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The latest smartphone from OnePlus is here, the OnePlus 6T, and with it comes much of the same formula that OnePlus fans love about the company’s devices.
Part of that formula includes a $550 price tag that’s seemingly too good to be true for a high-end smartphone with the same specs as smartphones that cost significantly more. There’s the $740 Galaxy S9 Plus, the $750 iPhone XR, the $1,100 iPhone XS Max, the $900 Pixel 3XL, the $720 LG G7, and the $950 LG V40. Although I should also note that some of these phones’ prices have been reduced from their original price tags at launch — the Galaxy S9 Plus that was released in March had an original price of $840, for example.
So, there has to be some fine print, right? Some kind of catch that explains why the OnePlus 6T is significantly cheaper than much of the competition. Indeed, there are features that the OnePlus 6T doesn’t have that its competitors do, which could help explain its lower price tag.
Before moving on to show you what the OnePlus 6T doesn’t have compared to its pricier competitors, you’ll notice I largely mentioned the larger models of smartphone lineups above. I’m comparing the OnePlus 6T specifically to smartphones with larger displays rather than those with standard sub-6-inch displays. That’s because if you specifically want a smartphone with a smaller display, the OnePlus 6T with its 6.4-inch display wouldn’t be an option.
The goal here isn’t to dissuade you from considering the OnePlus 6T for your next smartphone. With the knowledge below, you can make an informed decision whether or not you think it’s worth spending more on smartphones that come with these extra features.
Check out the features that more expensive smartphones have that the OnePlus 6T doesn’t:
OnePlus doesn’t have an official water-resistance rating.
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High-end smartphones from big companies like Apple, Samsung, Google, and LG have official water-resistance rating, usually indicated by the “IPXX” spec you’ll often see on a spec sheet.
The OnePlus 6T doesn’t have an official IPXX water resistance rating, but the company is confident that it can withstand light splashes like rain.
The OnePlus 6T has a lower resolution screen than more expensive smartphones.
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The OnePlus 6T has a 1080p resolution display while most other top-end smartphones have a sharper 1440p resolution.
With that said, I never missed the technically sharper displays from $750+ phones while using the OnePlus 6T. In fact, I never noticed that it wasn’t technically as sharp as others I’ve used. Some high-end phone even set the resolution to 1080p by default, despite the fact that the displays are capable of displaying a 1440p resolution.
Other top Android phones that cost $800 or more have a dedicated zoom lens, and some even have an ultra-wide angle lens, too.
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The OnePlus 6T has a dual-lens camera system, but the secondary lens is dedicated to enhancing the background blur for portrait mode shots. It doesn’t do anything else.
Other top smartphones with multiple-lens camera systems include dedicated optical zoom lenses, like the new iPhones, Samsung’s Galaxy S9 Plus, and LG’s V40. The LG V40 even has a third lens for ultra-wide angle shots.
The OnePlus 6T has a single selfie camera while some $750+ phones have two.
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Some smartphone makers like LG and Google have added second selfie cameras to their smartphones. The LG V40 and Google Pixel 3 XL both have a secondary selfie camera for ultra-wide angle selfies, which is actually a meaningful feature to capture more friends or scenery in your selfies.
The OnePlus 6T comes with a standard single-lens selfie camera.
The OnePlus 6T doesn’t have adjustable portrait mode background blur.
One of the big features that smartphone makers like Google and Apple touted during their smartphone announcement events was adjustable background blur in portrait mode shots, either during or after taking a photo. Samsung and LG phones can do this, too.
There’s no adjustable background blur on the OnePlus 6T either during or after taking a photo.
So what does the OnePlus 6T have that makes it a better buy than other top $800+ Android phones.
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- Anecdotally, the OnePlus 6T has one of the best battery lives in any smartphone I’ve used in 2018.
- The OnePlus 6T runs a clean and simple version of Android that gets updates faster than most Android devices, save for Google’s own Pixel smartphones.
- The OnePlus 6T has a gorgeous design that easily contends with those from smartphones that cost $300+ more.
- The OnePlus 6T runs on the same specs as top Android phones that cost $750 or more. Sometimes, it even exceeds those specs, and its performance is unrivaled.
- The OnePlus 6T has a fantastic camera.
- The water-drop-style notch on the OnePlus 6T is the smallest and most tasteful there is compared to the larger rectangular notch designs on other smartphones.
- The OnePlus 6T has a switch for silencing notifications, much like the iPhone’s switch. OnePlus phones are the only Android phones to come with such a switch.
- The fastest fast-charger.
Personally, I’d rather keep $250+ of my own hard-earned money than the features I listed above. But it’s up to you if you think some or all of the features above are worth an extra $250 or more.
I should note that T-Mobile is only selling the $580 OnePlus 6T when it’s fully released on November 1, which comes with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. The base $550 model available from OnePlus’ site has 6GB of RAM and the same storage.
