The advent of Chinese manufacturers has made a remarkable effort in giving an affordability tag to the flagship handsets. By providing outstanding value, these smartphone companies are launching their devices with the latest hardware by undercutting their rivals.
Starting from its inception, the Shenzhen (China) based smartphone manufacturer OnePlus has built the flagship phones with the main theme of affordability. However, the latest OnePlus offerings will directly compete with Samsung and Apple.
Interestingly, the company launched OnePlus 7 Pro and OnePlus 7 handsets in 3 cities (Bengaluru, New York, and London) simultaneously on 14th May. However, the sale will only commence starting on May 17th. One can grab the latest handsets on Amazon India (the exclusive online partner).
This is the first time in the company’s history to launch 2 handsets at a time. Though the two handsets are aimed at different audiences, they are meant to provide the ultimate value for the money.
The 90Hz display, three rear cameras, and 30W fast charging for 4000mAh battery make the OnePlus 7 Pro – the fastest smartphone in the premium segment.
Design wise, OnePlus 7 is a mashup of the OnePlus 6T that sports a 6.4-inch optic AMOLED display with 2340x1080 (19.5:9) pixel resolution and Gorilla Glass 6 protection. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC makes it more power efficient and top-notch performance than its predecessor.
The 16-megapixel Sony IMX471 lens combined with 5-megapixel f/2.4 shooter makes the rear camera. On the front, you get 16-megapixel f/2.0 pop-up shooter. The 3700mAh battery with 20W (no fast charging) forms the core of the OnePlus 7. It runs on Android 9 Pie based Oxygen OS 9.5.
On the specs side, One Plus 7 Pro is at 90Hz refresh rate (the regular one’s sport 60Hz refresh rate) providing silky smooth feel-good factor in line with Apple iPhone XS Max. The three cameras at the back increase the expectations. The 8-megapixel F/2.4 telephoto lens and 16-megapixel f/2.2 117-degree field of view lens at the rear side make the OnePlus 7 Pro score a DxOMark 111.
Finally, the 4000mAh battery with 30W fast charging makes the handset one of the best in its class. However, the phone lacks the IP rating for water and dust resistance which is a norm in this premium category.
Price wise, the OnePlus 7 retails at ₹32999 (6GB RAM + 128GB Storage) and ₹37999 (8GB RAM + 256GB Storage). Similarly, the OnePlus 7 Pro comes at ₹48,999 (6GB RAM + 128GB Storage), ₹52,999 (8GB RAM + 256GB Storage) and the top variant ₹57,999 (12GB RAM + 256GB Storage).
What’s Your Opinion?
The OnePlus move to launch two handsets will definitely reap the results. The base variant of OnePlus is aimed at capturing the market of POCO and Honor that fall in the 30K segment. It’s the complete value for money.
This strategy will definitely work in India where OnePlus has a good market share. If the reports are to be believed, OnePlus has concrete plans to set up its biggest global store in Hyderabad by year-end.
For the rest of the world, the OnePlus 7 Pro will be a good alternative to Samsung Galaxy S10e, Google Pixel 3a and Apple iPhone XR by a fair margin. This could be a turning point where the consumers could upgrade their handsets at a cheaper price ending the dominance of the iPhone and Galaxy.
Hope this comparison helps in deciding what to buy.
| OnePlus 7 Pro | OnePlus 7 | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.67-inch Fluid AMOLED (~88.1% screen-to-body ratio) 3120x1440 pixels resolution (19.5:9) (~516 ppi density) 90Hz, HDR10+ Gorilla Glass 6 protection | 6.41-inch Optic AMOLED (~85.5% screen-to-body ratio) 2340x1080 pixels resolution (19.5:9) (~402 ppi density) Gorilla Glass 6 protection |
| Build | Front/back glass, Aluminum frame | Front/back glass, Aluminum frame |
| Chipset | Qualcomm SDM855 Snapdragon 855 (7 nm) Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 485 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 485 & 4x1.80 GHz Kryo 485) CPU Adreno 640 GPU | Qualcomm SDM855 Snapdragon 855 (7 nm) Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 485 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 485 & 4x1.80 GHz Kryo 485) CPU Adreno 640 GPU |
| RAM | 6GB/8GB/12GB | 6GB/8GB |
| Storage | 128GB/256GB | 128GB/256GB |
| SIM | Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) | Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) |
| MicroSD card slot | No | No |
| Rear camera 1 | 48 MP, f/1.6, 1/2", 0.8µm, Laser/PDAF, OIS | 48 MP, f/1.7, 1/2", 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS |
| Rear camera 2 | 8 MP, f/2.4, 78mm (telephoto), 3x zoom, Laser/PDAF, OIS | 5MP, f/2.4, 1.12µm, depth sensor |
| Rear camera 3 | 16 MP, f/2.2, 13mm (ultrawide) | No |
| Front camera | Motorized pop-up 16 MP, f/2.0, 25mm (wide), 1/3.0", 1.0µm | 16 MP, f/2.0, 25mm (wide), 1/3.1", 1.0µm |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi ac 2x2 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0 AptX HD, LDAC, NFC, A-GPS, USB 3.1, Type-C 1.0 reversible connector, USB On-The-Go | Wi-Fi ac 2x2 MIMO, Bluetooth 5.0 AptX HD, NFC, A-GPS USB 3.1, Type-C 1.0 reversible connector, USB On-The-Go |
| Speed | HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE-A (5CA) Cat18 1200/150 Mbps | HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE-A (5CA) Cat16 1024/150 Mbps |
| Audio | USB-C, Stereo speakers | USB-C, Stereo speakers |
| 3.5mm jack | No | No |
| Battery | Non-removable Li-Po 4000mAh | Non-removable Li-Po 3700mAh |
| Charging | USB-C 3.1 Fast battery charging 30W (Warp Charge) | USB-C Fast battery charging 20W |
| Operating system | Android 9.0 (Pie); OxygenOS 9 | Android 9.0 (Pie); OxygenOS 9 |
| Water resistance | No | No |
| Security | In-display fingerprint | In-display fingerprint |
| Dimensions | 162.6 x 75.9 x 8.8mm | 157.7 x 74.8 x 8.2mm |
| Weight | 206g | 182g |
| Colors | Mirror Gray, Nebula Blue, Almond | Mirror Gray, Red |
| Price | ₹48,999 (6GB RAM + 128GB Storage) ₹52,999 (8GB RAM + 256GB Storage) ₹57,999 (12GB RAM + 256GB Storage) | ₹32999 (6GB RAM + 128GB Storage) ₹37999 (8GB RAM + 256GB Storage) |
