Tag: oneplus
OnePlus’ First Foldables Arrive This Fall
Those who watched the OnePlus 11 launch event online missed out on something special—the first teaser for OnePlus’ foldable phones. The company showed its in-person audience an image of two V-shaped devices, captioned with “coming in Q3.”
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OnePlus 11 vs. OnePlus 10T: only one of them is worth your money
The OnePlus 11 Is Here, but With a Rough Start
Since its inception, OnePlus has always released its phones in the US, and since the OnePlus 6T, carriers like T-Mobile have sold its phones. The OnePlus 11 has been announced, and it’s a big step forward — but also a step back in terms of US support.
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OnePlus 11 is a handsome phone that (mostly) brings the goods
As an iOS lifer, I’m occasionally jealous of how many genuinely good phones Android enthusiasts get to choose from each year. The same holds true for the OnePlus 11.
The latest flagship smartphone out of the Chinese tech giant is an exercise in minor iteration. There aren’t many eye-popping new software features to play with or a radical redesign that will make you rethink smartphones generally. Instead, it brings perhaps the coolest-looking camera in the biz, excellent performance thanks to a brand new chipset, and an all-around premium feel for a somewhat less-than-premium price.
The OnePlus 11 is a generally good smartphone that you don’t need to break the bank to get, as it starts at just $700. It won’t change the world, but it doesn’t need to.
The fanciest camera bump around
Credit: Kyle Cobian/Mashable
Just like last year’s OnePlus 10 Pro, the OnePlus 11 is a big phone with a big battery and impressive-looking specs on paper. It’s also available in black or green. Here’s how the most important specs shake out:
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6.7-inch display with 120Hz variable refresh rate and 3216×1440 resolution
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8 or 16GB RAM
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128 or 256GB storage
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Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset
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5,000mAh battery
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50MP main camera lens with a 48MP ultrawide lens and a 32MP portrait lens
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16MP selfie camera
Right off the bat, the phone’s physical traits are both scintillating and frustrating. OnePlus 11 is a really cool-looking phone, one that would certainly catch the eye of someone sitting across from you on public transit. Its distinctive circular camera bump (complete with the logo for Swedish camera brand Hasselblad) just looks sophisticated compared to other smartphones. It’s handsome, not just utilitarian.
Unfortunately, the phone’s backside doesn’t just offer a swanky looking camera. OnePlus’s back glass is simply too slippery, whether the phone is in the hand or laying on a flat surface. I have a tendency to lay my phone flat on a pillow next to me while I sleep sometimes, and that’s a bad idea with the OnePlus 11 because it’ll inevitably slip off and wind up lost in your bed somewhere.
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
That’s just one minor example, but in general, I didn’t find the OnePlus 11 as comfortable to hold as I would like. It’s a little too big for long-term one-handed use, and OnePlus didn’t fix the problem I had last year where the volume rocker and power button are on opposite sides of the phone. That’s OK with something small like an iPhone SE, but here, it just means having to pull up another hand to adjust volume.
Other odds and ends include an in-display fingerprint sensor that never wavered for me, and a similarly effective face unlocking mechanism. Aside from the relatively minor problems addressed above, the OnePlus 11 is an impressive device on the surface. It stays fairly impressive when you dig deeper, too.
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Fast, 2 Furious
One of the big selling points for the OnePlus 11 is the inclusion of the state-of-the-art Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip powering the phone. It’s somewhat of a rarity in phones right now (Samsung’s slightly more expensive Galaxy S23 also has it), so any opportunity to see how it works should be cherished.
The verdict? It’s fine! OnePlus claims the new chip provides speed boosts of 25 and 35 percent to to the GPU and CPU, respectively, but the proof is more in how the phone feels to use as an everyday device. When I tested it using my usual diet of copious amounts of social media, Spotify and YouTube streaming, and general messing around online, I didn’t detect any performance hiccups that were worth noting.
It’s a smooth, speedy experience, helped by the 120Hz display. I do feel that there are diminishing returns with each new generation of chips, as I didn’t have any performance problems with last year’s phone, either. That said, it is cool to be able to have a bunch of apps open at once (on the 16GB RAM model) without feeling any pressure to close them.
Credit: Kyle Cobian/Mashable
OnePlus 11 runs on OxygenOS 13, a slightly altered version of Android 13. That means it comes pre-loaded with a folder full of OnePlus bloatware, like a proprietary Notes app. That stuff is easy enough to ignore, but some of the other unique software features are worth looking at, for better and worse.
