OnePlus 5T Review – Shows Strong Consumer Connect

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It’s already the end of 2017, but why hasn’t anyone been able to make a ‘perfect’ smartphone? Part of the reason is the technical challenges involved in the smartphone making process, but somewhere somehow there also has to be a disconnect between the way consumers think and accept products and the approach manufacturers take while making devices.

OnePlus has been peddling ‘Never Settle’ banner for several years now, but it’s only since last year that they have managed to deliver close-to-perfect flagship experience for a reasonable price. Of course, OnePlus has also been incredibly lucky through its quest.

The company recently announced the OnePlus 5T which adds a new 18:9 display and a few other refinements inching another step closer to the tier-1 flagships. We have been testing the new flagship killer for the last 2 weeks and have summed up our experience in the OnePlus 5T Full review that follows.

Also Read: OnePlus 5T FAQ – All Questions Answered

Pros 

  • Excellent battery backup
  • Excellent performance
  • Intuitive software experience
  • Elegant design and solid build
  • Great audio output

Cons

  • No Optical Zoom
  • No MicroSD card slot

OnePlus 5T Specifications And Price

Model OnePlus 5T
Display 6-Inch,18:9 AMOLED Display, Full HD, supports DCI-P3 Color gamut, Gorilla Glass 5
Processor 2.45GHz octa-core Snapdragon 835, Adreno 540 GPU
RAM 6GB/8GB LPDDR4x
Internal Storage 64GB/128GB (UFS 2.1)
Software Android Nougat-based Oxygen OS
Primary Camera 16MP (f/1.7) + 20MP (f/1.7), EIS
Secondary Camera 16MP with f/2.0 aperture
Battery 3300mAh with fast charging
Others 4G VoLTE, dual-band WiFi, NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, Fingerprint sensor, NFC, USB Type-C, Dash charging
Price Rs. 32,999/ Rs. 37,999

OnePlus 5T Design and Build

The OnePlus 5T makes room for a bigger 6-inch screen (compared to the 5) in the nearly same body. If you have used OnePlus 5 for a considerable time, you will notice that OnePlus 5T is taller, broader, and heavier. But that doesn’t mean it’s not an ergonomic phone. It’s still very slim and comfortable to carry around and use.

Even when it has an edge-to-edge display, the phone is extremely solid and well built. During our course of the review, we even dropped it from shoulder height. The phone landed on one of the corners and thankfully the devastating drop resulted in just a minor bump.

Nevertheless, OnePlus has remodeled its own case covers to be more protective. Trade-offs were involved, though. Compared to the last generation cases, the new ones are heavier and it’s difficult to maneuver alert slider through them.

The fingerprint sensor has now moved to the rear, the camera bump isn’t as abrupt, and the navigation buttons are now online. The phone retains its Audio Jack.

Also Read: OnePlus 5T Vs OnePlus 5 – 5 Things that have changed

  • OnePlus 5T is slightly bigger, broader, and heavier than OnePlus 5
  • With a serviceable design, OnePlus 5T is comfortable to hold and operate
  • The Fingerprint sensor is now present on the rear, and the camera bump isn’t as abrupt
  • The phone is extremely solid and well built
  • New OnePlus cases are designed for better protection but are heavier.

OnePlus 5T Display

The display is the biggest improvement in OnePlus 5T. In the 5, OnePlus was using the same previous year’s OnePlus 3/3T screen (which was also mounted upside down) and now OnePlus is using a noticeably better Samsung AMOLED panel that runs almost edge-to-edge. It’s a great screen to consume multimedia content and otherwise.

The best part is the accurate sRGB and DCI-P3 profile available on the phone which will be a tad more meaningful after the Oreo update. The handset comes with a plastic screen protector affixed to the screen and we’d advise you to not peel it off.

  • The display quality has improved. And the 18:9 edge panel naturally feels more appealing
  • The accurate color profiles to choose from is the best part.
  • OnePlus also adds a very efficient Night mode and Reading mode.
  • Sunlight visibility is very good. Auto-brightness still isn’t perfect.

