OnePlus has just launched its latest budget flagship – the OnePlus 8T. The company has unveiled just one phone this time, eschewing a Pro sibling. OnePlus 8T brings an all-new design and the heavily-advertised 65W fast charging support to the table, all on top of a fresh software experience. But before we get into details about the phone’s internal package, let’s cross the price bridge first. The OnePlus 8T is priced at $749 for the 12GB+256GB variant, a $50 markup from the asking price of its predecessor – the OnePlus 8. It is now up for pre-order and will be up for grabs starting October 23 via the official OnePlus website, and later through Amazon as well as T-Mobile.

A fresh design for OnePlus 8T 

The OnePlus 8T introduces a new design language, rocking a redesigned camera module that now sits in the top-left corner and has a rectangular profile with curved corners. Plus, the device eschews the curved display we saw on the OnePlus 8 in favor of a flat slab of glass. Now, this change is going to stir a debate, as the smartphone community is divided over the idea of curved screens. Here’s a fantastic take from my colleague Prakahr arguing how curved screens are just eye-candy and miss out on practicality

The flat display returns

OnePlus 8T’s rear panel uses matte-frosted glass with a layer of 3D Corning Gorilla Glass for protection. It will come in two color options – Aquamarine Green and Lunar Silver. 

Smoother 120Hz screen experience

OnePlus 8T update

While the curved screen is gone, the OnePlus 8T ups the smoothness quotient. OnePlus has equipped its latest offering with a 6.55-inch Fluid AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, up from the OnePlus 8’s 90Hz panel. The panel offers a resolution of 2400×1080 pixels, which translates to a pixel density of 402ppi. It is protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass and covers the full DCI-P3 color gamut. OnePlus claims that the display is more energy-efficient and also cuts down on blue-light emissions by up to 40%.

Same processor, faster storage

OnePlus 8T relies on the Snapdragon 865 SoC that was also fitted inside its predecessor, and not the slightly faster and newer Snapdragon 865+ chip. However, OnePlus has upgraded the storage to UFS 3.1 standard (up from UFS 3.0 on its predecessor) with a peak capacity of 256GB. There is 12GB of LPFDDR4X RAM, however, OnePlus also offers a more affordable variant with ‘just’ 8GB of RAM. And to keep the thermals under control, the device relies on a vapor chamber cooling solution.

A fresh software experience with Oxygen OS 11

On the software side, OnePlus 8T runs Oxygen OS 11 based on Android 11. The latest iteration of OnePlus’s Android skin brings a new design language and a host of new features such as Zen Mode 2.0 with a new Group Zen Mode tool, a dark mode quick toggle, and multiple always-on display personalization options. You can read more about the changes introduced by Oxygen OS 11 here

Four cameras and new tricks on OnePlus 8T

The camera hardware has also received an upgrade with the addition of a monochrome lens. OnePlus 8T’s quad-camera system is highlighted by an optically-stabilized 48MP (Sony IMX586) camera with an f/1.7 aperture. It sits alongside a 16MP ultra-wide-angle camera with a 123-degree field-of-view, a 5MP macro camera with a 3cm focal length, and a 2MP monochrome lens. The main snapper can record 4K videos at up to 60fps and slo-mo 720p videos at up to 480fps. On the front is a 16MP selfie camera that is backed by EIS and supports HDR mode. 

OnePlus 8T

No telephoto camera though!

OnePlus says it has improved the algorithms behind the Nightscape mode and also improved the stabilization performance. There’s also a new feature called Video Portrait Mode that lets you capture videos with bokeh effect. More importantly, OnePlus is also bringing Nightscape mode to video capture as well. And oh, the OnePlus 8T supports 5G as well.

OnePlus 8T arrives with 65W Warp Charge

The latest OnePlus offering comes equipped with a 4,500mAh battery – slightly bigger than the 4,300mAh juicer inside its predecessor. However, the key attraction here is the 65W Warp charge tech. OnePlus claims that the bundled 65W charger can fully charge the battery in just 39 minutes. The adapter packs 12 thermal monitors to keep the temperature in check and prevent any safety hazards. 

he bundled charger can also juice up your laptop

Notably, the 65W Warp Charge adapter can also be used to charge laptops and tablets via the USB Type-C interface at a peak 45W output. However, if you’re using a third-party charger, the OnePlus 8T’s battery can be topped up at a peak 27W output. 

In India, the OnePlus 8T will be sold at Rs. 42,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant, while the 12GB+256GB model will be up for grabs starting at Rs. 45,999. Pre-sale kicks off on October 16 via OnePlus.in and Amazon.in, while open sale begins on October 17.