Best OnePlus phones 2022
The best OnePlus phones offer a different choice for your next Android phone. If you're tired of Samsung, then OnePlus is one of the best alternatives. In less than a decade, OnePlus has grown from a little-known start-up to a phone maker with a fierce following that can release devices capable of challenging the best phones out there.
OnePlus pulls off this feat by cramming as many premium features into its phones as possible, while still offering devices that cost less than comparable phones from Apple and Samsung. In recent years, the cost of OnePlus flagships has crept up, so OnePlus pivoted, introducing the budget Nord lineup, which still manages to pack a few top features into inexpensive handsets.
The launch of OnePlus Nord phones has created some overcrowding in the company's product lineup. To help alleviate the confusion, we've ranked the best OnePlus phones that the company still says and that we've reviewed. Whether its the latest models or holdovers from a previous year, there's a OnePlus phone that will fit your needs.
The best OnePlus phones you can buy
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1. OnePlus 10 Pro The best OnePlus phone ever Specifications Screen size: 6.7-inch AMOLED (3216 x 1440) Refresh rate: 120Hz CPU: Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 RAM / Storage: 8GB, 12GB / 128GB, 256GB Rear / Front cameras: 48MP main, 50MP ultrawide, 8MP telephoto / 32MP Battery life: 11:52 (120Hz), 12:39 (60Hz) Charging speed: 65W wired, 50W wireless Today's Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Excellent battery life + Beautiful new design + Best OnePlus cameras to date + Lower price than last year Reasons to avoid - Telephoto is just 8MP
It goes without saying that the new OnePlus 10 Pro is the best OnePlus phone that you can buy. It’s got the latest specs, excellent battery life, and the best cameras we’ve ever seen from OnePlus. We love a lot about this phone, including its eye-catching design.
The large 6.7-inch AMOLED display has excellent colors and brightness. The 65W charging tops off the 5,000 mAh battery in just over 30 minutes. All of that in a body that feels nice to hold. The OnePlus 10 Pro takes everything we loved about the OnePlus 9 Pro and steps it up.
Read our full OnePlus 10 Pro review .
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)
2. OnePlus 10T Tons of horsepower for less Specifications Screen size: 6.7-inch AMOLED (2412 x 1080) Refresh rate: 120Hz CPU: Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 RAM / Storage: 8GB, 16GB / 128GB, 256GB Rear / Front cameras: 50MP main, 8MP ultrawide, 2MP macro / 16MP Battery life (Hrs:Mins): 10:59 Charging: 150W Today's Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Strong performance + Good battery life + More affordable than many flagships Reasons to avoid - No dynamic refresh rate - Weaker cameras than the OnePlus 10 Pro
The OnePlus 10T is possibly the least OnePlus-y phone the company's ever produced. The revival of the flagship T-series brings with it both some market-leading features but at the expense of other elements falling below par, and some OnePlus signature abilities disappearing. The result is a strong and attractively priced phone, even if it’s an uneven one.
The OnePlus 10T could make for an excellent gaming phone, except with the reassurance of well-designed software and no obnoxious design elements. Equally, it could be a great work companion, with the good battery life meaning you're not likely to be left in the lurch with 0% juice, and the outstanding charging making sure if that does happen, you won’t be with an un-powered device for long.
Even lacking some expected features like the Alert Slider and wireless charging, the OnePlus 10T is the company's most powerful phone yet.
Read our full OnePlus 10T review.
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3. OnePlus 9 Pro The best OnePlus phone overall Specifications Screen size: 6.7-inch AMOLED (3,168 x 1,440) Refresh rate: 1Hz - 120Hz CPU: Snapdragon 888 RAM/Storage: 8GB, 12GB/128GB, 256GB Rear/Front cameras: 48MP wide, 50MP ultrawide, 8MP telephoto, monochrome sensor/16MP Battery life (Hrs:Mins): 10:40 Charging speed: 65W (wired) Today's Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at OnePlus US & Canada (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Beautiful 120Hz display + Crazy fast wired and wireless charging + Fantastic cameras Reasons to avoid - Inconsistent night mode
One of the best Android phones around, the OnePlus 9 Pro is also the best handset you can get from OnePlus. The 6.7-inch screen is gorgeous and a dynamically adjusting refresh rate can make activities like scrolling buttery smooth. Even with the hit that 5G and fast-refresh rates can put on a battery, the OnePlus 9 Pro outlasts the average smartphone. Support for 65W wired charging sets the standard for other phones.
In addition to all that, the real star of the show is the camera setup on the OnePlus 9 Pro. Past OnePlus phones have featured only so-so cameras at best. For the OnePlus 9 Pro, the phone maker teamed up with Hasselblad and the benefits of that partnership are on display in photos that show off natural tones.
If you want the very best experience that OnePlus has to offer, pay up for the OnePlus 9 Pro. But bear in mind that the OnePlus 10 Pro is right around the corner.
Read our full OnePlus 9 Pro review .
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)
4. OnePlus 9 Many of the Pro model's features, for less Specifications Screen size: 6.55-inch AMOLED (2400 x 1080) Refresh rate: 120Hz CPU: Snapdragon 888 RAM/Storage: 8GB, 12GB/128GB, 256GB Rear/Front cameras: 48MP main, 50MP ultrawide, 2MP monochrome/16MP Battery life (Hrs:Mins): 10:51 Charging speed: 65W (wired) Today's Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Ridiculously fast charging + 120Hz refresh rate + Better performing cameras than past OnePlus models Reasons to avoid - Display refresh rate doesn't adjust dynamically - No IP water resistance rating
The OnePlus 9 has just about everything you could want in the best OnePlus phones, but for $240 less than what you'd pay for a OnePlus 9 Pro. You'll make some trade-offs for that lower price — the screen's refresh rate no longer adjusts dynamically, there's no telephoto lens and wireless charging isn't as fast. But otherwise, all the other highlights of the OnePlus 9 Pro are here in this less expensive flagship.
That includes the partnership with Hasselblad that's dramatically improved the OnePlus 9 camera output from what we've seen with past OnePlus phones. While some color inconsistencies remain, on the whole, you get photos from the OnePlus 9 that can stand against some of the best camera phones out there.
While wireless charging isn't as fast on this model as it is on the Pro version, you still get 65W wired charging, which is the best in the smartphone business. The OnePlus 9 lasts a long-time on a charge, too, falling just short of 11 hours in our testing.
Read our full OnePlus 9 review .
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)
5. OnePlus Nord 2 The best budget OnePlus phone — if you can get it Specifications Screen size: 6.43-inch AMOLED (2400 x1080) Refresh rate: 90Hz CPU: MediaTek Dimensity 1200-AI RAM/Storage: 8GB, 12GB/128GB, 256GB Rear/Front cameras: 50MP main, 8MP ultrawid, 2MP mono/32MP Battery life (Hrs:Mins): Not yet tested Charging speed: 65W (wired) Today's Best Deals View at Newegg (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Class-leading cameras + Beautiful display + Generous performance for price Reasons to avoid - No U.S. availability - Refresh rate isn't dynamic
U.S. shoppers looking for the best OnePlus phone can feel a little envious about the OnePlus Nord 2. This 5G phone isn't available in the U.S., though U.K. shoppers can pick it up for £399 (roughly $550). But this OnePlus offering has more impressive features than its midrange price tag would suggest.
Start with the screen refresh rate, which is 90Hz. That's better than most smartphone which top out at 60Hz, so expect smoother scrolling from the Nord 2. Despite the fact that it's a lower-priced phone, the OnePlus Nord 2 shares the 65W wired charging speeds featured in the company's more expensive flagships.
For now, OnePlus issues Nords with less impressive specs to its U.S. customers. But if you live in an area where the Nord 2 is available, jump on it with both feet, because you're getting a lot of value with that phone.
Read our full OnePlus Nord 2 review .
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)
6. OnePlus Nord N20 5G A good cheap 5G option Specifications Screen size: 6.43-inch AMOLED (2400 x 1080) Refresh rate: 60Hz CPU: Snapdragon 695 RAM / Storage: 6GB / 128GB Rear / Front cameras: 64MP (f/1.8) main, 2MP (f/2.4) monochrome, 2MP (f/2.4) macro / 16MP (f/2.4) Battery life (Hrs:Mins): 11:20 Charging speed: 33W wired Today's Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) View at T-Mobile (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + 5G for less than $300 + Good battery life + Nice display Reasons to avoid - Subpar cameras - Bad software update policy
The OnePlus Nord N20 5G can be used as an example of how U.S. users are getting short-changed with the Nord lineup. In other parts of the world, people enjoy the more full-featured OnePlus Nord 2, but here, we get a device with a lower price and stripped-down specs to match.
There are things to like about the OnePlus Nord N20 5G, most notably that it gives you 5G connectivity in a device that costs less than $300. In fact, the Nord N20 may be one of the cheapest 5G phones currently available. You get other solid features as well, such as a nice AMOLED display and good battery life.
Other aspects of the Nord N20 5G disappoint, as the camera improvements that we've seen on other recent OnePlus phones have passed over this model. Still, at $282, the OnePlus Nord N20 5G is a good value that will please bargain hunters just looking to add 5G connectivity.
Read our full OnePlus Nord N200 5G review .
What to look for in a OnePlus phone
When shopping for the best OnePlus phones, keep in mind that OnePlus divides its smartphone product line into two different categories. The more expensive OnePlus flagships usually cost $700 and up and pack in the best features OnePlus has to offer. OnePlus Nord devices are the phone maker’s budget devices — prices are lower and features are scaled back, though you’ll still find a few notable capabilities.
OnePlus used to release flagships twice a year — once in the spring, followed by a T series version of that same phone in the fall. But OnePlus has changed a lot in recent years, so it's hard to predict what the company will do next. You can play the waiting game forever with OnePlus, so it's best to just go for the phone that stands out to you.
How we test the best OnePlus phones
We take the same approach to finding the best OnePlus phones as we do any smartphone we review, with the exception of the Nord 2 since we don't have the proper testing facilities in the UK.
We do, however, run benchmarks on every phone we can — Geekbench 5 to measure overall performance and 3DMark Wild Life to test graphics performance. For real-world testing, we use Adobe Premier Rush to transcode a video, timing how long it takes. (This test does not work on all devices due to app compatibility issues.)
