OnePlus is back with its latest offering, the OnePlus 5 (apparently, tetraphobia runs riot in China). The phone was an instant hit among the gossipmongers and remained a subject of intense speculation until its release.
OnePlus’ ambitious new release exhibits a sea change from the company’s last year flagship – the OnePlus 3T – and has opened to a higher price range than the latter.
Also Read: OnePlus 5 Manipulating Benchmarks To Obtain Higher Scores, Says XDA
Well, a lot can change in a year, and it has, if we talk of the aforementioned two devices. We decided to expand this crevice and have come up with more than a few findings we would be glad to share with you.
But first, a look at the how the pair fares in the specifications department.
OnePlus 5 vs Oneplus 3T Specs Comparison
| Model | OnePlus 5 | OnePlus 3T |
| Display | 5.5-Inch, AMOLED Display, Full HD, DCI-P3 Color gamut, Gorilla Glass 5 | 5.5-Inch, Full HD, AMOLED Display, NTSC gamut, Gorilla Glass 4 |
| Processor | 2.45GHz octa-core Snapdragon 835, Adreno 306 GPU | 2.35GHz Quad Core Snapdragon 821 SoC, Adreno 530 GPU |
| RAM | 6GB/ 8GB LPDDR4x | 6GB LPDDR4 |
| Internal Storage | 64GB/128GB UFS 2.1 | 64GB UFS 2.0, 128GB UFS 2.0 |
| Software | Android 7.1.1. Nougat-based Oxygen OS | Android Marshmallow-based Oxygen OS |
| Primary Camera | 16MP (f/1.7) + 20MP (f/2.6), 2X Zoom | 16MP 1/2.8″ Sony IMX 298 Sensor sensor, OIS, LED Flash, PDAF, 4K video recording |
| Secondary Camera | 16MP with f/2.0 aperture | 16 Megapixel Samsung 3P8SP with f/2.0 Aperture, 1.0 microns Pixels |
| Battery | 3300mAh, Dash fast charging, USB type C | 3400 mAh, Dash fast charging, USB type C |
| Others | 4G VoLTE, dual-band WiFi, NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, Fingerprint sensor (home button, ceramic glass), NFC, USB Type-C, Dash charging | 4G VoLTE, dual-band WiFi, NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, Fingerprint sensor (home button, ceramic glass), NFC, USB Type-C, Dash charging |
| Expected India Price | Rs. 32,999/ Rs. 37,999 | 29,999 INR/ 34,999 INR |
Now, trudging on the insides, here’s what we found.
Design and Display
Let’s start off with the similarities first (howsoever limited they may be). Both have a metal unibody design, have antenna bands, and an oblong home button with saphire glass placed beneath the display. And that’s that for commonality.
Coming to the differences, there’s a slight one in the physicality, with the OnePlus 5 being a touch slimmer and lighter than its yesteryear counterpart. Other than that, the former’s antenna bands arch at the top and bottom edges, as compared to the latter’s which trudged a straight path.
Also Read: Moto Z2 Play vs OnePlus 3T vs Vivo V5 Plus – Specifications and features detailed comparison
Also, the OnePlus 5’s edges and corners are comparatively rounder (lending a more comfortable feel than its predecessor), and the camera module has been shifted to the left-hand side at the back (the 3T had it in the center of the rear panel).
It’s difficult to eke out differences between the displays of both the phones as the company has decided on the same display with the OnePlus 5 as the OnePlus 3T. There’s the same 5.5-inch AMOLED display with a 1080x1020p resolution, and even the same Pixels-per-inch (ppi) and screen-to-body ratios. But the new OnePlus 5 also has a DCI-P3 gamut which means it’s future proof to correctly reproduce Ultra HD content. Both phones have standard sRGB color profile as well.
Software and Performance
The software in both the phones is the company’s homegrown Oxygen OS (lying on top of the Android OS), with a couple of varying differences here and there. The OnePlus 5 has been provided an upgraded version of the software, also having additional features like reading mode and gesture controls.
Since the newest member of the OnePlus brethren has Android 7.1.1, it is more likely to have further software updates in the long run, as compared to its older brother, which can be upgraded to the same OS version at present (an Android O update has been confirmed, though).
OnePlus has always been a top player in terms of performance of its smartphones, and the trend doesn’t seem to be stopping with the OnePlus 5.
It comes powered by the latest Snapdragon 835 chipset coupled with 6gigs of RAM (a monstrous 8GB RAM variant is also available!), so it’s safe to say the users would not need to worry on the performance front for the phone.
The OnePlus 3T had a similar hardware build-up, with similar RAM and one of the 2016’s best processors, the Snapdragon 821, put to work as the powering source.
For a detailed view of course, you’ll have to wait for our review of the OnePlus 5.
Camera and Battery
The optics see a drastic restructuring in the newer OnePlus flagship, with it being the first from the company to sport dual-cameras on the back.
The 16MP + 20MP (telephoto) combo looks promising indeed (going by the photos doing the rounds on the Internet). OnePlus claims this is their best camera so far.
Separately, the 16MP lens of the OnePlus 5 is notch ahead of the OnePlus 3T’s 16MP one, having an f/1.7 aperture as compared to the latter’s f/2.0 one (paving way for 30% more light and 40% faster AutoFocus). But the new OP 5 is missing OIS which might weigh heavy on the low light shots.
Up front, there is an exactly similar 16MP selfie snapper installed in both the devices.
Battery is one aspect where the OnePlus 5 sees a downgrade with respect to the OnePlus 3T (the difference is not much, though). The latter has a 3,400mAh power unit, which is just a speck above the former’s 3,300mAh-rated one.
Although the company claims the OnePlus 5’s longevity to be around 20% higher than that of the predecessor.
Also Read: OnePlus 3T Review – Dash-ing
Oh yeah, there’s the Dash charge facility in both of them (in other news, the sky is blue).
Final Thoughts
The OnePlus 5 comes in upgraded on most fronts, and the dual cameras, plentiful RAM, and the latest chipset – all work in its favor.
Yes, with the pricing, the company is diverging from its ‘affordable flagship’ premise, but on paper, the phone looks pretty enticing. The real performance, however, can be gauged only after we are done with its full review.
