Though we’re nonetheless days away from the official launch of OnePlus’ new flagship telephone, I’ve been testing the telephone for a couple of weeks.
And, though numerous embargoes imply I can’t but reveal my full ideas on the OnePlus 15 expertise, one factor I can do is run you thru among the highlights.
With final 12 months’s OnePlus 13 (the quantity 4 is taken into account unfortunate on OnePlus’ native China), the corporate’s everything-but-the-kitchen-sink method usually paid off, and whereas digital camera efficiency wasn’t fairly up there with the most effective digital camera telephones cash should buy, it nonetheless went on to grow to be top-of-the-line worth Android flagships of the final 12 months.
As such, expectations for the OnePlus 15 stay fairly excessive, and with the corporate teasing a lot already, it appears to be like to have the makings of one of many subsequent greatest telephones to hit the market.
Large design adjustments
Whereas clearly a subjective high quality, I personally didn’t fall in love with the look of the OnePlus 13; it lacked cohesion.
There was a mishmash of floor finishes, clashing colors, conflicting patterns and geometry that didn’t actually circulation. While it was an undeniably well-made smartphone (not least as a result of it options each IP68 and IP69-certified safety towards mud and water), it didn’t supply up the identical degree of aesthetic refinement because the competitors.
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The OnePlus 15 appears to be like and appears like a special beast solely.
Though maybe dropping a contact of individuality within the course of, the OnePlus 15 rings in a brand new aesthetic period for OnePlus’ flagships. It’s basically a bigger model of the design which debuted on the compact OnePlus 13s, which got here to pick markets like India earlier this 12 months.
Straight sides, a flat back and front, extra heavily-rounded corners, and a sq. digital camera deco characteristic rather than its predecessor’s timepiece-inspired round one.
The OnePlus 15 appears to be like and appears like a special beast solely
It’s nearer, in type, to sister model Oppo’s new prime canine: the Oppo Discover X9 and Discover X9 Professional. However it does one factor higher than some other telephone I can consider, proper now: OnePlus has nailed this 12 months’s colourways, with a trio of floor finishes that every one deliver one thing distinctive to the desk.
Essentially the most typical can be essentially the most eye-catching. Extremely Violet gives essentially the most vibrant look, with a base lavender throughout each the telephone’s glass again and aluminium body, punctuated by an iridescent therapy that creates a sexy color shift because the angle of the again glass adjustments towards the sunshine. An virtually neon blue “good edge” – as OnePlus describes it – can be current, the place the again glass meets the body.
In keeping with OnePlus, the Infinite Black choice has proved the preferred in testing, and it’s simple to see why. The textured AG glass on the again of the telephone is so subtle that it basically appears to be like like matt. OnePlus went as far as to invest that it’s the “darkest black ever on a telephone,” and the tip result’s a quiet sophistication.
This 12 months’s lead colourway – and my private favorite – is the brand new Sand Storm end, which doubles down on the black mannequin’s matt look, with a singular ceramic therapy over the telephone’s mid-frame and digital camera encompass.
It’s achieved utilizing a course of referred to as micro-arc oxidation (or MAO – a primary within the smartphone area), which not solely carries the matt look throughout the telephone’s entirety, but in addition makes it essentially the most sturdy of the three OnePlus 15 colourways. OnePlus claims it’s 1.3 occasions more durable than titanium, and it additionally feels cooler to the contact than the extra typical metalwork on the opposite two finishes.
Plus Key, Plus Thoughts & Google
The three-stage alert slider has lengthy been one of many defining {hardware} options on OnePlus’ telephones, however various the corporate’s 2025 entries (once more, most notably the OnePlus 13s) have marked a transition to the Plus Key: the programmable button that, by default, grants entry to Plus Thoughts, a digital ‘second mind’ of kinds.
With the arrival of the OnePlus 15, this transition is basically full, being the primary of the corporate’s flagship telephones to swap out the slider for the Plus Key, and thus making the OnePlus 13 the final alert-slider toting OnePlus flagship. In some methods, it marks the tip of an period.