Performance benchmarks Geekbench 5 (single-core / multicore) 3DMark Wild Life Unlimited (FPS) OnePlus 10 Pro 995 / 3482 61 OnePlus 9 Pro 1126 / 3685 35 OnePlus 9 1126 / 3618 34 OnePlus Nord 2 N/A N/A OnePlus 8T 887 / 3203 N/A OnePlus Nord N20 5G 696 / 1995 7
In our lab, we test the brightness of the phone’s display as well as how colorful each screen is (using both the sRGB and DCI-P3 color gamut). We measure color accuracy as well.
Display benchmarks sRGB (%) DCI-P3 (%) Delta-E OnePlus 10 Pro 174 (Vivid) / 119 (Natural) 123 (Vivid) / 84 (Natural) 0.32 (Vivid) / 0.23 (Natural) OnePlus 9 Pro 208 (Vivid) / 120 (Natural) 147 (Vivid) / 85 (Natural) 0.32 (Vivid) / 0.2 (Natural) OnePlus 9 199 (Vivid) / 104 (Natural) 141 (Vivid) / 74 (Natural) 0.28 (Vivid) / 0.27 (Natural) Nord 2 N/A N/A N/A OnePlus 8T 108 76 0.22 Nord N20 5G 179 (Vivid) / 103 (Gentle) 127 (Vivid) / 73 (Gentle) 0.34 (Vivid) / 0.3 (Gentle)
We have a custom battery test in which we have phones surf the web continuously over a cellular connection, timing how long it takes until they run out of power. We also time how quickly a phone can recharge, checking the battery status after 15 and 30 minutes.
Battery life benchmark Battery life (Hrs:Mins) OnePlus 10 Pro 11:52 (Adaptive) / 12:40 (60Hz) OnePlus 9 Pro 10:40 (Adaptive) / 10:38 (60Hz) OnePlus 9 10:32 (Adaptive) / 11:20 (60Hz) OnePlus Nord 2 N/A OnePlus 8T 9:59 (Adaptive) / 10:40 (60Hz) OnePlus Nord N20 5G 11:20
Finally, to test cameras, we take the best OnePlus phones out into the field and shoot photos of landscapes, portraits, night images and other shots. We compare those shots to similar images captured by phones with comparable specs and prices.
These are the best OnePlus phones to buy in 2022
If you're in the market to buy a new OnePlus phone then these are the ones that we recommend right now!
A lot is happening behind the scenes at OnePlus, and it's safe to say that it's no longer the same company that launched back in 2014. But it's still producing some great devices, and its portfolio has grown quite a bit. So to make your buying decision easier, we’ve compiled all the best OnePlus phones you can buy in the US across all segments. From the new OnePlus 10T with flagship specs to the budget-friendly Nord N20 5G, we've added a lot of great phones to this collection. We're confident you'll find something to your liking, so let's dive in.
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Best Overall: OnePlus 10 Pro
As we mentioned in our review, the OnePlus 10 Pro, cements OnePlus as a premium smartphone brand that's worth your time. It may not have a lot going for it compared to many other flagships on the market right now, but that doesn't take away from the fact that it's a refined OnePlus phone. One of the main selling points of this phone is the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset. You're probably buying a OnePlus smartphone because you prioritize good performance over anything else on a phone. That being the case, the OnePlus 10 Pro is definitely a solid phone.
The OnePlus 10 Pro isn't going to win any awards for its design, but we think it has a lot more individuality than last year's OnePlus 9 Pro. The camera island definitely looks a lot busier than what you get on many other phones, so we'll let you decide if it's any good. The cameras themselves hold their own against other phones on the market, but they're far from the top-end flagships. You can check out our OnePlus 10 Pro camera review to learn more about the cameras and also check out some samples.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset ensures the OnePlus 10 Pro delivers reliable performance day in and day out, without breaking a sweat. Not only does the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset delivers the same level of performance as the already powerful Snapdragon 888, but it also leaves enough headroom to generate less heat overall. We suggest you check out our OnePlus 10 Pro review (linked earlier in this section) to learn more about this phone's performance with lots of important details.
The OnePlus 10 Pro also excels in the battery department, thanks to a 5,000 mAh unit. It'll comfortably last you through a day even with heavy usage. It's no small feat for any smartphone to offer five hours of screen time with heavy usage, especially when you have things like a big and bright high-refresh-rate AMOLED display to power through. What's also impressive is the included 65W charger inside the box with the OnePlus 10 Pro units in the US. This included power brick should be able to take the phone from 0-100% in just 35 minutes, which is quite impressive.
All things considered, we think the OnePlus 10 Pro is one of the best OnePlus devices you can buy on the market right now. It's a well-rounded device that gets a lot of things right to earn our recommendation. We don't recommend upgrading to the OnePlus 10 Pro if you're coming from a OnePlus 9 or a 9 Pro. But those using an older OnePlus phone will find plenty to like here. you get a better chipset, a bold new design, new cameras, faster charging, and more. Alternatively, you can also consider buying the OnePlus 10T if you want the absolute best performance from your smartphone. It's a classic OnePlus "T" upgrade if you don't want to pay the full price for a OnePlus 10 Pro.
OnePlus 10 Pro OnePlus 10 Pro It was a close competition between the OnePlus 10 Pro and the OnePlus 9 Pro, but we think OnePlus fans will find the newer flagship more appealing. View at Best Buy
Alternate best pick: OnePlus 10T
The OnePlus 10T follows the same traditional OnePlus pattern for its "T" upgrades. It's a slightly downgraded version of the OnePlus 10 Pro, but it tries to compensate for it with some unique features. It's not easy for us to recommend the OnePlus 10T over other flagship phones, but it's worth considering if you're hellbent on buying a OnePlus flagship in 2022.
The OnePlus 10T downgrades on some things like the display and the overall build quality. You only get a full HD display on the OnePlus 10T instead of a quad HD panel on the OnePlus 10 Pro. It also comes with a plastic frame around the body as opposed to a metallic one on the 10 Pro. These may not be huge deal-breakers for many, but they're worth considering while making a purchase decision. OnePlus tries to make up for these downgrades by offering faster charging speeds and a new chipset.
One of the highlights of the OnePlus 10T is its support for 150W charging speeds. And you know what makes it better? OnePlus bundles a 150W charging brick inside the box instead of making you buy one separately. The 150W charging speed is just as crazy and fast as it sounds. OnePlus promises that the included charging brick can charge the OnePlus 10T from 1% to 100% in just 19 minutes -- a bold claim that we were able to confirm while testing the phone for our review. The US variants of the phone are limited to just 125W charging speed which, as you'd expect, is still very quick.
Another highlight feature of this phone is the new Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset. This particular chipset is an upgraded version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip powering the OnePlus 10 Pro. Is it an improvement? Yes, the new chipset is undoubtedly a winner and you can learn more about it in our Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 comparison. The OnePlus 10T is one of the fastest phones you can buy right now and it delivers impressive speeds on the charging front too.
What's not so impressive about this phone, however, is the camera performance. The OnePlus 10T takes a massive hit in overall quality by downgrading the sensors. There are downgrades across the board and it shows in the samples that we were able to capture for our review. It's not the company's camera flagship and it's certainly far from the best camera flagship out there on the market in 2022.
The OnePlus 10T makes a lot of those downgrades a bit more palatable by going easy on your wallet. It starts at $649, meaning it costs less than the OnePlus 10 Pro even after its recent price drop to $799. You do get a whole lot more for $150, so it comes down to your personal preference. If you want the absolute best performance and impressive charging speeds, then the OnePlus 10T is the way to go. For everything else, we think the OnePlus 10 Pro should be the one to buy.
OnePlus 10T Official bumper case The OnePlus 10T tries to make up for its compromises with a flagship chipset and super fast charging speeds. View at Best Buy
Also great: OnePlus 9 Pro 5G
The previous version of this article highlighted the OnePlus 9 Pro as the most well-rounded flagship smartphone from the company. We replaced it with the OnePlus 10 Pro, not because it’s a monumental upgrade, but because it did just enough to earn its keep. That’s precisely why we wanted to highlight the OnePlus 9 Pro here as a solid option to consider. It’s also available for just $699 right now on Amazon, which is an excellent price for everything it brings to the table. It features the Snapdragon 888 SoC, 12GB RAM, 256GB storage, a 120Hz QHD+ display, 65W fast charging support, and a quad-camera setup.
If it wasn’t for the Snapdragon 888 SoC, then we would’ve retained the OnePlus 9 Pro as the best overall pick. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 on the OnePlus 10 Pro may not be as good as the newer Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, but it’s much better than the Snapdragon 888 powering the OnePlus 9 Pro. But if that’s not necessarily of importance to you and you’d rather save a few hundred dollars then the OnePlus 9 Pro is still plenty good.
We highlighted plenty of great things about the OnePlus 9 Pro in our review, a lot of which still holds true to this day. The design is definitely one of them and we think many will prefer this over the big and bold design of the OnePlus 10 Pro. The front of the device has a beautiful AMOLED display with minimal bezels and a punch-hole cutout for the camera. The back also looks clean with nothing but just the camera island and minimal branding. It may not be the most premium-looking phone out there right now but it still holds its own against flagships in 2022, which says a lot about its design.
In our review, Mishaal found the OnePlus 9 Pro to be the “best phone that OnePlus has ever made”, featuring a camera system that “has improved where it matters”, “the best [display] you can find on an Android device”, and support for faster-charging speeds than any other smartphone available in North America. All these things, still make the OnePlus 9 Pro a no-brainer for OnePlus fans and a great alternative for the newer, more expensive OnePlus flagships.
We highly recommend you check out our OnePlus 10 Pro vs OnePlus 9 Pro comparison to learn more about the differences between the two phones. This comparison has a lot more details to help you make a better purchase decision, so it's worth taking a look if you're looking to buy a new OnePlus smartphone. We've also added the regular OnePlus 9 towards the end of this collection as you can find it for cheap on both Amazon and the OnePlus Store.
OnePlus 9 Pro OnePlus 9 Pro 5G OnePlus 9 Pro continues to remain one of the best OnePlus phones you can buy in the US. View at Best Buy
Best budget OnePlus phone: OnePlus Nord N20 5G
It's been a few years since OnePlus branched out into the mid-range and budget segments of the market with its Nord brand. This new brand now has a lot of phones under its belt and things are looking better than ever. OnePlus kickstarted 2022 for this brand with the new Nord N20 5G. This particular phone excels in a few key areas and we think it deserves a spot in our collection of the best OnePlus phones in 2022.
