Impressions from a OnePlus fan

The OnePlus 8T is the latest flagship from OnePlus. It’s a subtle evolution of the OnePlus 8, which launched a little over six months ago. Android Authority has already done its OnePlus 8T review led by our own Ryan-Thomas Shaw. You can check this at the link below.

Our verdict: The Android Authority Review of the OnePlus 8T

Ryan did a great review of the device and gave a lot of great insights. He examined the specs and design elements, tested them objectively, and took a comprehensive, consumer-centric look at how the phone holds up against the competition.

However, I will not do that in this second opinion review. Instead, I’ll approach the phone from my own perspective, that of a longtime OnePlus fan. I’ve owned several OnePlus phones that date back to the first, the OnePlus One. So I look at the OnePlus 8T through a very different lens than Ryan or other people on our team.

I’ve been using the OnePlus 8T as my daily driver for a little less than a week before I wrote this. Here are my thoughts.

120 Hz and 65 W charging are the star upgrades

In our original OnePlus 8T review, we looked at every essential aspect of the phone, including battery life, display quality, processing speed, etc. When it comes to the average smartphone, there’s a lot to do! However, I’ll save you some time and let you know that there are only two major upgrades for the OnePlus 8T compared to the OnePlus 8: the refresh rate of the 120Hz display and the loading speed of Warp Charge 65.

Connected: OnePlus Buying Guide: Everything You Need to Know About the Brand

Yes, there are other upgrades as well. There’s an additional camera sensor (a 2MP monochrome sensor) on the back, and the macro sensor has been slightly upgraded to 5MP compared to the 2MP sensor on the OnePlus 8. For this additional lens, OnePlus had to redesign the rear camera module. The battery capacity increased by 200 mAh and the internal storage is now UFS 3.1 instead of UFS 3.0. However, these and a few other little things are all incredibly small changes.

When you stack the OnePlus 8T against the OnePlus 8, the only big differences are the refresh rate and wired charging speeds. These are great additions to the lineup without a doubt. A refresh rate of 120Hz allows for silky smooth scrolling, and a wired charge speed of 65W is fast enough to fully charge your phone in just over half an hour. That’s great!

But is that enough to justify upgrading the T-series? Not by OnePlus standards.

Two upgrades? That’s not very OnePlus

Originally, the T-series existed as a way for OnePlus to subtly refine its earlier flagships. The first T-series device, the OnePlus 3T, updated some internal specs – including the processor – but left everything else, including the overall design, unchanged.

All of this went out of the window with the OnePlus 5T from the following year. Not only did the 5T have some improved internals compared to the OnePlus 5, but it has also been radically redesigned. The OnePlus 6T offers a completely new design (and many improved specifications) compared to the OnePlus 6. The same applies to the OnePlus 7T compared to the OnePlus 7.

Connected: OnePlus Phones: A History of the Company’s Entire Product Line

With the OnePlus 8T, the company now seems to be returning to the ethos of the OnePlus 3T. Aside from the redesigned camera module and the two major upgrades, there isn’t much of a difference between the 8T and the OnePlus 8.

In all honesty, there is nothing inherently wrong with that. However, while working on this OnePlus 8T review, I kept reminding myself that the company is charging more money for the 8T compared to the 8T. It seems a little incongruous to just offer two major upgrades and then charge $ 50 more.

Some older OnePlus phones are even better overall

It’s pretty easy to argue that the OnePlus 8T is better than the OnePlus 8, if only marginally. It’s also pretty easy to see that both phones aren’t as good as the OnePlus 8 Pro. The phone already had a refresh rate of 120 Hz, but it also has a better rear view camera system, a higher resolution display, an IP rating and wireless charging.

However, as you go further back or jump into the new Nord series, things get darker. The OnePlus Nord offers a very similar experience – albeit with significant downgrades in technical specifications – at half the price. The OnePlus 7 Pro from 17 months ago offers a better camera system than the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8T and at the same time offers a higher-resolution display without a selfie camera cutout. You can easily find this phone at half the price of the brand new OnePlus 8T.

Connected: How the price of OnePlus phones has changed over the years

Even the one-year-old OnePlus 7T offers a lot compared to the 8T (a telephoto lens, hello!). You can get a 7T for half the price of the brand new 8T.

Obviously, none of these older phones have 5G connections and the processors aren’t that good. However, 5G is probably meaningless to most people right now. The differences in processing will be negligible even for the average user – if they notice any differences at all.

The OnePlus 8T’s value is no longer murky and it becomes crystal clear when you look at the competition. The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE offers similar specs and more features across the board (with the notable exception of the RAM it contains). The phone is $ 50 cheaper. The Google Pixel 5 will have weaker specs, but a better camera and faster Android updates. It’s also $ 50 cheaper. Even the iPhone 12 is only $ 50 more expensive than the 8T.

The point I want to make here is that the OnePlus 8T is only a great phone in a vacuum. Once you start comparing it to other phones – including those in your own lineup – its reputation crumbles.

OnePlus 8T review second opinion: calling in

When I started with the OnePlus 8T, I had to put my daily driver aside: the OnePlus 7 Pro. In all honesty, not a day went by without missing this phone. The display cutout on the OnePlus 8T drove me crazy, the weaker camera gave me very nondescript results, and I didn’t see any noticeable improvements in speed or stability. In the meantime, Warp Charge 65 – an admittedly very cool feature – didn’t mean much to me as battery life on OnePlus phones has never been an issue and Warp Charge 30 is already very fast.

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Ultimately, the OnePlus 8T felt like a sideways movement in terms of specs and a downgrade in terms of design. When I think of the fact that I paid $ 749 for the top-notch 7 Pro in May 2019 and the OnePlus 8T has the same cost in October 2020, my head turns.

Let me repeat again that, objectively, the OnePlus 8T is not a bad phone. If you have $ 750 to spend and want a good phone, the 8T is a great option. The only reason I would suggest someone spend $ 750 on it is because they absolutely need a OnePlus phone with 65W charging. If you don’t need a 65W charge, there are many other OnePlus phones to choose from at half the price and for a similar experience. If when you buy a OnePlus phone you haven’t sold out, there are quite a few competing phones out there that you should check out before committing to it.

Given the current developments in the world and the state of the smartphone industry, this was exactly the wrong time to buy a “good enough” phone from OnePlus for $ 750. Even I, who have been a OnePlus fan for years, find it difficult to be happy about it.

Still, I really hope that OnePlus will improve its game again for the OnePlus 9 series.

The OnePlus 8T is available starting today. Let us know your thoughts on the phone in the poll above or grab yours below!