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Whereas we’ve seen Plus Thoughts (OnePlus’ devoted expertise for notes and screenshots processed, summarised and made actionable with AI) evolve all year long, the OnePlus 15 additionally debuts a brand new side to the expertise, with shut collaboration with Google which means Gemini has gained consciousness of content material you’ve captured and saved in Plus Thoughts.
As such, now you can ask queries reminiscent of, “What are a few of my saved Barcelona spots in Plus Thoughts that might be good to go to in tomorrow’s climate?” and it offers you a tailor-made response.
OxygenOS 16
This subsequent iteration of OnePlus consumer expertise isn’t a seismic shift, however the transfer from the OnePlus 13’s out-of-the-box OxygenOS 15 to OxygenOS 16 on the OnePlus 15 brings a wealth of small quality-of-life upgrades.
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There are extra playful animations all through the UI, including a bit extra polish to an already clean and responsive consumer interface. Higher formatting of communications of settings and controls. A brand new Predictive Again Gesture higher telegraphs which app experiences you’re transferring to and from. And there’s even a brand new devoted AI part within the telephone’s settings.
There are extra playful animations all through the UI, including a bit extra polish to an already clean and responsive consumer interface
From right here, you possibly can toggle key options like AI Search, AI Author and management how the telephone’s Plus Key interacts with Plus Thoughts. That’s on prime of present quality-of-life enhancements like dynamic and customisable Flux Themes, which OnePlus launched beforehand.
A brand new gaming expertise
The OnePlus 13 stays an undeniably quick and highly effective telephone, however one of many main upgrades the OnePlus 15 holds over the bulk of the present flagship telephone competitors is that it’s set to be one of many first telephones in numerous worldwide markets to reach operating on Qualcomm’s newest and biggest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip.
Whereas I can’t converse to benchmarking efficiency for the OnePlus 15 particularly simply but, our first encounter with the 8 Elite Gen 5 inside Qualcomm’s reference design earlier this 12 months noticed it trounce the likes of the iPhone 17 Professional and iPhone 17 Professional Max‘s scorching new A19 Professional silicon by about 30% in CPU exams, whereas additionally providing distinctive graphical efficiency.
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The OnePlus 15 additionally debuts OnePlus’ CPU Scheduler, which works to optimise the forms of processes being carried out on-chip; prioritising gaming efficiency, while lowering CPU load. OP Gaming Core tech, in the meantime, guarantees nice sustained efficiency, even at 120fps.
What’s extra, the occasion piece of the OnePlus 15’s show is OP FPS Max, which features a new refresh fee ceiling of 165Hz inside titles reminiscent of Name of Responsibility: Cell. In observe, I can solely assume it was these enhancements which led to an unprecedented successful streak in my time on COD: Cell.
The DetailMax digital camera system makes its debut
Whereas not as bittersweet because the transfer away from a bodily alert slider, the OnePlus 13 additionally serves because the final of the model’s telephones to profit from the corporate’s long-standing partnership with famed digital camera model Hasselblad. The query when this information first broke was, “what’s OnePlus going to make use of as a substitute?” and the reply is its personal DetailMax Engine.
In comparison with the 13, preliminary side-by-side digital camera comparisons present a constant enchancment in color, distinction, dynamic vary and noise suppression from the triple 50Mp setup on the brand new OnePlus 15 when in comparison with its predecessor.
In comparison with the 13, preliminary side-by-side digital camera comparisons present a constant enchancment in color, distinction, dynamic vary and noise suppression
It does appear to edge in direction of a Pixel-like brightening of shadows in low mild scenes; one thing the OnePlus 13 doesn’t do, however whether or not that’s higher or worse is way more a matter of private style.
As you possibly can see, there’s quite a bit to look ahead to on the brand new telephone. You don’t have to attend lengthy for my full, in-depth ideas: the OnePlus 15 launches globally this Thursday, 13 November, and OnePlus has already teased a UK value.