OnePlus 5T Performance and Software

The performance is once again the strongest suit of 5T. The brute force of Snapdragon 835 coupled with the light and efficient Oxygen OS is a combination to covet. It’s still one of the fastest Android phones around with immaculate day-to-day usage and gaming performance.

The fingerprint sensor and Face ID are exceptionally fast. Prior to using OP 5T, I was accustomed to the front fingerprint sensor, and in spite of the fast Face ID, I find myself now using the rear fingerprint sensor every time I pick up the phone. That’s because consistency and speed (to the minutest of degrees) matter a lot when it comes to unlocking mechanisms. The fingerprint sensor is simply more reliable.

The Oxygen OS is one of our favorite custom OS. That’s because it’s close to stock Android in terms of design and performance, and yet adds a number of useful tidbits. More features like dual Apps are on their way. OnePlus couldn’t ship the phone with Android Oreo out of the box, perhaps due to required compliance with Project Trebble, but a few weeks worth of wait shouldn’t be much of an issue.

  • Everything on the phone flies by. Just as its predecessor, the 5T is an excellent performer
  • Fingerprint sensor and Face Unlock are remarkably fast, but we still prefer using the fingerprint sensor.
  • OnePlus 5T is among the fastest Android phones money can buy.
  • More features are coming to Oxygen OS along with Oreo update.
  • In spite of the fast face unlock, Fingerprint sensor is still the more reliable and consistent unlock option.
  • Audio output via speakers and audio jack is very good
  • Connectivity is excellent too.

OnePlus 5T Camera

OnePlus has taken some bold decisions when it comes to camera upgrade. Overall, the camera quality has improved compared to the OP 5, but it still isn’t flagship grade.

OnePlus has eliminated the Zoom lens on the second shooter and the second sensor is used in very low light conditions (which is to say, it doesn’t come into play very often). 2X zoom in the camera app is a software thing or embellished digital zoom.

The camera performance is pretty good for the price. Most consumers would be totally satisfied with the output, but this is still one area where OnePlus can’t match flagships that cost twice as much. We would have preferred OnePlus improving its Zoom camera system and continue depending on the primary 16MP sensor for low light photography.

The camera software has now changed. It’s now easier to navigate through different camera modes. OnePlus has also added a beautify toggle on the main viewfinder screen (for both front and rear cameras). Many a time we forgot to turn beautify off (after turning it on previously) and ended up with unusable shots with artificial skin tones.

  • The camera sees improvement, but it still isn’t flagship grade.
  • The OnePlus 5T selfie camera is a decent performer.
  • Portrait mode sees some improvement too.
  • Camera app is a bit easier to navigate.
  • There is no optical zoom this time.
  • The second sensor fires up (rarely) only in very low light contions (less than 10 lux bright).

OnePlus 5T Battery

The 3300mAh battery can easily last for more than a day. With heavy usage, we still had more than 40 percent juice remaining at the end of our day. Besides, the dash charging can top up the battery faster than any other fast charging technology out there. The bottom line is, that you don’t need to worry about the battery at all.

  • Battery backup is excellent. OP 5T can last more than a day even with heavy usage.
  • Dash charging is remarkably fast.

OnePlus 5T Review – Should you buy it?

OnePlus 5T stands at the top of our recommended list in its class. OnePlus has covered all the basics and the overall experience is very satisfying. Like other 2017 flagships, OnePlus 5T might not have managed to put all pieces of the perfect-smartphone-puzzle together, but its flaws are easily forgivable at its price.

We don’t have a perfect high-end flagship yet, but the OP 5T surely feels like a perfect phone for its price or compared to anything in and around Rs. 35,000 mark.

Google Pixel 2 Review: A Perfect Camera Phone, At Last

Deepak SinghDeepak Singh
Deepak has more than 8 years of experience in covering technology for several eminent publications in India. He currently leads an enthusiastic team of young writers at Smartprix and tries to uphold the highest quality standards.

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