After months of leaks, the OnePlus 7 series is finally official. The two phones – the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro – are the Chinese phone maker’s offerings for the first half of this year. Going by tradition, they should be refreshed six months from now.
We were able to attend the launch in India and as is the norm with phone launches, the devices are usually always available for a hands-on experience after the main event. We have got some hands-on photos of these new flagships to share with you.
OnePlus 7 Pro
The OnePlus 7 Pro is the more popular model as it is OnePlus’s contender in the big league. This is Oneplus’ attempt to prove that it can hold its own against the big players such as Huawei’s P30 Pro and Samsung’s Galaxy S10. It has some pretty cool features such as a 90Hz 1440p curved AMOLED display. The screen is gorgeous and smooth and color reproduction is good. However, the fact that it is curved means it is also pretty fragile.
[envira-gallery id=”253298″]Compared to other flagships, the OnePlus 7 Pro is thick. It measures 8.8mm at its thickest point which is a lot when compared to the Galaxy S10+ which is 7.8mm and even packs a slightly bigger battery. The Huawei P30 Pro which has a bigger battery than all three even manages to keep its thickness at 8.4mm. The OnePlus is also the heaviest at 206 grams.
There are three color variants – Almond, which looks more like white depending on the light with a rose gold frame; Mirror Grey; and Nebula Blue, a personally preferred color variant. On the sides of the phone are black antenna lines which stick out on the Almond variant.
[envira-gallery id=”253299″]The phone has a USB Type-C port at the bottom flanked by the SIM tray on the left and a speaker grille on the right. The power button and Alert Slider are on the right while the volume rocker sits on the left. The hole where the selfie camera retracts into along with a noise-canceling microphone is at the top.
On the back lies the triple camera setup which has a slight bump. The back is all glass and it curves to meet the frame too. This is a slippery device, so a case is highly recommended or your new phone is going to get cracked really soon. OnePlus has a bunch of cases. There is a Sandstone Case as well as a Karbon Case. You can purchase these along with the phone or use the clear one that is included in the box. Anyone you want, just put a case on it.
[envira-gallery id=”253300″]OnePlus 7
The OnePlus 7 (red) was also on display and even though it has fewer features, this color variant stands out in a good way. That red really does pop! The phone has a camera bump too like the Pro model but there are just two cameras here. The bottom is home to two grilles – one for the microphone and another for one of the stereo speakers. The second one doubles as the earpiece and is housed in a pretty long slit above the display.
[envira-gallery id=”253301″]We are really digging the red OnePlus 7 and India is pretty lucky to be one of two countries getting it. However, we feel the phone could have turned out better with respect to its design.
If you erroneously call the OnePlus 7 the OnePlus 6T, you can’t be blamed. OnePlus was really lazy with the design as both phones are nearly identical with similar dimensions and even similar specs (battery, display size). The OnePlus 7 seems to be an afterthought and we think it is a lazy attempt at making a successor to the OnePlus 6T.
The least they could have done is changed the display – replacing the waterdrop display with a punch-hole display. This singular design change is enough to make the difference so that those picking up the OnePlus 7 don’t feel like they are purchasing a OnePlus 6T with a new processor and new cameras.
READ MORE: Samsung beat OnePlus to reclaim top spot in India’s premium segment
The OnePlus 7 Pro goes on sale this Friday in the US and on May 21 in other markets. The OnePlus 7 will not be available until June and will only be sold in Europe, India, and China.
