OnePlus 6 Smartphone Comes With High-End Features at Midrange Price

After months of rumors and speculation, Chinese boutique smartphone maker OnePlus has finally unveiled its new high-end handset. Called the OnePlus 6, the device has many of the powerful features corporate customers might expect, including a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, up to 8GB of RAM, and a large  screen to help them be more productive on the go. Best of all, OnePlus has found a way to deliver these high-end smartphone features for as little as $529, making it significantly cheaper than any of its top competitors. But the OnePlus 6 is also limited in the carrier options users can choose from and with a design reminiscent of the iPhone X, some industry critics have taken issue with its “copycat” look and feel. Read on for more on the OnePlus 6:

The OnePlus 6 has a 6.3-inch screen that has a resolution of 2,280 by 1,080 pixels. With an aspect ratio of 19:9, thanks to its widescreen format, users might discover that videos shot in a 16:9 format won’t entirely fill the screen when they’re viewed in landscape mode. The handset’s display is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5, which should cut down on scratches and cracks.

Like previous OnePlus models, the OnePlus 6 has more than enough processing power from the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor—the same chip built into Samsung’s Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9+. On the graphics side, the Adreno 630 should allow for users to run just about any app including custom corporate programs.

Like so many other smartphones today, OnePlus has bundled a vertically aligned dual-lens camera the OnePlus 6. The main camera has a 16-megapixel sensor that comes with optical image stabilization and the ability to capture 4K video. The device’s secondary camera has a 20-megapixel sensor. Slow-motion capture is also available with the cameras.

In another bid to deliver as much power as possible in the OnePlus 6, OnePlus is offering 6GB of RAM in the base model. Customers that need additional memory capacity can boost the amount of RAM to 8GB. On the storage side, the handsets come with 64GB to start, but buyers can bump that to 128GB or 256GB if they don’t mind paying a bit extra.

It’d be difficult to discuss the OnePlus 6 without mentioning how similar its design is to Apple’s iPhone X. In fact, many industry critics have taken issue with it, saying that the handset looks like a “copycat.” That’s due in large part to the thin bezels all around the screen and the metal finish on the spine. Although the OnePlus 6 has a notch like the iPhone X, the OnePlus 6  design is thinner. The rear of the OnePlus 6 is a bit different. It has its vertical cameras, flash, and fingerprint sensor centrally located and stacked from top to bottom. Apple’s iPhone X doesn’t come with a fingerprint sensor.

The OnePlus 6 is designed to withstand the beating mobile workers might subject it to, according to OnePlus. The device comes with “a special type of foam” between the screen and battery cover that prevents water from getting inside. OnePlus has also made the headphone jack and fingerprint sensor waterproof and the buttons around the handset are sealed. OnePlus says the handset will keep working even if users happen to drop the handset in sink full or water or spill a glass of water on it. OnePlus cautioned, however, that the handset won’t survive long deep water such as a pool or a lake.

The OnePlus 6 runs Android Oreo, but it also has its own proprietary user interface called OxygenOS that users interact on the handset’s screen. OxygenOS allows access to all the standard Google apps such as Gmail and Chrome, of course, but also comes with system optimizations that make it run faster than a standard Android installation. In fact, OxygenOS is as much defined by what’s not running than what is. It’s one of the most streamlined and pared-down operating system skins in the Android ecosystem and many users say it makes them more productive than other options.

OnePlus has bundled a physical fingerprint sensor on the back of its device, allowing users to unlock their handsets, access secured data and make mobile payments. There’s also a face scanner in the smartphone that allows for additional biometric support. Be aware, however, that the face scanner is of the 2D variety, which will make it less secure and easier to dupe than the 3D Face ID scanner in the iPhone X.

The OnePlus 6 is not a handset that can run on just any carrier network. Corporate users that work with the Verizon or Sprint networks won’t be able to use this model. Instead, OnePlus 6 is only capable of running on AT&T and T-Mobile’s networks among the “big four” carriers. The OnePlus 6 will also run on U.S. Cellular’s network.

The OnePlus 6 deliveries began on May 22. The base model, which has 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, will cost customers $529. Those who want to bump the storage to 128GB and RAM to 8GB will pay $579 for the handset. The top model, featuring 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, will cost $629.