

The SuperVOOC 80 W car charger goes on sale now too which will charge all OnePlus phones plus any devices with PD support including tablets and laptops.

In terms of pricing (excluding anything from a trade-in)

Device RAM Storage Colours Price
OnePlus 10T 8 GB 128 GB Moonstone Black GB£629
OnePlus 10T 16 GB 256 GB Jade Green GB£729
OnePlus SuperVOOC 80W car charger – – Black GB£59.99

The offer is for those who buy the phone via OnePlus.com between 25th and 29th August 2022.

OnePlus Launches an Uninspiring 10T

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OnePlus LogoAs expected, OnePlus launched the brand new OnePlus 10T from Gotham Hall (cue scary music) in New York. During the pandemic, the launch events have usually been relatively short, but for the first post-pandemic in-person event, they took their time: it was nearly two hours long. If you want to watch, it’s on YouTube. Frankly, I got a bit bored: there’s only so much we-took-our-inspiration-from-nature I can take. And as I watch the presentation, part of me is beginning to think that the 10T really isn’t much of an upgrade and that if you’ve got a OnePlus 9, you might as well stick with it. Let’s take a look at what OnePlus are promoting in the specs and how that stacks up.

At the heart of the 10T is Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 that gives a 10% improvement in performance and a 30% improvement in power efficiency for both the CPU and the GPU. This is matched with up 16 GB of memory and 256 GB of storage (there’s an 8 + 128 GB version as well). The large memory means that more apps can be held in memory before they’re swapped out and with OnePlus controlling both the hardware and the software, they’ve evolved together for that fast and smooth experience. Software tools, such as the AI System Booster, analyse performance to reduce loading times.

To handle all that performance, OnePlus has developed an ultra thin vapour cooling system that keeps the temperature down. In comparison with other phones, the 10T runs 3°C cooler. For even more cooling, OnePlus have developed a gaming case called the Glacier Mat Case that uses evaporation to dissipate even more heat. In tests, the 10T was 2.3°C cooler gaming with the Glacier Mat Case.

The large 4800 mAh battery is charged by 150W SuperVOOC (in Europe) which charges the 10T by 28% in just 3 minutes. Rather than one single battery, there’s two 2400 mAh batteries. There’s very much an emphasis on safety, with 13 temperature sensors, a special charging chip and the Battery Health Engine to make sure the charging is safe and keeps the batteries healthy over time. It’s rated at 1600 charging cycles which would last over four years, assuming a full charge every day.

Looking round the front, it’s a 6.7″ 120 Hz Fluid AMOLED flat screen with a resolution of 2412 x 1080 pixels. As expected, it’s Corning Gorilla Glass. No real surprises here.

Turning to the cameras, it’s a 50 MP Sony IMX766 with OIS for the main shooter and then two unnamed sensors for the 8 MP ultrawide and the 2 MP macro lens. Round the front it’s a 16 MP unit. As had already been announced, there’s no special sauce from Hasselblad, though the IMX766 is a pretty decent sensor. There are some new features – the Nightscape mode has been improved, there’s Ultra HDR and the new Image Clarity Engine will take multiple shots when the shutter is pressed and then chose the best one. Great.

OnePlus promoted work on the internal aerials and how the 10T reconnected faster after drop outs but by this time I was snoozing. Out of the box, the 10T will come with OxygenOS 12.1 with a water inspired OxygenOS 13 coming later in the year.

And at last we need to turn to what’s missing. First, there’s no alert slider and second, there’s no wireless charging. OnePlus must be confusing the 10T with the Nord phones.

In terms of price, there are two variants and colourways for Europe and the US:

  • 8GB + 128GB – Moonstone Black – US$649 / 699€ / GB£629
  • 16GB + 256GB – Jade Green – US$749 / 799€ / GB£729

Pre-orders start 3rd August / September 1 and will be available from 25th August in Europe and September 29 in the US (that’s a bit of a wait!). Purchase from OnePlus and other local partners.

While it’s become a little trendy to bash OnePlus after their hook-up with Oppo, I’m beginning to see problems too. Let’s see how the 10T stacks up against the phone it replaces, last year’s 9. Yes, it’s faster with the Snapdragon 8+ processor when compared with the 888 but that’s kind of given as it’s a year on. You can get a bit more RAM (16 GB v 12 GB) at the higher end, but the screen’s pretty much the same. Battery is slightly bigger (4500 v 4800 mAh), there’s superfast charging but I don’t perceive that an additional 6% is going to make much difference and where is the wireless charging? It continues to go wrong with the cameras. On the OnePlus 9, both the main camera and the ultrawide are hefty 48 MP and 50 MP units blessed by Hasselblad but the10T has a feeble 8 MP ultrawide and no fairy dust from the experts. To cap it all, there’s no alert slider. Overall, it’s simply uninspiring. Maybe if you were a gamer you’d appreciate the speed and the cooling, but for me, I want the old OnePlus flagship back.