Ask any Android fanatic what their favourite producer is, and so they’ll inevitably say OnePlus. The Chinese language firm found out the viewers it wished from the get-go, and its capability to ship flagship {hardware} mixed with best-in-class software program meant it robotically attracted energy customers. Whereas that course has modified in recent times, OnePlus continues to ship standout gadgets.Â
I distinctly keep in mind being enthusiastic about getting my fingers on the OnePlus One again in 2014; it wasn’t as simple as it’s in the present day, as you wanted an invitation to choose up the cellphone. However I managed to safe one and acquired the cellphone within the U.S. a number of months forward of its launch in India, and used it as my every day driver for nicely over a yr.
I began writing about telephones on Android Central shortly after that, and that allowed me to check all of the telephones OnePlus launched in its ten-year historical past. The very best half is that I received to make use of the entire model’s limited-edition fashions, so these are the 5 OnePlus telephones I favored essentially the most over the past decade.
OnePlus 7 Professional: Really one in every of a sort
The OnePlus 7 Professional had all of it: a surprising design, insane {hardware}, and a big battery. However what made the system stand out essentially the most was the motorized digicam module that successfully hid the entrance digicam when not in use. This meant you bought a display screen that did not have any cutouts, and it regarded unimaginable.
Even to at the present time, the OnePlus 7 Professional seems to be futuristic, and the design has aged very nicely — it is a disgrace that producers walked away from retractable cameras altogether. I believe the design seems to be even higher than the OnePlus 11, and that display screen is only a delight to make use of. The Nebula Blue shade variant seems to be beautiful, and after I reviewed the OnePlus 7 Professional again when it got here out in 2019, I stated that the system was massive and heavy. It would not really feel that manner in 2023; fashionable telephones have considerably larger digicam modules and batteries, and the 7 Professional seems to be svelte by comparability.
Though the design continues to be among the many better of any cellphone in the present day, the cameras on the OnePlus 7 Professional did not fairly measure as much as what was obtainable on the time, and subsequent updates have not carried out a lot to vary that. You’ll be able to nonetheless get respectable photographs out of it, nevertheless it is not wherever pretty much as good as fashionable OnePlus telephones on this regard.
Truthfully, if OnePlus simply launched a model of the 7 Professional with fashionable internals and higher cameras, I believe it’s going to do very well. However the design language has moved on, and it’s simply wishful pondering to think about that we’ll get an up to date variant of the cellphone. In fact, there’s additionally the truth that you may’t have an IP score with a retractable module, and that is a desk stakes function lately.
OnePlus 7T: 4G’s final hurrah
The OnePlus 7T carefully follows on the heels of the 7 Professional as one in every of my favourite OnePlus telephones. The cellphone took one of the best bits of the 7 Professional however made them extra accessible; you continue to received a 90Hz AMOLED panel, however the show itself was flat, and that made it simple to carry and use. And that round digicam design on the again is simply pretty much as good in the present day because it was when it launched again in 2019.
As a result of there wasn’t a retractable digicam module, the 7T was 16g lighter than the 7 Professional, and that mixed with the flat show made a large distinction in every day use. I had no scarcity of assessment models on the time, however I ended up utilizing the 7T nicely into 2020. It additionally had the excellence of being the final of the 4G telephones — all of the gadgets that got here in 2020 had 5G radios that guzzled battery life, so I simply really useful the 7T to those that did not wish to purchase a 5G cellphone.
The OnePlus 7T launched with OxygenOS 10 out of the field, and that was the zenith of OnePlus’s software program efforts. OnePlus 11 was a convoluted mess that did not have a coherent design technique, and OnePlus simply determined to make use of ColorOS after that. However with the 7T, you bought one of the best that OxygenOS needed to supply, and it was unimaginable to make use of. In my OnePlus 7T assessment, I stated that it was the final word worth on the time, and I nonetheless see these gadgets within the wild.
OnePlus Open: Taking OnePlus to hovering heights
The OnePlus Open is the one latest OnePlus system on this listing, and that is a testomony to how good the foldable is in every day use. OnePlus nailed the design and {hardware}, and the software program has loads of helpful utilities, and OnePlus sorted out the preliminary points that I bumped into with my assessment unit.