The OnePlus N20 5G is a successor to the already excellent Nord N10. It's often tough to build upon a successful smartphone, but OnePlus managed to do a pretty good job with the Nord N20 5G. The first thing you'll notice about this particular phone is how beautiful it looks. This is one of those budget phones that looks more expensive than what its price tag may suggest. Some would say it looks even better than a lot of other flagship OnePlus phones out there, but we'll leave that up to you to decide.
The OnePlus Nord N20 5G also excels by bringing back the headphone jack. This may not sound like a big thing, but it's still quite relevant in the budget space. It also excels in the performance department by offering better hardware than a lot of phones in this price segment. The Nord N20 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 695 chipset which is paired with 6GB LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB storage. It's not a significant improvement over the outgoing Nord N10 model, but it's enough to keep it on top of the ladder in the budget segment.
It may not be a huge deal for many but we like how the OnePlus Nord N20 5G also retains the microSD card slot for expandable storage. These small additions go a long way in improving the overall user experience in the budget space. One of the best things about the OnePlus Nord N20 5G is that it comes with a rather beefy 4,500mAh battery with support for up to 33W fast charging with the SuperVOOC tech. That makes it better than almost all smartphones in the budget space that struggle to charge your phone quickly.
But as a budget phone, the Nord N20 5G comes with its fair share of compromises. As we mentioned in our Nord N20 hands-on post, the cameras on this phone aren't great. In fact, they're barely usable for practical purposes. It comes with a 64MP main sensor with an f/1.9 aperture along with two separate 2MP sensors to handle the depth and macro shots. The main camera is what you'll find yourself using because the rest of the sensors aren't great. Another point to note is that fact the Nord N20 5G's display tops out at 60Hz.
Overall, we think the OnePlus Nord N20 5G is not only one of the best OnePlus phones, but it's also one of the best budget phones overall in the US. It's an excellent budget 5G smartphone that's worth considering if you don't want to spend a lot of money on a smartphone.
OnePlus Nord N20 5G The OnePlus Nord N20 5G is a good successor to the Nord N10 that looks great both on paper as well as in real life. View at Amazon View at Best Buy
Alternate best budget pick: OnePlus Nord N200 5G
The OnePlus Nord N200 5G is currently the cheapest OnePlus phone you can buy in the US. While that may not be enough to turn a lot of heads, it's enough to earn it a spot in our collection of the best OnePlus phones as a good budget option.
We probably won't recommend buying the Nord N200 5G outside the US. But if you're shopping for an affordable 5G phone in the States, then this is one of the best options out there. There's a lot to like about this particular phone including its display and its battery life. They certainly make this phone look like it's more expensive than its price tag may suggest. However, OnePlus has cut a few corners to keep the price low.
Buying the OnePlus Nord N200 5G will only take you a few clicks because of the fewer options to fiddle with. This particular phone is only available in one color and one configuration. You can only buy this device in what OnePlus calls a Blue Quantum shade, and it only comes in a 4GB+64GB configuration. Yes, 64GB storage is definitely not enough in this day and age, so we're happy to report that this phone comes with a microSD card slot for expandable storage. You can add up to 1TB of storage in a jiffy if you think you're running out of space.
What we also like about this phone is that it keeps the 3.5mm headphone jack too. This is still an important feature in the budget segment because it's relatively easier and cheaper to pick up a wired pair of earbuds than splurging money on the best TWS earbuds out there. The display on the OnePlus Nord N200 is also a joy to use. It's a 6.49-inch panel that serves up 2,400 x 1,080 pixels. What's more impressive is that it's a 90Hz LCD, meaning it supports a faster refresh rate than the Nord N20 5G's display.
The OnePlus N200 comes with a Snapdragon 480 processor which brings both 5G as well as a commendable performance. The phone, as we mentioned earlier, only comes in a 4GB+64GB configuration which we think should be enough to keep things running smoother. It would've been nice to have 6GB of RAM but don't let that affect your purchase decision. The Snapdragon 480 chipset coupled with 4GB of RAM will offer great performance for everyday use. It's probably not going to be the top performer in benchmark apps, but it should get the job done.
Don't expect a lot from the Nord N200's triple camera system because we haven't heard a lot of good things about it. The phone's 5,000mAh battery, on the other hand, will impress you on many occasions. Charging is only limited to 18W via the wired OnePlus charger though. Overall, we think the OnePlus Nord N200 is a great budget phone to consider in 2022. It's cheaper than the N20 5G in the US, and we think it'll serve you well for at least a few good years.
OnePlus Nord N200 5G The OnePlus Nord N200 5G is one of the best budget phones you can buy from the brand in the US. It offers a good set of internals at a bargain. View at Best Buy
Best bang-for-the-buck phone: OnePlus 9 5G
The OnePlus 9 wasn't the best OnePlus phone to buy when it came out and that hasn't changed in 2022. But what it brings to the table makes it a standout choice even in 2022. It was the next best choice to consider after the OnePlus 9 Pro when it came out and continues to remain the same if you don't want to buy the other best OnePlus phones out there right now. It also costs a lot less than now, so it might be worth considering if you don't want to go for the budget options.
The OnePlus 9, as you can see, brings a very familiar design that looks just as good in real life as it does on renders. It features a Corning Gorilla Glass 5 at the back but it doesn't have an IP rating unless you buy the T-Mobile variant in the US. On the front, you get a 6.55-inch AMOLED panel on the front with a punch-hole cutout that serves up 2,400 x 1,080 pixels. It's one of the best smartphones displays out there with 1,100 nits peak brightness, HDR10+ certification, and a 120Hz refresh rate. The OnePlus 9's display was already a winner in its price point when it launched, and it's certainly great in 2022 as well.
The OnePlus 9 draws its power from a Snapdragon 888 chipset, which is the same as the OnePlus 9 Pro. It may not be the fastest chip out there on the market right now, but it's still capable of powering through most day-to-day workloads without any issues. Couple that with at least 8GB of RAM, and you can expect to see snappy performance from this device. It tops out at 256GB storage though, which might be an issue for some people. We say that because the OnePlus 9 doesn't come with a microSD card slot for expandable storage either.
You get a 4,500mAh battery inside this phone which should be able to last for an entire day without any issues. You also get Wrap Charge 65T support, meaning you can quickly top up the charge when you run out of juice. The triple camera setup on the OnePlus 9 will also do good service for the most part, but don't expect it to outclass the modern flagships. The OnePlus 9 will receive at least one more major Android OS update, so you won't be left with an obsolete phone anytime soon.
The OnePlus 9 costs $599 or less in the US right now, meaning it's cheaper than all the OnePlus 10 series flagships out there. And what makes it impressive is the kind of hardware it brings to the table at such a cheap price. There's not a lot missing on the OnePlus 9, especially for the price. It's an excellent phone for the price, making it worthy of a spot in this collection as the best value option. You can hit the link in the box below to find the best price for it online right now.
OnePlus 9 5G OnePlus 9 5G The OnePlus 9 continues to remain one of the best value flagships on the market right now. View at Best Buy
Best phone not available in the US: OnePlus Nord 2T
The OnePlus Nord 2T improves upon the already excellent Nord 2. It nails all the fundamentals right to deliver a solid mid-ranger for those who don't want to open their wallets for a flagship phone. From the reliable Dimensity 1300 chipset to a beautiful 90Hz AMOLED display, the OnePlus Nord 2T offers a lot of good features to become one of the best Nord phones you can buy right now. It's not available to purchase in the US though, so you'll have to import it from other markets such as the UK.
The OnePlus Nord 2T may not be the prettiest phone on the market, but it's still better than a lot of other mid-rangers on the market. It's available to purchase in two colors and we think the Jade Fog is excellent to look at. There's a 6.43-inch display on the front with support for a 90Hz refresh rate. It's an FHD+ panel AMOLED panel, which is what we expect to see in the mid-range segment.
The phone draws its power from MediaTek's Dimensity 1300 chipset that coupled with up to 12GB of RAM and up to 256GB of storage. The performance is about what you'd expect from a phone in this price range. It's a reliable chipset for all your day-to-day tasks and it's almost on par with a lot of flagships chips out there. The Nord 2T is a fast and smooth device that can even handle games like PUBG Mobile and COD Mobile at decent graphics settings.
As for the optics, the OnePlus Nord 2T packs a triple camera setup which includes a 50MP main sensor along with 8MP ultra-wide and 2MP monochrome lenses. We suggest you check out our OnePlus Nord 2T review to check out both photo and video samples captured from the phone. The device also packs a 4,500mAh battery with support for up to 80W charging out of the box. It essentially offers the same charging speeds as the OnePlus 10 Pro, so you're getting good value for your money. Overall, we think the Nord 2T is a fantastic mid-range phone that we wish was available to purchase for economical shoppers in the US.
The OnePlus Nord 2T is only an incremental upgrade to the OnePlus Nord 2 and it starts with the processor. The new Nord 2T is powered by the Dimensity 1300 chipset as opposed to the Dimensity 1200-AI on the Nord 2. We couldn't really find a major difference between the Dimensity 1300 and the Dimensity 1200-AI, so the bumped-up chipset isn't necessarily a huge reason to upgrade. Similarly, the new 80W charging, up from the 65W charging speed on the Nord 2, isn't a compelling reason to upgrade either.
Considering those are the biggest changes on the Nord 2T, we think you're better off using the Nord 2. For everyone else looking to buy a new mid-ranger from OnePlus, the Nord 2T becomes the default choice. This particular smartphone is also available in India, where it competes with other mid-rangers from Chinese OEMs.
OnePlus Nord 2T OnePlus Nord 2T The OnePlus Nord 2T is the latest mid-range offering from OnePlus, packing a lot of punch for the price. View at OnePlus
Those are some of the best OnePlus phones you can buy in the US right now. We've picked the OnePlus 10 Pro and the OnePlus 10T as the best OnePlus phones you can buy, but it's worth noting that the OnePlus 9 Pro is also an excellent alternative. In fact, the OnePlus 9 also offers a great value for money in 2022. Those shopping for a OnePlus phone on a budget should consider buying either the Nord N20 5G or the Nord N200 5G. The OnePlus 9RT is yet another decent phone that we think deserves a special mention. It's not available to purchase in the US, meaning you'll have to import it from markets like India.
