The hotly anticipated OnePlus 6 feels like it’s just around the corner and there’s already a wealth of information out there granting us clues to what exactly it’ll bring to the table. Let’s start with what we do know.
What processor will the OnePlus 6 use?
We were hoping that Qualcomm’s then-upcoming Snapdragon 845 was going to make its debut on last year’s OnePlus 5T, but after reports that the company was holding off until 2018 to slip it greatest chip into any new handsets that notion bit the dust. Instead, a handful of devices from the likes of Samsung and Sony now sport Qualcomm’s latest silicon and the OnePlus 6 is set to follow suit.
In a post on OnePlus’ official forums titled ‘Our Pursuit of Burdenless Speed’ the company’s CEO, Pete Lau talks about the creation of Team FSE (short for fast, stable and efficient) and their focussed efforts on ensuring the 6 offers “the fastest, and smoothest, user experience available.”
He also confirmed that their upcoming flagship will pack in a Snapdragon 845, paired with up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. The ‘up to’ suggests that as with previous handsets, you’ll also have the option of a unit with 6GB of RAM and either 64GB or 128GB of storage, for around £50 less than this top-spec model.
What will the OnePlus 6 look like?
The relationship between OnePlus and tech giant Oppo was never more prominent than with 2017’s OnePlus handsets. Both the OnePlus 5 and 5T sported practically identical designs to that of Oppo’s R11 and R11S respectively, so it makes sense to assume that the OnePlus 6 will take all of its cues from Oppo’s latest R15 handset, complete with near-bezeless display.
However, supposed leaked snaps from Chinese social network site Weibo found on IT Home, show a centrally-positioned, vertically aligned rear dual camera, closer to that of the OnePlus 3 and Galaxy S9 families; along with a more squared fingerprint sensor, laid into what appears to be a glass back. A headphone jack is also expected to be present too, phew.
Will the OnePlus 6 have a notch?
In a word? Yes. The header image on an earlier forum post from Lau implied that the OnePlus 6 will pack in an iPhone X-style notch; a truth that was then compounded by official press imagery supplied to the likes of The Verge (see: top of this article) showing a fully-rendered view of the upper half of the phone’s front.
The post aimed aimed to appease disgruntled fans who didn’t like the sound of a cut-out at the top of their next phone’s new screen, but explained that an inbuilt compatibility mode has already been tested with hundreds of apps and will let users hide the notch using software, similarly to what can already be done on Huawei’s latest P20 and P20 Pro.
The notch is narrower than the one found on the iPhone X (officially 19.616mm wide and 7.687mm tall), but as explained to by the company’s Carl Pei, it couldn’t be made as slim as the notch on the likes of the Essential Phone without compromising on earpiece quality and the ability to accommodate the user-requested notification LED.
OnePlus 6 screen size, resolution and battery capacity
A captured spec rundown from TECHslize suggests a 6.28-inch, 2280×1080 AMOLED panel. There’s no mention of HDR support but we can only hope; that and a one-handed mode, because this phone sounds big.
Additional details also make mention of a 3450mAh battery and, of course, DashCharge will be present and correct too.
What cameras will the OnePlus 6 have?
As for the cameras, we’re unsure whether OnePlus is continuing the trend set by the OnePlus 5T, with its secondary rear snapper concentrating on low-light in place of lossless zoom but reports suggest a dual 16 and 20-megapixel arrangement with a wide f/1.7 aperture on each, plus a crispier 20-megapixel front-facer with an f/2.0 aperture this time around.
What software will the OnePlus 6 run?
All signs point to the latest build of Android 8.1 Oreo out the box, with version 5.1 of the company’s Oxygen OS overlay on top.
6et ready! pic.twitter.com/bmvI75xphm
— OnePlus (@oneplus) April 2, 2018
Speed up your experience with gestures. #OnePlus6 pic.twitter.com/xo2uS2hwTT
— OnePlus (@oneplus) April 4, 2018
Slide to focus with the Alert Slider. #OnePlus6 pic.twitter.com/LbLbhlwjVh
— OnePlus (@oneplus) April 5, 2018
The beta release of 8.1 Oreo is already available for the OnePlus 5T and paired with its release notes and the teaser videos OnePlus has been pushing out on Twitter, new gesture interaction is likely to be a big part of navigating around the UI on the OnePlus 6.
When will the OnePlus 6 be released and how much will it cost?
The familiar ‘out of stock’ signs beneath both iterations of the OnePlus 5T on the company’s website imply that we might be staring down the barrel of the 6’s launch window; paired with the fact that the company has outright confirmed a Q2, 2018 announcement, which is anytime between April and June this year.
Previously June has served as the stage for new numerical launches in OnePlus’ calendar, with the phone hitting the market about a month later.
As for price, we’re hoping for the same £449/£499 split between the two storage and RAM options we’re expecting but we’ve seen rumoured prices for the top-tier model range from between £430 and £530.
With all that in mind, it seems as though we’ve got a pretty clear picture of OnePlus’ next big release; all we have to do now is hold our breath to see how close to the mark we really are.
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