The OnePlus was released less than 6 months ago and was known to be one of the first phones to have 6GB of RAM. Besides that, we have known OnePlus for providing high-end devices for a relatively low price. The OnePlus 3 followed same with a 5.5 1080p ‘Optic’ AMOLED display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, 64GB storage, 6GB RAM, a 3000mAh battery and more at only $399.
The OnePlus 3T is now the successor and we want to take a quick look at this phone and see if the changes are really significant or it’s worth the upgrade from the OnePlus 3. We categorise the OnePlus 3T features below
Design
Normally, when it’s just a letter added to a previous model number, no change in design is really expected and we see the same here. The OnePlus 3T isn’t at all different in design from it’s predecessor. Same exact shape and everything placed as in the OnePlus 3. However, one can still tell the difference between the two by their color. The ‘3T’ comes in gold and gunmetal colors, different from the ‘3’ that came in space gray.
Display
The OnePlus 3T still has a 5.5 1080p ‘Optic’ AMOLED display, the same exact one in the OnePlus 3. As with all AMOLED displays, high contract colors are expected and seen here with very deep blacks. The advantage that comes with such a display is noticeable when trying to stream content using the phone as colors turn out vivid and pop compared to other smartphone dislays. The disadvantage may be less brightness in day light.
Hardware
This is where some noticeable differences come in. The ‘3T’ spots the latest Qualcomm Snapragon 821 underneath, a step up from the 820 in the ‘3’ and slightly clocked higher than to the Google Pixel. This means slightly better performance overall especially app-load speed. The ‘3T’ also now comes with a 128GB storage which is actually the gunmetal version. The gold ‘3T’ still retains the 64GB storage as in the ‘3’. The OnePlus 3T still retains 6GB RAM as it’s predecessor.
It also houses a much larger 3400mAh battery than the OnePlus 3 3000mAh battery.
Software
The OnePlus 3T runs OnePlus’ own Oxygen OS on top of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, with a few updates and bug fixes compared to the OnePlus 3. Oxygen OS as in previous builds is a stock-like version of Android and so expected to come with slight UI modifications from Google’s Android. OnePlus however adds tons of features within the software itself to bring more customization should a user need it. A dark theme is also included in the software that can be used to accentuate it’s deep dark AMOLED display. We can however notice that non of these OnePlus phones has received Android 7.1 Nougat, something that was expected in this device. OnePlus promises to deliver updates before the end of the year.
Camera
Same 16mp with f2.0 aperture rare facing camera as in it’s predesessor the OnePlus 3 but change is noticed on the front. The ‘3’ has an 8mp on the front but in the new OnePlus 3 we see the same 16mp with the same f2.0 aperture used at the front. Selfies look brighter and overall better compared to those taken using the OnePlus 3.
Final Words
OnePlus has stuck with it’s tradition of providing a high specs phone for lower price than the competition and the ‘3T’ is no exception here. It goes without mentioning though that with every new high-end OnePlus phone we’ve seen an increment in price from a previous model. This however doesn’t negate the fact that even with a higher price increment, the OnePlus 3T still is the go-to phone for anyone who need a very high-end phone for lower price than all other high-end phones with similar specifications.
The OnePlus 3T will go for $439 for the 64GB gold variant and $479 for the 128GB gunmetal version.