We think this list includes all the best OnePlus phones available in the US, but we'd like to know your thoughts on this. Are there any other OnePlus phones that you think deserve a spot in this collection, let us know by dropping a line in the comments below. And if you're looking for other options, we've also collated lists of the best Android smartphones and the best Samsung Galaxy smartphones on the market.
OnePlus phones: A history of the company's entire lineup so far
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
In late 2013, two former Oppo employees started a new smartphone brand called OnePlus. Their vision was to make OnePlus phones the devices that ticked off every box Android fans needed. Everyone wanted a great design, powerful specs, the fastest and leanest software, and a low price. The dream became a reality in 2014 with the launch of the OnePlus One.
Since then, OnePlus has moved from its humble beginnings as an online-only niche smartphone maker to a literal global powerhouse. It’s quite an achievement when you look back and realize it’s been just eight years.
This article will lay out a thorough history of each significant OnePlus device. From the OnePlus One to the OnePlus 10T, they are all here.
Editor’s note: We’ll be sticking to the core OnePlus phones to keep things concise. Some of the company’s devices have subtle variants that aren’t unique enough to spend too much time on.
OnePlus One: The OG
It wouldn’t be surprising if every smartphone brand that’s started since 2014 has brought up the OnePlus One at meetings as an example of what they want to do. You couldn’t ask for a more successful launching pad for a brand. Simply put, all future OnePlus phones will be forever compared to this one.
All in all, the One wasn’t too different from other Android phones of its time. However, it had a few things that set it apart. The first is the software, which was, at launch, the Android-based Cyanogen OS, which forked off from the popular custom ROM known as CyanogenMod (now known as Lineage OS). Cyanogen OS was lean and developer-friendly, making it appealing to both Android tinkerers as well as general users who appreciate a bloat-free experience. Related: OnePlus One revisited
Another unique aspect of the One was the price. The phone started at just $299, which was incredibly cheap when you factor in that it came with the latest Snapdragon 800 processor. When you combined that with the stunning design of the device (that Sandstone back!) you had a 2014 Android enthusiast’s dream machine.
When the One first launched, OnePlus took the unorthodox route of selling it via an invite system. You needed a unique one-time-use invite code to buy the phone — which could only be purchased online. The company seeded out a small batch of original codes to prominent members of its then-small community. After buying the One with those codes, those people would then get a new invite code they could share. Those invite codes would then turn into a new invite code, and on it would go.
While this left many early fans frustrated, it had two incredibly positive effects for OnePlus. It helped balance supply and demand for the very young company, as well as build buzz for the device. The invite code system ensured that if you owned a OnePlus One, you were somebody.
Although exact sales numbers for the OnePlus One are hard to come by, the company did divulge that it had sold over a million OnePlus phones by the end of 2014. This is pretty remarkable when you learn that OnePlus only anticipated selling 50,000 units of the One.
OnePlus One fast facts: The OnePlus One launched with Android 4.4.2 KitKat, and its final official update was Android 5.1.1 Lollipop.
Although the One launched with Cyanogen OS as its Android skin, problems with Cyanogen, Inc. forced OnePlus to cease ties and create its own skin. Thus, Oxygen OS was born, making the OnePlus One a unique device that had two different official skins from entirely different sources during its lifetime.
At various times, OnePlus put the One up for sale without requiring an invite code. For example, the company temporarily lifted the invite system for the 2014 iteration of Black Friday.
Since the company started in December 2013 and released its first phone only a few months later, it was assumed that Oppo supplied OnePlus with resources to help it along. However, OnePlus continually denied that it was a subsidiary of Oppo. Of course, that’s not the case anymore.
In 2014, the phone price started at $299.
OnePlus 2: The sophomore slump
By the end of 2014, OnePlus found itself with a problem: it had gotten too big, too fast. Now, this is a problem that most companies would love to have, no doubt, but it was still a problem. It was likely at least partially why the OnePlus 2, launched in July 2015, is generally regarded as the weakest of all the OnePlus phones.
Since the company didn’t expect to push over a million units of the OnePlus One, it likely didn’t expect a ton of media and industry scrutiny on its follow-up. Thus, the OnePlus 2 is essentially a subtly updated version of the OnePlus One, complete with the Sandstone back and similar body shape.
The OnePlus 2 may be the weakest of all the OnePlus phones.
As one would expect, the OnePlus 2 came with the usual upgrades. These included the newest Snapdragon 800-series processor, a bigger battery, a better display, higher-grade cameras, a fingerprint sensor, more speakers, etc. However, the base model didn’t come with more RAM or more internal storage and removed NFC support. To top it all off, the entry price for the phone went up to $329. Here: OnePlus 2 review
OnePlus also kept the invite system for the launch of the OnePlus 2, which this time backfired. Since many early adopters had only just gotten their hands on the OnePlus One after a long wait, they had no intention of going through the invite troubles again for the newest of the OnePlus phones.
Still, this didn’t stop the OnePlus 2 from selling well. By August 2015, the company admitted it had received over two million reservations for the device. Even if only half of those reservations turned into sales (which is very likely), the OnePlus 2 probably outsold the OnePlus One.
Regardless, the company did learn it needed to change up the game if it was going to continue to grow.
OnePlus 2 fast facts: The OnePlus 2 launched with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, and its final official update was Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.
OnePlus at one point, promised it would deliver an update to the OnePlus 2 that would bring it Android 7 Nougat. However, it did not keep that promise.
The OnePlus 2 is the first of the OnePlus phones to have a physical alert slider. This popular feature has been on every single OnePlus flagship since.
The codename for the OnePlus One was “bacon,” while the codename for the OnePlus 2 was much less creative: “oneplus2.” The following few OnePlus phones would go on to have boring codenames until the OnePlus 5 brought back the food-related monikers with “cheeseburger.”
In 2015, the price of the phone started at $329.
OnePlus X: The experiment
The OnePlus X
In the Fall of 2015, rumors were ramping up that OnePlus was going to imminently release a third smartphone (with the OnePlus 2 being the first that year and second overall). OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei downplayed the rumor by saying there would only be one flagship phone from OnePlus in 2015.
Enter the OnePlus X, which — true to Carl Pei’s word — is decidedly not a flagship phone. Released at the end of October 2015, the X was the first product from the company not geared as a premium device.
The OnePlus X had the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801, the same chipset in 2014’s OnePlus One. It had 3GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, and cut various corners in the hardware design to keep the price down. Essentially, the device was a reformatting of the One that the company could sell for even less cash — the OnePlus X started at $249, $50 less than the entry-level variant of the One.
Considering that the OnePlus 2 had only just been released — and only cost $70 more — and the OnePlus One was still available in many areas of the world, the OnePlus X had difficulty finding a large audience. Although OnePlus never divulged any sales numbers for the X, we can infer that the phone didn’t do that well because the “X” line never continued.
Still, history looks back very kindly on the OnePlus X. With the runaway successes of phones like the Google Pixel 6a and the iPhone SE (2022), the OnePlus X was kind of ahead of its time. Eventually, with the launch of the OnePlus Nord and its related line, the idea behind the OnePlus X can now live on in at least some capacity.
OnePlus X fast facts: The OnePlus X launched with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, and its final official update was Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.
As with every one of the OnePlus phones thus far, you could only buy the OnePlus X with an invite code. However, within a few months after its launch, the company allowed full open sales of the device. This is another piece of evidence suggesting the phone didn’t sell as well as the company had hoped.
There were 10,000 ceramic versions of the OnePlus X created. It had the same internals as the regular version, but its premium build materials raised its price to $399. This didn’t make much sense as the more powerful OnePlus 2 started at $70 less.
The OnePlus X featured the famous hardware alert slider, something the OnePlus One didn’t have. It also featured a microSD card slot, something OnePlus rarely offers and has never offered in its flagships.
In 2015, the price of the phone started at $249.
OnePlus 3: The return of the flagship killer
Although OnePlus had one bonafide hit smartphone under its belt with the OnePlus One, the OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X failed to replicate the same love. While the OnePlus 2 likely sold better than the One, it didn’t see the same positivity from the media and OnePlus’ ravenous fanbase. Meanwhile, the OnePlus X was more of a one-off experiment than anything else.
Enter the OnePlus 3, the company’s first total rethinking of how a OnePlus smartphone looks, feels, and functions. Taking some design cues from the incredibly popular HTC One M7 and One M8 from a few years prior, the OnePlus 3 had a classy-looking metal chassis, some sexy rounded corners, huge bumps in internal specs, and, possibly best of all, no invite system nonsense to hinder buyers from getting it.
The OnePlus 3 redefined what a OnePlus smartphone could be.
If the OnePlus 2 was a stumbling block and the OnePlus X was a fun little side project, the OnePlus 3 was the true follow-up to the OnePlus One: the return of the flagship killer.
OnePlus also used the OnePlus 3 to correct some of its earlier mistakes. It brought back NFC support and fixed compatibility issues that the OnePlus 2 saw with its USB-C port. It also enhanced the fingerprint scanner, a sore spot for users with the OnePlus 2. Related: The original OnePlus 3 review from Android Authority
One of the only huge criticisms of the device is that, for some reason, OnePlus decided to make the battery smaller than the one in the OnePlus 2. This was a curious move, but it wouldn’t take long for the company to fix that error (see the next section).
Sales numbers are, as usual, hard to come by with the OnePlus 3. Even if we had them, though, they wouldn’t tell the whole story since the device was discontinued only five months after its launch due to the release of the next phone on this list.
OnePlus 3 fast facts: The OnePlus 3 launched with Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, and its final official update was Android 9 Pie. That means the device got a whopping four versions of Android, something basically unheard of in the industry at the time.
OnePlus’ proprietary fast-charging system — then known as Dash Charge — debuted with the OnePlus 3. Dash Charge was a rebranded and slightly customized version of Oppo’s VOOC charging system, once again suggesting Oppo had a massive hand in OnePlus’ early development.
When the OnePlus 3 received its update to Android 7.0 Nougat, the update allowed the phone to cheat benchmark scores by overclocking the processor temporarily to game the system. OnePlus apologized for the issue and removed it after widespread backlash erupted against manufacturers cheating benchmark scores.
Although still with a larger display, the OnePlus 3 was slightly smaller than the OnePlus 2. In the days when smartphones seem to get bigger and bigger, it’s interesting to think about phones getting smaller with a new generation!
In 2016, the price of the phone started at $399.