For example, you can multi-task apps by stacking one on top of another vertically. Doing so is easy; simply open up the view of all your open apps, tap the three dots in the upper right corner of the screen, and hit the “Split screen” option. Stacking Twitter on top of Spotify is a neat trick, though I will say that it’s substantially less useful here on a traditional phone display than it would be on a bigger device, like the Galaxy Z Fold 4.
There’s also the dreaded “Shelf,” a OnePlus-exclusive drop-down menu that appears when you swipe down from around the middle of the display. This is full of widgets like a clock, the weather, and a recently played view on Spotify. I don’t find any of this particularly useful, and the fact that you can easily bring it up when you’re trying to swipe down into the notifications view is problematic.
In fact, the OnePlus 10 had the same problem. Maybe next time around they’ll get around to fixing it.
Battery boost
Credit: Kyle Cobian/Mashable
By far the most impressive aspect of the OnePlus 11 is its battery. Curiously, it’s not the battery life itself, but the recovery time from a depleted charge that won me over the most.
That’s not to say the battery life is bad, mind you. I was able to get about 24 hours out of a full charge, and that included downloading sizable updates for mobile games and plenty of music streaming with the screen at or near full brightness. You can almost certainly squeeze even more out of it with more careful usage.
But it’s the 80W wall charger that comes packaged with the phone that seals the deal. Using that charger, I was able to get from 15 percent battery to 100 percent in less than half an hour. It’s absurd how fast this thing charges. I had fun just staring at the screen and watching the percentage meter slowly (but not nearly as slowly as other phones) creep up towards 100.
I hope someday my iPhone can charge that quickly.
Bright night shots
Going back to that fancy-schmancy Hasselblad-branded camera, it’s not just there for looks. It takes photos, too, and does it fairly well.
That trio of rear lenses produces shots with extraordinarily vivid colors. I did most of my testing in sub-optimal conditions (New York isn’t the most bright and cheery place in January and February), and photos still came out looking sharp and colorful.
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
There’s almost a hyper-real quality to some of these photos, as the environs I took them in weren’t necessarily this vivid in real life. I’m pretty into that, conceptually, as it creates good-looking social media photos. If you’re striving for hardcore reality, however, it might be a little irksome.
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
Portrait mode is here and works as advertised, adding a nice depth-of-field effect to photos taken close up on a single subject.
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
There are also some nice options for taking photos of extremely up-close subjects, or subjects that are a little out-of-reach. Macro photography lets you get in real close on small objects, like seeds and pebbles, producing highly detailed shots. The zoom lens, on the other hand, is pretty decent, maintaining an adequate level of clarity from a moderate distance.
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
There’s also nighttime photography, which brightens dark photos to make them more legible. The results are attractive enough, though sticklers for realism might notice that some of these shots look more like daytime than nighttime. The software processing tends to brighten the photos quite a bit, making them look almost as if they’re lit by studio lights. It’s not natural, but it doesn’t look bad, either.
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable
Just one of many options
When it comes time to finally choose a new Android phone in 2023, the OnePlus 11 shouldn’t get left off the list. This is a beautiful phone with a high-end chipset, a gorgeous display, and one seriously fast-charging battery. At the very least, none of your friends will have phones that look as cool as this one.
It also doesn’t hurt that you’re going to pay a maximum of $800 for it. That puts it $100 below the Pixel 7 Pro, which I would hold up as the current gold standard of Android phones. That phone has a much cleaner software package without any bloatware, comparably excellent performance, and overall better cameras that can do more. The base Pixel 7 is also excellent, and to OnePlus’s detriment, it’s only $600.
Personally, I’d go Pixel 7 if I were looking for a new Android handset. But OnePlus deserves your attention, too.
OnePlus teases its first Android tablet, and a co-branded mechanical keyboard
Camera Comparison: Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro Max vs. OnePlus 11 5G
Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro Max is equipped with an f/1.78 48-megapixel Wide lens that uses a Sony sensor, while the OnePlus 11 5G is equipped with an f/1.8 50-megapixel main camera that also uses a Sony sensor. Both smartphones include optical image stabilization, along with additional cameras.
The OnePlus 11 5G has a 48-megapixel 115-degree ultra wide camera, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max has a 12-megapixel 120-degree field of view camera. The iPhone 14 Pro Max has the wider field of view, but it can’t compete with the higher megapixel count on the OnePlus. Both devices support macro photos using their respective ultra wide lenses.
