OnePlus, it seems, has suffered from a severe case of tetraphobia. That is, the superstitious fear of using the number 4. The Chinese manufacturer’s latest isn’t called the OnePlus 4, as you’d expect the phone succeeding the OnePlus 3T to be called. No, this is the OnePlus 5, and it’s the best (if most expensive) smartphone the firm has ever produced.
OnePlus may have been overly cautious with its name, but not so much when keeping key details under wraps prior to the official unveiling. Again, and not uncommon for 2017, little was left to the imagination ahead of Tuesday’s launch – we knew everything. Don’t let that stop your excitement, though: there’s plenty on offer that makes the OnePlus 5 a worthy contender for phone of the year.
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OnePlus 5 review: Tl;dr
The OnePlus 5 is a flagship killer. Designed to undercut the likes of Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Apple’s iPhone 7 by a considerable margin, without sacrificing neither looks nor performance. Launched in June: the OnePlus 5 is a 5.5in smartphone with an AMOLED Full HD screen and a dual-lens camera that doesn’t look out of place on the shelf next to those other, top-dollar smartphones launched in 2017.
OnePlus 5 review: Price and competition
Essential to the OnePlus 5’s lasting appeal lies in its more wallet-pleasing asking price. At £449, OnePlus’ sixth smartphone undermines the mortgage-inducing price tag of its flagship competitors.
However, 2017 has already been a phenomenal year for flagship-killing alternatives. There’s Samsung’s Galaxy A5 mid-ranger, complete with a 22-hour battery life for just £293. The Honor 8 is still kicking about, too, with its brilliant low-light camera at £370. That, and the OnePlus 3T can be picked up for £400.
OnePlus 5 review: Design, specs and first impressions
At first glance, the OnePlus 5 looks like typical smartphone fare. You can’t veer too far from a black rectangle after all, and it looks eerily similar to Huawei’s P10 (and the iPhone 7 it imitates).
It’s a bold new look for OnePlus nonetheless. In keeping with Apple’s minimalism, there’s the aluminium unibody design, with just a handful of distinguishing features, including a dual-lens camera protrusion on the back. Rest assured – that beloved "do not disturb" switch makes another appearance on the left edge, too.
Next to it, you’ll find the volume rocker, and on the opposite side, the power button. A 3.5mm headset jack is at the bottom (phew) sitting next to a solitary USB Type-C with Dash Charge support and a central fingerprint scanner as before.
As the leaks suggested, the OnePlus 5’s internal architecture comes from Qualcomm’s latest 2.45GHz Snapdragon 835 chip, up from the 2.35GHz Snapdragon 831 inside the 3T. It will be a near-perfect multi-tasker with a generous 6- or 8GB of RAM, with storage options starting at 64GB.
Rather than going the big-screened approach like with LG’s G6 and Samsung’s Galaxy S8, OnePlus is keeping things simple, with a 5.5in 1,920 x 1080 display. Where the firm has quite obviously poured all its money into, is the OnePlus 5’s dual-lens camera.
The rear snapper, manufactured in collaboration with DxO Labs, incorporates one 16-megapixel, f/1.7 main camera and another, 20-megapixel f/2.6 telephoto camera right beside it. Both work hand in hand to produce fantastic-quality snaps and some of the best I’ve seen on a device at this price point.The 8-megapixel front-facing camera remains unchanged.
OnePlus 5 review: Early verdict
OnePlus has a solid flagship killer with its OnePlus 5. This is the best smartphone the firm has ever produced, at least as far as first impressions go, and I’m already thoroughly impressed with what the Chinese firm has been up to since the 3T’s launch.
As with all smartphones, its success rests on the OnePlus 5’s asking price. With the cost rising from £399 to £449, the OnePlus 5 is in danger of falling by the wayside, and its mid-range dominance could be at an end. Pride comes before the fall – OnePlus seems to hold its flagship-killing lineup in such a high regard that it may have killed itself off in the process. I’d like to be proved otherwise.
Given I have a review sample in my hand as I write this, it won’t be long until I can deliver my final verdict. Stay tuned for more.