OnePlus 3T: The step up to perfection
The OnePlus 3 launched in the middle of June 2016. In November, only five months later, the company announced a refresh of that device known as the OnePlus 3T. This was the first time the company had ever released two flagship smartphones in one year.
The OnePlus 3T looked almost exactly like the OnePlus 3 but featured a few upgrades that made it overall a better device. The processor got a slight upgrade to the Snapdragon 821, and the battery got a pretty significant upgrade to 3,400mAh — 400mAh more than the one in the OnePlus 3. See also: How the price of OnePlus phones changed over the years
The 3T also added a more premium variant with 128GB of internal storage and an upgraded selfie camera. Overall, though, the OnePlus 3T was just a simple tweaking of the OnePlus 3.
The 3T was a terrific phone. Even so, diehard OnePlus fans were miffed by its existence. Many had literally just bought the OnePlus 3. The company then added insult to injury by discontinuing production of the OnePlus 3 entirely, making it probably the most short-lived phone in OnePlus’ history.
If you ignore that, though, the OnePlus 3T was probably one of the best smartphones of 2016. It fixed the very few problems with the OnePlus 3 and still could be bought for a relative bargain at just $439. For comparison, the similarly spec’d Samsung Galaxy S7 started at $669 that year.
Although we don’t know much about how many OnePlus 3T units the company sold, fans frequently cite the device as being the best device ever from the brand. There are probably people reading this article on a 3T, as quite a few people refuse to stop using it as their daily driver!
OnePlus 3T fast facts: The OnePlus 3T launched with Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. Its final official update was Android 9 Pie.
By the time OnePlus launched the 3T, it had nailed down its supply chain enough to be able to give immediate delivery of its products. It would sometimes only take days to get to your doorstep.
The OnePlus 3T had a new color option called Gunmetal, a slightly darker change from the OnePlus 3’s Graphite color.
OnePlus elected to skip updating the OnePlus 3 and 3T to Android 8.1 Oreo, letting both devices sit on Android 8.0 until the final update to Android 9 Pie arrived.
In 2016, the price of the phone started at $439.
OnePlus 5: The first (and last) of its kind
After the launch of the OnePlus 3 and the unexpected launch of the OnePlus 3T, people naturally assumed that we’d see a OnePlus 4 in 2017. However, OnePlus surprised us again by skipping the number four and going straight to five with the OnePlus 5.
Although the company never gave a formal reason for skipping the OnePlus 4, it likely had to do with tetraphobia, a highly prevalent superstition in East Asian culture. Tetraphobia, quite literally, is the fear of the number four. In Mandarin Chinese, the pronunciation of the word “four” is very similar to the pronunciation of the word “death.” Opinion: The OnePlus 5/5T just got Android 10, which is a big deal (but it shouldn’t be)
Regardless, the OnePlus 5 landed in June 2017 with great reviews and stellar sales. Although the design took a lot of cues from the OnePlus 3 and 3T from the previous year, it had a more minimalistic look with more emphasis on tiny details.
However, the most notable change for the OnePlus 5 was the introduction of two rear camera lenses. Over the entire history of OnePlus phones, the camera system has been a constant sore spot, with most critics saying they are sub-par when compared to other similar devices on the market. With the OnePlus 5, the company made its first big attempt to shut down that criticism, even going so far as to work with DxO — the French photography company behind venerable reviews site DxOmark — to develop the OnePlus 5’s cameras.
With two lenses on the rear, OnePlus came out ahead of many other companies that had yet to introduce flagship phones with multiple rear lenses, including Samsung and Google. Even Apple had only just introduced a multi-lens system the year prior on the iPhone 7 Plus (the vanilla iPhone 7 still had a single rear lens). With a starting price of just $479, the OnePlus 5 undercut the iPhone 7 Plus’ entry-tier price of $769 by a considerable margin.
OnePlus said that the OnePlus 5 was the fastest-selling phone in its history at that point.
OnePlus 5 fast facts: The OnePlus 5 launched with Android 7.1.1 Nougat, and its final official update was Android 10.
Interestingly, OnePlus again decided to lower the battery capacity on the OnePlus 5 as compared to the OnePlus 3T. The difference is slight (only 100mAh), but still curious.
One of the most significant controversies with the OnePlus 5 was the so-called “jelly scrolling effect.” If you swiped quickly through a long web page, the text and images would appear to swell as if made of jelly. The problem was the display itself, which was inverted for design reasons.
The OnePlus 5 was the first phone from the company — and one of only a very few phones in the industry at the time — to offer a variant with 8GB of RAM.
In 2017, the price of the phone started at $479 for the version with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 5T: The overhaul
From the OnePlus One in 2014 to the OnePlus 5 in 2017, all the OnePlus phones shared a similar design. Sure, the Sandstone back disappeared with the OnePlus 3, and the OnePlus 5 gave us a dual rear camera system. Still, the overall idea of a minimalist design with a physical home button/fingerprint sensor on the front stayed the same.
Not so with the OnePlus 5T. For the first time, the front of the device became all screen, and the fingerprint sensor moved to the back. It wasn’t the first device to do this by far, but it was a pretty significant jump to make with a “T” model phone. After all, the OnePlus 3T looked the same as the OnePlus 3, but now it was easy to tell the difference between the 5 and 5T just with a quick glance. Related: The original OnePlus 5T review from Android Authority
Of course, we were still years away from a nearly bezel-less experience when the OnePlus 5T landed, so it still had a significantly sized forehead and chin. But now, there was so much more room for a screen on a device that was, physically, about the same size as the OnePlus 5.
Despite the drastic change in design, the OnePlus 5T didn’t differ all that much from the OnePlus 5. It had the same processor (the Snapdragon 835), the same RAM/internal storage options, the same battery, etc. It even had the same price.
OnePlus did have some fun with releasing special editions of the 5T. There was the Star Wars edition to tie in with the release of Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi, as well as a Lava Red colorway.
OnePlus 5T fast facts: The OnePlus 5 launched with Android 7.1.1 Nougat, and its final official update was Android 10.
The OnePlus 5T came with a Face Unlock feature, a first for a OnePlus device. However, since it was based on 2D scanning from the single camera sensor on the front, you couldn’t use it to authenticate purchases as it wasn’t as secure as a fingerprint scan. The OnePlus 5 later got this same feature.
Android Authority readers concluded that the OnePlus 5T was the phone with the best value for the money in 2017, beating out the Nokia 8 and the Motorola Moto Z2 Force. It also was an honorable mention for our Best Phone of the Year award.
OnePlus introduced the Parallel Apps feature with the OnePlus 5T. Parallel Apps allows you to have two instances of one app running simultaneously. This is helpful if, say, you have two Snapchat accounts and don’t want to log in and out of them on your phone constantly.
In 2017, the price of the phone started at $479 for the version with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 6: The opening act
At the end of 2017, Apple unveiled the iPhone X. The phone was the first from Apple to feature a notched display. This allowed for nearly bezel-less sides and a very, very small chin. This design idea originated earlier in the year with the Essential Phone, and other Android OEMs had quickly jumped on the bandwagon.
The notch was (and still is) a highly controversial design element. With rumors ramping up for the OnePlus 6 in early 2018, fans were concerned about notches. Sure enough, their concerns became a reality when co-founder Carl Pei told The Verge, “learn to love the notch,” and gave an exclusive first look at what the notch on the OnePlus 6 looked like.
Some saw the OnePlus 6 as the spiritual successor to the Google Nexus series.
This initial wave of lousy publicity put a considerable damper on the PR machine running to promote the OnePlus 6. After the success OnePlus had had, the OnePlus 6 was poised to be a breakthrough for the brand. It would move it out of the world of niche smartphones and into the mainstream. This bad press wasn’t helping.
Luckily for OnePlus, the initial notch backlash didn’t hurt it too much, as the OnePlus 6 was well-received by fans and critics. Our review of the phone called it “the spiritual successor to the Nexus,” which are not words we would use lightly.
In fact, the device sold so well that OnePlus broke its usual silence on company revenue to announce that it sold over a million units of the OnePlus 6 in just one month. That’s an astounding achievement for just over four years of the company’s existence.
However, the OnePlus 6 ended up being the opening act for the phone that would genuinely break OnePlus into the mainstream.
OnePlus 6 fast facts: The OnePlus 6 launched with Android 8.1 Oreo, and its final upgrade was to Android 11.
With the OnePlus 6, the company built a phone out of mostly glass for the first time. Originally, the thought was that this would enable wireless charging, a feature previous metal builds would have prohibited. However, wireless charging didn’t debut on a OnePlus phone until 2020 with the OnePlus 8 Pro.
As with the OnePlus 5T, the company released a special edition of the OnePlus 6 to tie in with a blockbuster film, this time to coincide with Avengers: Infinity War. The special edition phone came with plenty of Marvel-themed accessories and a unique colorway.
The OnePlus 6 was also the first phone from the company to be a part of the Android beta program. This enabled users to install beta versions of Android P at the same time as Pixel phones.
In 2018, the price of the phone started at $529. This was for the version with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 6T: The one for everyone
With the OnePlus 6 being the fastest- and best-selling phone from the company to date, how could it keep growing? Here in the United States, the best way for it to grow would be to finally get a carrier partnership. This would allow US buyers to simply walk into their local shops and buy one.
OnePlus had already made carrier partnerships in other parts of the world. Getting one in the US would truly be a win. As you probably know by now, the company did this by partnering with T-Mobile. Related: OnePlus 6/6T redux
With T-Mobile’s help, OnePlus saw even its record-setting sales of the OnePlus 6 obliterated. CEO Pete Lau said that it sold a stunning 249% more units of the 6T in the US than it did the OnePlus 6.
Without a doubt, the OnePlus 6T marks the turning point for the brand. It’s when the company finally stepped out of its original incarnation as an online-only niche OEM to a global company that could actually threaten the likes of Samsung, Huawei, and more.
Even if you ignore all that, the OnePlus 6T was such a fantastic device. The move to a barely-there waterdrop notch was a welcome one, and the enhancements to the display, cameras, and internal specs were all excellent moves — not to mention the debut of the in-display fingerprint sensor. The only thing that wasn’t great about the 6T is that it marks the end of the headphone jack — every flagship OnePlus phone since this one hasn’t had the much-loved legacy port.
OnePlus 6T fast facts: The OnePlus 6T launched with Android 9 Pie, and its final upgrade was to Android 11.