The OnePlus 11 5G has a more advanced telephoto lens in some ways, as it is equipped with a 32-megapixel portrait telephoto lens that uses Hasselblad technology, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max is limited to a 12-megapixel telephoto lens. It is worth noting, though, that the OnePlus 11 is limited to 2x zoom, while the iPhone 14 Pro Max supports 3x zoom. For those unfamiliar with the brand, Hasselblad is a Swedish camera maker that has been developing camera technology for OnePlus smartphones since the OnePlus 9.
OnePlus says that the device features DSLR-like depth tracking, natural bokeh, and light flare, simulating professional portraits captured by an actual Hasselblad camera. All three lenses are advertised as using Hasselblad color calibration for a more natural look, and OnePlus has also included a “13 channel multi-spectral sensor for light-color identifying,” which is supposed to provide more accurate color and white balance.
As for camera quality, the telephoto lens produces portraits with excellent background lighting and blur, but there is a skin smoothing algorithm for people that can make images look unnatural. There’s too much post-processing going on, which means side-by-side, the iPhone portrait pictures turn out more true to life.
With the standard camera in good lighting, you’re not going to see much difference in image quality between the OnePlus 11 and the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which is typical of smartphone cameras these days. Images are sharp and detailed, with a neutral color palette, but the ultra-wide lens trends toward yellow tones, while the telephoto lens is cooler, which ultimately means images can look inconsistent across the three cameras.
There are useful Hasselblad-designed filters that you can apply to photos, and there’s a pro mode for DSLR-style customization. Night photos are fine, but nothing impressive, and the same goes for video. The iPhone definitely produces better quality video.
Other OnePlus 11 5G features include a 6.7-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate, always-on display technology, the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 platform used in Samsung’s latest S23 devices, up to 16GB RAM, 5G connectivity, Wi-Fi 7, and a 5,000mAh battery. It runs “OxygenOS,” which is based on Android 13, and is available for pre-order starting today.
Make sure to check out the video to see the full camera comparison, and let us know what you think about the OnePlus 11 5G in the comments below.
This article, “Camera Comparison: Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro Max vs. OnePlus 11 5G” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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OnePlus Buds Pro 2 are great except in the ways that matter the most
Sometimes “pretty good” isn’t good enough.
That’s the case with the new flagship earbuds from OnePlus, the OnePlus Buds Pro 2. These $180 ‘buds do a lot of the things you’d want from a pair of earbuds at that price: Their sound quality is more than acceptable, they offer plenty of customization options, and the battery life is genuinely impressive.
However, Bluetooth bugs and inferior active noise cancelation compared to competitors like Apple’s Beats Fit Pro keep the Buds Pro 2 from greatness. Anyone who buys these will likely be satisfied, but you can do better without dropping much more cash.
A minor facelift
Credit: Kyle Cobian/Mashable
Credit: OnePlus
If, for some reason, you skipped the 2021 OnePlus Buds Pro because of their looks, I have bad news for you: Nothing has changed in that department.
Aside from a very slight reduction in size and a new “Arbor Green” colorway, the Buds Pro 2 look pretty much identical to the previous model. That is to say they look like off-brand AirPods Pro, with a mildly egg-shaped body, silicone ear tips, and an elongated stem protruding downward from the backside of the body.
There aren’t any changes to write home about with the charging case, either. It retains the vaguely rectangular shape (with rounded corners) from last time, and as far as I can tell, it’s the exact same size as before.
Credit: Kyle Cobian/Mashable
OnePlus also retained the same touch-sensitive stems from last time around. Instead of a simple press, you actually squeeze the stem to control playback. One squeeze pauses and plays, two squeezes skip ahead, three go back a track, and so on. Holding a squeeze for a few seconds also switches between ANC and transparency mode in case you need to order food or something without removing your earbuds.
To be clear, I don’t have a problem with any of this. The OnePlus Buds Pro looked slick and unassuming, living up to the “Pro” nomenclature. It also means that they’re exactly as comfortable as they were before. I wore these for several hours at a time with little issue.
If anyone sees you wearing these on the street, they might just think you have black or green AirPods Pro. They’d be wrong, of course, but who cares? Let the people think whatever they want.