The place the Open actually excels is the scale; because of a big outer display screen and a shorter design, it’s good to carry and use. Whilst you lose out on a bit vertical actual property, that is not actually a problem, and I a lot want the broader cowl display screen to the tall-and-narrow abomination that’s on the Galaxy Z Fold 5.
OnePlus additionally outfitted the foldable with probably the greatest digicam packages within the phase, and it takes incredible images and movies in nearly any situation. And with the identical long-term replace assure as Samsung, the cellphone will keep related lots longer. Truthfully, that is my favourite foldable of 2023, and the truth that it is obtainable globally offers it a definite edge towards its Chinese language rivals Xiaomi and Honor.
OnePlus 6T: Ushering in a brand new period of design
I wasn’t an enormous fan of the OnePlus 6T when it launched because it did not have a 3.5mm jack. That stated, the OnePlus 6 and 6T must be among the many best-looking OnePlus telephones ever made. These telephones launched the metal-and-glass design aesthetic that is persevering with to at the present time, and the 6T particularly had a beautiful design because of an in-screen fingerprint sensor.
There’s additionally the colour, and the Thunder Purple variant of the OnePlus 6T simply hit all the appropriate notes. And on that be aware, I’ve to say the Lava Purple model of the common OnePlus 6; that also continues to be one of the best shade possibility OnePlus launched on a tool so far — the Photo voltaic Purple OnePlus 11R will get very shut, nevertheless it would not fairly handle the identical impact.
Sure, the waterdrop cutout seems to be massive subsequent to current-gen telephones, however the 6T itself is considerably smaller, thinner, and lighter than the likes of the OnePlus 11, and it simply feels nice to carry and use. The tiny digicam module with simply two sensors additionally seems to be quaint — you do not get that anymore.
After I revisited the OnePlus 6 and 6T in 2020, I stated that they aged very nicely, and a number of that was all the way down to the design and {hardware}. Like all different OnePlus telephones, the 6T delivered terrific {hardware} and an excellent AMOLED panel, however the largest situation was the digicam — it simply wasn’t on par with the likes of the Mi 8.
OnePlus 3T: OnePlus goes mainstream
Certain, the OnePlus One and OnePlus 2 have been pivotal in placing the model on the map, and pretty much as good because the {hardware} was, the design wasn’t very refined. That modified with the introduction of the OnePlus 3 and 3T again in 2016. These telephones featured a metallic again that was beautiful, and so they enabled OnePlus to focus on mainstream consumers — that is when the model began gaining actual momentum.
In fact, the {hardware} additionally performed a giant position in that, however the all-metal design allowed these gadgets to go up towards one of the best that Samsung and Xiaomi needed to supply on the time. The OnePlus 3T had its foibles; the display screen was liable to breaking for those who checked out it incorrect, there was no MicroSD slot, and the digicam was strictly common. Nonetheless, the mix of low value and stellar {hardware} ensured the OnePlus 3T bought extremely nicely globally.
Honorable point out: Restricted version telephones
To me, OnePlus is at its greatest when launching customized editions of its telephones. And there was no scarcity of that over the past 10 years; it kicked off with the OnePlus 5T Star Wars version, a tie-in to Star Wars: The Power Awakens. The cellphone had a surprising white shade variant that resembled the sandstone end of the OnePlus One, and it had loads of customized backgrounds and pink accents all through.
The OnePlus 6 Marvel Avengers version was equally attention-grabbing, and whereas it did not have the identical consideration to element, OnePlus bundled a number of equipment within the field. However my favourite needs to be the OnePlus 7T Professional McLaren version; as a decades-long F1 fan, it was enthralling to see a OnePlus cellphone with McLaren livery, and whereas it might have carried out extra with the design — I wished a cellphone decked out in McLaren’s distinctive orange shade — it was a terrific collaboration nonetheless. I am nonetheless miffed that I wasn’t in a position to go to Woking.
Whereas OnePlus is not collaborating with different manufacturers over restricted version gadgets lately, it nonetheless makes customized variants of its telephones; the OnePlus 11 Marble Odyssey model is beautiful, as is the OnePlus 11R Photo voltaic Purple.
It seems like simply yesterday that OnePlus burst onto the scene. The producer did an important job endearing itself to energy customers, and whereas it misplaced its manner over the past two years, it has regained a few of its earlier ardour in 2023. It will be a busy begin for the model subsequent yr with the introduction of the OnePlus 12, and I am unable to wait to see what the subsequent decade brings.Â