For all of 2018 and into early 2019, the OnePlus 6T was the only smartphone you could buy at a US carrier store with an in-display fingerprint sensor.
Although OnePlus slightly increased the price of the OnePlus 6T as compared to the OnePlus 6, the base model came with twice as much internal storage, making the $20 increase well worth it. Higher-end models of the OnePlus 6T saw no price increases, either.
The OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition was the first time the company partnered with the famous British car brand. The device featured a slight bump in RAM and a faster charging system. Not to mention a cool black-and-orange colorway to match the McLaren branding.
In 2018, the price of the phone started at $549 for the version with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 7: The divide
The OnePlus 6 and 6T were incredibly successful. All eyes in the industry were on OnePlus for the inevitable launch of the OnePlus 7 series. It was no secret that the company was steadily increasing the entry-level price of its devices. Would the company keep that trend going and release a phone twice as expensive as the OnePlus One just five years after its debut?
It turns out the answer to that question is both yes and no. That’s because OnePlus, for the first time, released two different versions of its flagship: the OnePlus 7 and the OnePlus 7 Pro. The OnePlus 7’s price stayed under $600, preventing it from doubling the cost of the OnePlus One. The Pro variant, though, flew past the $600 mark, allowing the company to have its cake and eat it, too. Related: The OnePlus 7 review from Android Authority
However, things got complicated when the company decided only to launch the devices in some world regions. Here in the United States, we couldn’t get the OnePlus 7, with only the 7 Pro being available from T-Mobile and even the official OnePlus online store.
Ultimately, it didn’t really matter, because the OnePlus 7 was more like a rehash of the OnePlus 6T. It looked like the OnePlus 6T and only offered some nominal internal upgrades. It was undoubtedly a great phone, but with T-Mobile still selling the OnePlus 6T, there was no reason to have a clone on the next shelf.
In that sense, the OnePlus 7 Pro is the proper follow-up to the OnePlus 6T.
OnePlus 7 fast facts: The OnePlus 7 launched with Android 9 Pie, and its most recent official update was Android 11. OnePlus says it will get Android 12 in 2022.
The two major upgrades the OnePlus 7 saw as compared to the OnePlus 6T were in the processor and cameras. The processor got an upgrade to the Snapdragon 855. The cameras got bumped from 2018 sensors to 2019 sensors, including a 48MP main. However, nearly every other spec is the same across both phones.
Shortly after the launch of the OnePlus 7, the company announced a red colorway of the phone. This colorway — simply called Red — was exclusive to the OnePlus 7. No other phones in the 7 series got it.
Mere months after the launch of the OnePlus 7, it saw a significant price reduction. The OnePlus 7T saw a similar reduction, suggesting it is better to wait a few months after launch to buy a non-Pro OnePlus phone.
In 2019, the price of the phone started at €549. This was for the version with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 7 Pro: The overshoot
To justify the price increase, the OnePlus 7 Pro had to be much better than the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 6T. While the company achieved that, it might have done too good of a job, as the OnePlus 7 Pro was so much better than the OnePlus 6T that it kind of painted itself into a corner. Related: The OnePlus 7 Pro review from Android Authority
The OnePlus 7 Pro introduced a few firsts to OnePlus phones and the entire smartphone market in general. It was the first commercially released phone to have UFS 3.0 storage speeds and the first with a 90Hz refresh rate on an OLED display. It also was the first phone with a pop-up selfie camera to hit store shelves in the United States.
The OnePlus 7 Pro was the first phone from the company with a triple-lens rear camera, which helped it earn a high DxOmark score, keeping it in the top ten for months. Oh yeah, and it also had 30W wired charging and up to a ridiculous 12GB of RAM.
The absolute most you’d pay for a OnePlus 7 Pro on launch day was $749.
Frankly, OnePlus may have overshot things with the OnePlus 7 Pro. After all, where does it go from here? The OnePlus 7T Pro will tell you the answer to that question.
OnePlus 7 Pro fast facts: The OnePlus 7 Pro launched with Android 9 Pie, and its most recent official update was Android 11. OnePlus says it will get Android 12 in 2022.
The pop-up selfie camera, according to OnePlus, is capable of 300,000 pop-ups. The phone will even warn you if you’re using too many pop-ups and automatically retract if it senses the phone has been dropped.
The OnePlus 7 Pro does not have an official IP rating. Still, the company was confident enough about the device’s water resistance that it dropped it into a bucket of water and let it be completely submerged.
For the first time on a OnePlus phone, the OnePlus 7 Pro comes with a 1440p display. Up until this point, every phone from the company maxed out at 1080p. The 90Hz refresh rate works with either 1080p or 1440p resolutions.
In 2019, the price of the phone started at $669 for the version with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 7T: The Goldilocks
Interestingly, the “T” series from OnePlus is all out of whack now. Initially, the OnePlus 3T was a minor upgrade over the OnePlus 3. Then, with the OnePlus 5T and the OnePlus 6T, the company instead introduced wholly new design elements, making the phones drastically different from their predecessors.
Then, with the OnePlus 7, the company made a phone that was essentially a clone of the OnePlus 6T but with some nominal upgrades. In just a few generations, we went from the “T” series being the slight upgrade to the main series being the slight upgrade over the previous generation. It’s like we’re in reverse! Related: OnePlus 7T one year later
The OnePlus 7T fits in well with this “backward” system since it features a whole new design as well as upgraded internals as compared to the OnePlus 7. For example, it brings over the triple-lens rear camera system of the OnePlus 7 Pro but in a brand new (and soon abandoned) circular module. It keeps the waterdrop notch of the OnePlus 7, but makes the screen slightly thinner and slightly taller, kind of like the OnePlus 7 Pro’s all-screen display. Aside from the new camera module, the OnePlus 7T looks like someone mashed together a OnePlus 7 and a OnePlus 7 Pro, making it the best of both worlds.
Of course, there were the usual internal upgrades, such as the Snapdragon 855 Plus processor, 8GB of RAM for the entry-level option, a larger battery, etc. Overall, though, the OnePlus 7T feels more like what the OnePlus 7 should have been.
Thankfully, OnePlus kept the price for the OnePlus 7T very reasonable at just $599. Eventually, OnePlus lowered the price by an astounding $100, making the OnePlus 7T the best value smartphone of 2020 (even though it launched in 2019!).
OnePlus 7T fast facts: The OnePlus 7T launched with Android 10 out of the box. It is now on Android 11 and will likely receive updates through Android 13 (although we can’t guarantee that).
T-Mobile sold the OnePlus 6T first and then carried it and the OnePlus 7 Pro together. However, it eventually replaced the 6T and 7 Pro with the 7T.
Although the blue colorway of the OnePlus 7T looks a lot like the one on the OnePlus 7 Pro, they are actually different. The OnePlus 7 Pro’s Nebula Blue is a few shades darker than the 7T’s Haze Blue.
The OnePlus 7T also has a 90Hz refresh rate, a feature that debuted with the OnePlus 7 Pro. However, the 7T’s display is locked at 1080p to keep costs down.
In 2019, the price of the phone started at $599 for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 7T Pro: The rehash
Remember how we nicknamed the OnePlus 7 Pro “the overshoot”? Well, the OnePlus 7T Pro helps prove that point, considering it is a “T” model upgrade that offers only a handful of upgrades over the original 7 Pro.
In essence, the 7T Pro is just a 7 Pro with a slightly bigger battery (we’re talking 85mAh bigger) and a slightly upgraded processor (the SD855 Plus as compared to the regular SD855). Aside from these minor details, the phones are identical. Related: The OnePlus 7T Pro review from Android Authority
OnePlus must have realized that the 7T Pro was a bizarre entry in its line. It only made the device available in certain countries. Here in the US, if you wanted an upgrade over the OnePlus 7T, you needed to go to the OnePlus 7 Pro. Aside from the processor, is still the superior device in almost every respect.
The 7T Pro eventually made its way to the United States in the form of the OnePlus 7T Pro 5G McLaren Edition. You could get it from T-Mobile. As its name suggests, it’s a 5G version of the OnePlus 7T Pro with the McLaren color scheme makeover.
OnePlus 7T Pro fast facts: The OnePlus 7T Pro launched with Android 10 out of the box. It is now on Android 11 and will likely receive updates through Android 13 (although we can’t guarantee that).
Although the camera systems are nearly identical across the 7T Pro and 7 Pro, the 7T Pro gets the ability to record ultra slow-motion 720p video at 960 fps. This feature has not been ported to the OnePlus 7 Pro (but has been ported to the OnePlus 7T).
The OnePlus 7T Pro won smartphone of the year awards from several organizations, including the GSM Association.
The OnePlus 7 Pro came in a color known as Almond in addition to Nebula Blue. However, the OnePlus 7T Pro only had Haze Blue as an option.
In 2019, the price of the phone started at £699 for the version with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 8: The upgrade with some downgrades
The OnePlus 7 Pro and OnePlus 7T were some of the company’s best-received products. The only problem was that the difference between Pro and non-Pro phones wasn’t quite clear. Sure, pricing and specs tables give hints as to which phone is “better.” OnePlus definitely needed to do a better job at making the differences easy for consumers to understand.
Enter the OnePlus 8 series. The vanilla OnePlus 8 looks very different from the OnePlus 7T and OnePlus 7 Pro. It has the expected upgrades in specs, including the 5G Snapdragon 865 processor. However, it also has a few downgrades. Most notably a weaker camera array (who needs a macro lens, seriously?) as well as a display cutout rather than a waterdrop notch. Related: The OnePlus 8 review from Android Authority
Outside of the processor upgrade, there’s not too much notable about the OnePlus 8. We even call it “watered down” in the headline of our review. All in all, it’s a perfectly good 2020 smartphone, but nothing to write home about. However, its relatively high price was something to note: starting at $699, OnePlus blew past its previous entry-tier smartphone pricing by $100.
Thankfully, the OnePlus 8 was made readily available throughout most of the world, unlike the OnePlus 7 before it. You could easily get the device here in the US from both Verizon and T-Mobile.
OnePlus 8 fast facts: The OnePlus 8 launched with Android 10 out of the box. It already has Android 12, and will likely receive updates through Android 13 (although we can’t guarantee that).
The OnePlus 8 pictured above is in a colorway called Interstellar Glow. It’s gorgeous. Unfortunately, the OnePlus 8 Pro didn’t come in the same colorway, which is weird.