App-tastic
Another thing that hasn’t changed much since the previous incarnation of OnePlus Buds Pro is how you configure the earbuds. On a OnePlus phone, it’s easy as can be: Simply open the earbuds case next to the phone, connect using OnePlus’s fast pair feature, and you can find customization options in the Bluetooth section of the phone’s settings menu.
It’s a little bit more troublesome on iPhone and Android, but not by much. All you have to do is download the HeyMelody app from the App Store or Play Store and you’re good to go.
Credit: HeyMelody
To OnePlus’s credit, there’s an excellent amount of feature parity in this aspect across devices. iOS and Android users can adjust ANC levels, create their own sound equalizer settings and take an ear fit test to make sure the earbuds are worn correctly. You can also adjust touch controls and perform firmware updates here.
A big returning feature from last time is a short hearing test you can take, after which the earbuds will create a custom audio profile to fit your ears. It doesn’t make a dramatic difference, but just like last time, I did find that music sounded a little better after I did this.
Credit: HeyMelody
As for features specific to OnePlus phones, there aren’t many. There’s a new spatial audio feature similar to what Apple introduced a couple of years ago. In theory, this is supposed to make music sound like it’s surrounding you rather than just beaming into your ears. This works with the little test tone in the Buds Pro settings menu, but I didn’t find that it had much effect outside of that. Of course, your mileage may vary, as it can differ from song to song and from app to app.
Aside from that, OnePlus phone users can enjoy “Hi-Res audio,” which is supposed to deliver higher quality audio at the cost of battery life and latency. Again, I didn’t notice a huge difference with this feature, but it might work better for you. You can also use a OnePlus phone to find the earbuds if they get lost, which is a nice touch and a pretty decent selling point for getting into the OnePlus ecosystem, in the event that you really like these earbuds.
Maddeningly inconsistent Bluetooth connectivity
Unfortunately, the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 start running into trouble when you evaluate their performance. Since that’s the most important thing about any pair of earbuds, that’s a pretty big bummer.
Let me start with the positives. Sound quality here is above average, with bass that kicks acceptably hard and an overall sound profile that doesn’t drown out more subtle instruments in dense compositions unless you turn the volume up too high. You shouldn’t do that anyway if you value being able to hear.
Just like last time, I used Sturgill Simpson’s “Call to Arms” as testing material. Aside from being a smoking hot banger, it’s also got a ton going on instrumentally. OnePlus Buds Pro 2 do a nice job of conveying everything the song is trying to convey. I really don’t have any complaints about the raw sound quality.
Credit: Kyle Cobian/Mashable
Noise cancelation is…fine. Even with the ANC set to max, a little bit too much noise makes its way in if you’re, say, walking down a busy street in Brooklyn. That’s a particularly tough stress test, but it’s one that the Beats Fit Pro pass with ease. OnePlus doesn’t do quite as well, but in most circumstances, it gets the job done.
Sadly, I had a really hard time getting the earbuds to work consistently. Bluetooth interference was a massive problem in my testing. The Buds Pro 2 work OK in a static setting, like a bedroom or office, but take them out and about and things change. In my experience, mundane activities like subway rides or walking in busy streets can result in so much Bluetooth interference that whatever you’re trying to hear essentially becomes unlistenable.
Of course, I understand not everybody lives in New York City. If you don’t deal with urban density on a daily basis, you may not encounter this problem. All I can say is that, in my experience, the Buds Pro 2 were not always up to the task when I wanted to take them away from home.
Having said all of that, I will point out that you can get around six hours of listening time on Buds Pro 2 with ANC turned on. That’s pretty sweet.
A hard sell
There are plenty of things to like about OnePlus Buds Pro 2. Their sound quality is splendid enough, and ANC works most of the time. They’re comfortable to wear for hours at a time, and they look pretty cool. On top of all of that, you get a bevy of cool app-based features, with plenty of parity across both OnePlus and non-OnePlus devices.
It’s just a shame that they don’t work very well in crowded environments, at least not at the time of writing. Perhaps a firmware update can fix that, but for now, these bad boys are a little hard to recommend given the competition. For just $20 more, the Beats Fit Pro outpace OnePlus Buds Pro 2 in just about every way. The same goes for Google’s Pixel Buds Pro, if you’re looking for something a little more Android-centric.
If OnePlus negotiated the price down a little bit (perhaps into the $150 range), this might be a different conversation. As things stand, however, you’re better off buying another pair of earbuds.