With a huge 4,300mAh battery, the OnePlus 8 has more battery capacity than any previous OnePlus device. Its battery is over 200mAh, bigger than the one in the OnePlus 7T Pro.
The version of the OnePlus 8 that Verizon carries is slightly different with a slightly different name. The OnePlus 8 5G UW has an IP68 rating, just like the OnePlus 8 Pro. No other OnePlus 8 devices have an IP rating.
In 2020, the price of the phone started at $699 for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 8 Pro: The fan service
In early 2018, with the launch of the all-glass OnePlus 6, fans of the brand were finally excited to get a OnePlus phone with wireless charging. Unfortunately, that wasn’t to be, as the OnePlus 6 didn’t feature it. Neither did the OnePlus 6T or any phones the company released in 2019.
Finally, that changed in 2020 with the launch of the OnePlus 8 Pro, the first OnePlus phone with wireless charging. Not content to stop there, OnePlus also earned an IP68 rating for every OnePlus 8 Pro device, another thing fans have wanted for years. It was like the answer to so many prayers! Related: The OnePlus 8 Pro review from Android Authority
Unfortunately, not all changes for the OnePlus 8 Pro were received warmly. The phone price shot up to an astonishing $900 for the lowest-tier model, precisely three times the price of the OnePlus One from six years prior. The notch-free, all-screen displays of the OnePlus 7 Pro and OnePlus 7T Pro were exchanged for a display cutout housing the solitary front-facing camera, quite rightly hailed as a downgrade rather than an upgrade. Finally, the OnePlus 8 Pro added a chromatic filter camera which we called a “gimmick.” It backfired on the company when people started using it to simulate x-ray vision.
Time will tell how the OnePlus 8 Pro holds up compared to previous devices in the company’s lineup. The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t help sales, though, so it might be difficult to truly say whether the OnePlus 8 series is a sales success or not when the dust settles.
OnePlus 8 Pro fast facts: The OnePlus 8 Pro launched with Android 10 out of the box. It already has Android 12, and will likely receive updates through Android 13 (although we can’t guarantee that).
One of the reasons OnePlus gave for taking so long to deliver wireless charging is that the technology wasn’t as fast as wired charging. With that in mind, the OnePlus 8 Pro wirelessly charges at a super-fast rate of 30W, which is so fast that it needs a special proprietary dock with a cooling system to do it.
Although OnePlus finally brought an IP rating and wireless charging to the OnePlus 8 Pro, it still hasn’t delivered something else fans want: a microSD card slot. There has never been a flagship OnePlus phone with this feature to date.
Unlike the OnePlus 7 Pro and OnePlus 7T Pro, there hasn’t been any version of the OnePlus 8 Pro that’s hit a wireless carrier in the US.
In 2020, the price of the phone started at $899 for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus Nord: The back to basics
Ryan-Thomas Shaw / Android Authority
Remember the OnePlus X, which we called “The Experiment?” Well, it could be argued that the experiment is what gave us the OnePlus Nord, only the second phone from the company to not be a flagship-style product. It’s also the second phone from the company to not launch at all in the United States.
Although the Nord looks a lot like other OnePlus flagships (specifically the OnePlus 8 series), it features a weaker processor in the Snapdragon 765G. This enables it to connect to 5G networks and still produces a snappy software experience, but it’s not nearly as powerful as the Snapdragon 865. Related: The OnePlus Nord review from Android Authority
The reduction in processing power, though, allowed OnePlus to keep the entry price for the Nord reasonably low. It is roughly 55% cheaper in Europe when compared to the OnePlus 8 Pro.
The OnePlus Nord is not a one-and-done product as we saw with the OnePlus X. The company has promised that “Nord” is the name of an entirely new line of products and is not just limited to smartphones. As such, we would see many more Nord-branded phones, headphones, and other devices in the future.
OnePlus Nord fast facts: The OnePlus Nord launched with Android 10 out of the box. It is now on Android 12 and will likely receive updates through Android 13 (although we can’t guarantee that).
The OnePlus Nord has a dual-lens selfie camera on the front. This is the first time that a OnePlus device has had two lenses for selfies.
OnePlus was able to bring a bunch of flagship-esque features to the Nord, including a quad-camera on the rear, a 90Hz display refresh rate, and 30W wired charging. However, its display maxes out at 1080p, it doesn’t have wireless charging, and it has that weaker processor.
Although the OnePlus Nord never landed in the United States, the company eventually brought Nord-branded phones to the country.
In 2020, the price of the phone started at €399 for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 8T: The speed demon
Ryan-Thomas Shaw / Android Authority OnePlus 8T
As with the transition from the OnePlus 7 to the OnePlus 7T, the OnePlus 8T features a different design than the OnePlus 8. Most notably, the rear camera module gets a whole new look with a rounded rectangle setup. The front of the phone, though, looks very similar to the OnePlus 8.
The most prominent upgrade with the OnePlus 8T, though, is the introduction of Warp Charge 65. As its name suggests, it offers 65W wired charging speeds. This is twice as fast as any previous OnePlus phone and allows you to charge the 8T from zero to full in just under 40 minutes. Related: OnePlus 8T review
Outside of the fast charging, though, the OnePlus 8T doesn’t feature a whole lot of extensive upgrades as compared to its namesake. It has the same processor, the same RAM/storage configurations, and a very similar camera system (although with an extra monochrome lens thrown in for fun).
Ultimately, the OnePlus 8T is a great phone, but its price tag makes it hard to recommend. At $749, it’s more expensive than other phones of its class, especially the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE. Since it doesn’t have wireless charging or an IP rating, it’s difficult to justify that price when the OnePlus Nord is such a great phone and costs half as much.
OnePlus 8T fast facts: The OnePlus 8T launched with Android 11 out of the box, the first global phone to do so (that wasn’t made by Google, of course). It’s currently on Android 12. It’s possible the device could see upgrades through Android 14, although that’s not confirmed.
The Warp Charge 65 charger that comes with the 8T is powerful enough to charge a laptop. You must use the included USB-C cable to achieve this, though.
Since the 8T launched with Oxygen OS 11, it’s the first OnePlus device with an always-on display out-of-the-box. This is a long-awaited feature for many OnePlus fans.
In the United States, you can only get the 12GB/256GB configuration of the OnePlus 8T. There are 8GB/128GB models, but they only landed in certain countries.
In 2020, the price of the phone started at $749 for the version with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.
OnePlus Nord N10 and N100: The cheap entries
Ryan-Thomas Shaw / Android Authority
Not long after OnePlus launched the OnePlus 8T, the firm quietly launched two brand new phones: the OnePlus Nord N10 and Nord N100. Both devices are firmly in the budget segment and represent a multitude of “firsts” for the company.
Each device has a weak processor: the Snapdragon 690 for the Nord N10 and the Snapdragon 460 for the N100. These are the lowest-level processors in any OnePlus phone to date. Both phones also feature microSD card slots (something we haven’t seen since the OnePlus X), headphone jacks (which we haven’t seen since the OnePlus 6), and physical fingerprint sensors on the rear (which we also haven’t seen since the OnePlus 6). Our verdict: OnePlus Nord N10 review | OnePlus Nord N100 review
With the Nord N10 and N100, OnePlus is clearly gunning for a customer base it has long ignored: budget shoppers. Although the company started as a wallet-friendly brand, even the $300 OnePlus One was more expensive than the N100.
Really, the phones mostly exist to get people who otherwise can’t afford a OnePlus phone into the OnePlus ecosystem.
OnePlus Nord N10 and N100 fast facts: The OnePlus Nord N10 and N100 launched with Android 10 out of the box. Even though Android 11 was already available for other OnePlus flagships. OnePlus confirmed that it would ship Android 11 to both phones, but no more Android versions after that.
The Nord N100 does not support Warp Charge, making it the first OnePlus phone not to support the proprietary charging technology since Dash Charge first launched with the OnePlus 3.
Neither the Nord N10 nor Nord N100 comes with a hardware alert slider. This is also the first time that’s ever happened since the debut of that feature with the OnePlus 2.
These two Nord phones are the first in the sub-line to land in the United States.
In 2020, the price of the N10 started at $299 for the version with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, while the N100 started at $179 for the version with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.
OnePlus 9: The balancing act
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
With OnePlus’ introduction of Pro models in 2019, the vanilla models have been in a bit of an awkward place. They can’t be as good as the Pro models, but they can’t be mid-rangers. They need to incorporate premium features but still leave out a few to keep the price from ballooning.
The OnePlus 9 is probably the company’s best attempt when it comes to this balancing act. It featured the then latest-and-greatest processor in the Snapdragon 888. It has a solid camera system, good internals, and a price that isn’t too bad for what you get. Also, for the first time, it offers wireless charging, previously unseen on non-Pro level devices from the brand. Our verdict: OnePlus 9 review
Of course, it still is not a Pro-level phone. It lacks a telephoto lens, for one, and also misses out on an IP rating (unless you buy it from T-Mobile in the US). It also doesn’t have the build quality of OnePlus’ Pro-level offerings.
Still, the OnePlus 9 was a great option if you wanted as good a phone as possible while paying less than $800. However, its $729 entry price is way more money than we saw even a few years ago. Remember that the OnePlus 6 started at $529! Old-school OnePlus fans haven’t been too happy with that rising trend.
OnePlus 9 fast facts: The OnePlus 9 launched with Android 11 out of the box. It is now on Android 12. OnePlus has promised it will receive three Android upgrades, which means it should get Android 14 eventually.
The OnePlus 9 doesn’t have the fast wireless charging we saw on the OnePlus 8 Pro (or the OnePlus 9 Pro). The vanilla OnePlus 9 is locked at 15W of wireless charging speed.
Speaking of wireless charging, unfortunately, not everyone gets that perk. OnePlus 9 models sold in India and China do not feature wireless charging for some reason.
Despite its cheaper price tag, the OnePlus 9 does get the advantages of the Hasselblad partnership (discussed further in the next section). It even has the Hasselblad logo emblazoned on the camera module.
In 2021, the price of the phone started at $729 for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 9 Pro: The camera phone
Eric Zeman / Android Authority
From the launch of the OnePlus One through to today, OnePlus has had a tough time with critics. No matter how much OnePlus tries to make the cameras on its smartphones good, they’re just never good enough.
That’s a big reason why OnePlus partnered with renowned camera company Hasselblad for the release of the OnePlus 9 series. The partnership — and the camera software that’s the fruit of that partnership — is pretty much all OnePlus is focused on with the OnePlus 9 Pro. Our verdict: OnePlus 9 Pro review
Truth be told, the 9 Pro is far and away the best smartphone camera OnePlus has ever made (even in 2022). Finally, the company could confidently stand among the greats in the photography game, namely Samsung, Google, and Apple.
Of course, there’s more to the OnePlus 9 Pro than just its camera chops. It has some blazing-fast wired and wireless charging speeds, an IP rating, a killer display, etc. But the camera is all OnePlus seems to care about here. It’s betting big this phone can kill off its reputation as the underperformer for good.
That Hasselblad partnership couldn’t have been cheap, though. It’s likely a big reason why the starting price for a OnePlus 9 Pro is $969. This made it the most expensive OnePlus phone ever.
OnePlus 9 Pro fast facts: The OnePlus 9 Pro launched with Android 11 out of the box. It is now on Android 12. OnePlus has promised it will receive three Android upgrades, which means it should get Android 14 eventually.
The OnePlus 8 Pro can charge wirelessly at a speed of 30W, which is fast. The 9 Pro one-ups that by hitting 50W of wireless charging speed. You’ll need a proprietary wireless charging dock to see those speeds, but that’s still insanely fast.
The Hasselblad partnership, so far, only affects the camera software on the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro. The camera hardware is still supplied mainly by Sony, just like most other Android flagships. However, there could be custom Hasselblad camera hardware in the future for OnePlus phones.
The display of the OnePlus 9 Pro is very similar to the one on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. It has an adaptive refresh rate. It allows it to support rates as high as 120Hz or as low as 1Hz.
In 2021, the price of the phone started at $969. This is for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus Nord CE: Somewhere in between other Nords
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
Most of us wondered where the OnePlus Nord CE would fit, as its price point put it somewhere between the Nord and the Nord N100/N10. We weren’t thrilled with the upgrade, as only a bit more money would get you the better OnePlus Nord.
It was a popular phone in India, though, where it was the most affordable available OnePlus handset. People in other markets had plenty of affordable options that performed much better, though.
The phone is exceptionally modest in almost every department. The design is very simple. Specs are adequate, but nothing to write home about. You do get fantastic battery life, though, and 30W fast charging.
OnePlus Nord CE fast facts: The OnePlus Nord CE launched with Android 11 out of the box. It is now on Android 12. The company promised two years of OS updates and three years of security updates. This means it should get Android 13.
The price was low, but there were better options for budget devices when it launched. Regardless, it was a great affordable option in the Indian market, where other Nords weren’t available then.
You get good 30W fast charging.
In 2021, the phone price started at €299/Rs. 22,999.
OnePlus Nord N200: The ultra-affordable phone is back
Eric Zeman / Android Authority
Ultra-affordable smartphones with fair specs are all the hype since 2020. This 2021 OnePlus Nord N200 builds upon the company’s budget lineup as a continuation of the N100. The device comes at a great price point ($239). This is a breath of fresh air in a world where smartphones rarely go for less than $400. Even for the budget ones. Our review: The Android Authority review of the OnePlus Nord N200
While it won’t win any contests, the N200 comes with fair specs, considering how much it costs. You get a Snapdragon 480 and 4GB of RAM, as well as 64GB of storage. The design, while mainly composed of plastic, comes with a great feel and texture. Despite having such a low price point, you get high-end specs. These include a 90Hz refresh rate display, as well as a large 5,000mAh battery.
The camera system is pretty basic, comprised of three shooters. The primary camera has a 13MP sensor. You also get a 2MP depth sensor and a 2MP macro.
OnePlus Nord N200 fast facts: The OnePlus Nord N200 launched with Android 11 out of the box. It is now on Android 12 and won’t receive any further updates.
Despite the low price, you get great features. These include a large 6.5-inch 1080p display with a 90Hz refresh rate and a 5,000mAh battery.
The wired charging speed is capped at 18W and there is no wireless charging available.
Like its predecessor, the N200 is directly available in the USA.
In 2021, the price of the phone started at $239, making this one of the most affordable OnePlus devices.
OnePlus Nord 2: The sequelitis
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
Remember how OnePlus has had problems with its camera systems over the years? It finally solved that problem for its flagships with the OnePlus 9 Pro. However, its mid-range Nord line is still struggling, which is what brings down the OnePlus Nord 2.
Now, the Nord 2 is not a bad phone. It has excellent hardware, an attractive design, and fast 65W wired charging. For its price, it’s a good phone. However, it’s up against many heavy hitters in the industry. It comes up a bit short once you start comparing it to the competition. Our verdict: OnePlus Nord 2 review
Most notably, though, the Nord 2 is the first phone from the brand without a Qualcomm chipset. Instead of a Qualcomm mid-ranger, the Nord 2 has Mediatek’s flagship processor, the Dimensity 1200. This makes the Nord 2 much more potent than its predecessor.
Outside of the processor, though, there’s not much about the Nord 2 that you can’t get from other phones. It’s also not that much cheaper than the OnePlus 9R in India or even the OnePlus 9 with OnePlus’ frequent discounts. As such, be sure to price match the Nord 2 before committing.
OnePlus Nord 2 fast facts: The OnePlus Nord 2 launched with Android 11 out of the box. It is now on Android 12. OnePlus has promised it will receive three Android upgrades, which means it should get Android 14.
There is a model of the OnePlus Nord 2 that comes with 6GB of RAM. However, it is only available in India.
OnePlus and Mediatek worked together to slightly tweak the Dimensity 1200. As such, the technical name for the processor in this phone is Mediatek Dimensity 1200 AI.
The selfie sensor, according to OnePlus, is the largest ever from the company. Unfortunately, it only features one lens instead of the two we saw on the original Nord.
In 2021, the price of the phone started at €419. This was for the version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus 10 Pro: The Oppo phone
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
In late 2021, OnePlus announced “OnePlus 2.0.” This marketing jargon was how the company explained its full-on merger with Oppo — you know, the company OnePlus said it had very little to do with from the beginning. Going forward, OnePlus and Oppo now share all resources, with the only exception being each company’s PR team.
With OnePlus and Oppo merged, the companies can crib from each other without hesitation. That’s one of the main reasons why the OnePlus 10 Pro looks a lot like an Oppo phone. It’s also why Oxygen OS 12 — which powers the 10 Pro out-of-the-box — is based on Oppo’s Color OS. It’s also why OnePlus launched the 10 Pro in China first with no sign of the vanilla OnePlus 10. This is a classic Oppo strategy. Next: OnePlus 10 Pro review
On paper, though, the 10 Pro is a stellar phone. It has a good camera system (although notably weaker in one area when compared to the OnePlus 9 Pro). It has the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset, which is one of the best Android SoCs of 2022. RAM, storage, battery capacity, wired and wireless charging speeds, and all other specs are great.
The phone has also launched globally, and we can now get it in North America for $899. Only the base version with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage are available outside China so far, though.
OnePlus 10 Pro fast facts: The OnePlus 10 Pro launched with Android 12 out of the box. OnePlus has promised it will receive three Android upgrades, which means it should get Android 15.
The wired charging speed of the 10 Pro is 80W. This is 15W faster than any other OnePlus phone to date. Sadly, the North American version supports 65W. That’s still very fast, though.
On the back of the 10 Pro, the ultrawide camera is an older, weaker design than what we saw on the 9 Pro. OnePlus did this to offer a wider field of view.
Even with other companies abandoning the practice, the 10 Pro still ships with an in-box charger.
The phone price starts at $899 for the model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage.
OnePlus Nord CE 2: Are OnePlus budget phones improving?
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
The OnePlus Nord CE did very little to impress us, as it seemed to drown in a world of fantastic budget smartphone options. Sadly, the same seems to happen with the OnePlus Nord CE 2, but we saw some improvements that make it stand out just a bit more this time around.
For starters, the design is more in line with modern handsets. It actually looks much like the Oppo Reno 7 series, which is a pretty good aesthetic. We’re happier with the performance of the Mediatek Dimensity 900, the primary camera is pretty good, and fast charging is greatly improved considering the 60W support.
Like 2021’s Nord CE, we still believe there are better options at the OnePlus Nord CE 2’s price range of £299 / €349 / Rs. 24,999.
OnePlus Nord CE 2 fast facts: The OnePlus Nord CE 2 launched with Android 11 out of the box. It is now on Android 12. OnePlus has promised it will receive two Android upgrades, which means it should get Android 13. You’ll also get three years of security updates.
This Nord was made with the collaboration of Oppo, something you can clearly notice in the newer design that is reminiscent of the Oppo Reno 7 series.
The wired charging speed of the Nord CE 2 is 60W. This makes it twice as fast as its predecessor, the Nord CE.
The phone’s price starts at £299 / €349 / Rs. 24,999 for the model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. The Indian market gets an option with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage for Rs. 23,999.
OnePlus 10T: Missing the mark
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
With no OnePlus 10 device, we started to think OnePlus wouldn’t bother with a T-series model in 2022 (after all, there was no T-series flagship in 2021). However, confusingly, OnePlus released the OnePlus 10T in the second half of the year. That means there’s a T-series phone for a phone that doesn’t exist. We know: confusing.
This would be forgivable if the OnePlus 10T was a great phone. However, it’s only great if you’re looking for two specific things: horsepower and charging speeds. The Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset is a powerhouse that will cut through anything you throw at it and the ridiculously fast 150W wired charging will take you from zero to 100 in mere minutes.
However, the camera is a middling mess. There’s no wireless charging. Some models have IP ratings while others don’t. The phone is just not a good all-rounder and instead is only a niche model for specific buyers.
Thankfully, OnePlus did do a good job on the price. The OnePlus 10T costs just $649, which is decent for a phone of this caliber.
OnePlus 10T fast facts: The OnePlus 10T launched with Android 12 out of the box. OnePlus has promised it will receive three Android upgrades, which means it should get Android 15. You’ll also get four years of security updates.
The 10T’s design is a lot like the 10 Pro’s design, even though the camera systems are quite different.
In the US, the 10T has an IP54 rating. This means it is water-resistant but not at all waterproof.
The 10T’s price starts at $649 in the United States. There you have it, the complete history of OnePlus phones until now! Which one was your all-time favorite?
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