Tag: oneplus 5t

OnePlus Could Be Sued For Face Unlock Patent Infringement

OnePlus might be in some legal trouble if some reports are to be believed. The company is facing a possible patent infringement lawsuit that revolves around the Face Unlock facial recognition system on the OnePlus 5T. While the Face Unlock technology on the OnePlus 5T has received rave reviews from fans and critics alike, one company is definitely not a fan.

SensibleVision is a company that works on facial recognition and biometric systems. George Brostoff, CEO and co-founder of SensibleVision claims that at least one of his company’s patents was infringed on by OnePlus’ Face Unlock system. One of the patents that he believed was used without permission, allows a phone’s screen to be used as an illuminator. Based on a video released by Forbes that shows Face Unlock in action, Brostoff claims that OnePlus is “likely infringing at the very least on our illumination patent.”

In a statement, Brostoff said:

This is nothing new. We have been doing this for years. It even appears that they may be using several patented technologies. We have not licensed our patents to OnePlus or their supplier. From the video on Forbes, they are likely infringing at the very least on our illumination patent.

This is the definition of the patent in question right now:

A camera is used for providing images to the facial recognition software where the display operates in a first mode for displaying images to a user and in a second mode for illuminating the user’s face for detection by the camera.

It is also worth noting that patents are only valid in jurisdictions where they were granted. So, unless SensibleVision filed a patent application or was granted a patent for the illumination technology in China, there is no infringement, since the company is based in the US.

It doesn’t appear that SensibleVision has yet taken a legal step towards addressing the issue. Stay tuned for more updates regarding this possible legal battle.

December 23, 2017
Unboxing The Star Wars Limited Edition OnePlus 5T
Everything that is limited edition is special, and when it signifies one of the most famous movie franchise ever, it becomes even more special. To celebrate its third anniversary in India, OnePlus has launched the Star Wars limited edition OnePlus 5T in India at a price of Rs. 38999. It will be sold via Amazon and various OnePlus experience stores in Bengaluru and Noida from the 15th of December.

With a limited edition box in our studio, let’s unbox the Star Wars OnePlus 5T and see what we get inside:
- Star Wars OnePlus 5T
- Kylo Ren Case
- Documentation
- Dach charger
- USB Type C Cable
- Sim ejector tool
Initial impressions

Right off the bat, the thing that shines is the colour combination and attention to detail on this special limited edition OnePlus 5T. It has a white coloured back panel with a sandstone finish as a homage to the Planet Crait and a red Star Wars logo. The interesting thing here is that the alert slider is also red in colour. Just like the OnePlus 5T, the device has a nice build quality and fits well in the hand. The buttons are well-placed for an easy reach.

Kylo Ren Case

Specifications

The limited edition Star Wars OnePlus 5T will be available only in the 8GB RAM variant with 128GB of onboard storage. Apart from the colour scheme and the Star Wars logo, there is nothing different in terms of hardware.

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio.

OnePlus 5T and Star Wars OnePlus 5T

Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top.

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 20MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Buy it here

Watch Our Full Unboxing Video Here-
December 14, 2017
Star Wars Limited Edition OnePlus 5T Launched In India At A Price Of Rs. 38999

Star Wars Limited Edition OnePlus 5T has been launched in India at a price of Rs. 38999. The new iteration of the recently launched OnePlus 5T will be sold via Amazon and various OnePlus experience stores in Bengaluru and Noida from the 15th of December.

The main difference between the regular OnePlus 5T and the limited edition Star Wars OnePlus 5T is the colour combination. The new OnePlus 5T has a white back panel with a sandstone finish as a homage to the Planet Crait and the alert slider is now red in colour. There is also a Star Wars logo at the back of the phone which is red in colour.

The limited edition Star Wars OnePlus 5T will be available only in the 8GB RAM variant with 128GB of onboard storage. Apart from the colour scheme and the Star Wars logo, there is nothing different in terms of hardware.

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio.

Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top.

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 20MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Buy it here

December 14, 2017
OnePlus To Launch The Star Wars Limited Edition OnePlus 5T In India Today

The OnePlus 5T was launched in November with a tall display and thin bezels, something that was missing in the OnePlus 5. A few days ago, the company confirmed that it will be launching a Star Wars limited edition OnePlus 5T at an event in Mumbai on the 14th of December. Along with this limited edition smartphone launch, the company also announced that it will be giving away 10,000 Star Wars: The Last Jedi movie tickets across a few cities.

While not a lot is known about the phone, it is expected to come pre-loaded with custom Star Wars themes and a few design changes that will pay homage to the upcoming Star Wars movie and the franchise. Other than that, there won’t be any hardware changes from the OnePlus 5T which was launched in November.

What will be interesting is the price of the Star Wars OnePlus 5T. If the Chinese smartphone maker keeps the price similar to the regular OnePlus 5T, then quite a few people might be persuaded into paying the extra cash for something that will be an exclusive and limited edition. The OnePlus 5T Star Wars edition will go on sale from the 15th of December.

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio.

Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top.

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 20MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

December 14, 2017

The LG V30+ Vs The Competition

LG finally launched the LG V30+ in India after globally unveiling it back in August. To many’s surprise, LG competitively priced the LG V30+ at Rs. 44990 and it will go on sale in India via Amazon on the 18th of December. But, as we move closer to the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S9 which will, in all probability feature the new Snapdragon 845, has LG missed a trick and launched the V30+ a little too late?

let’s peg the LG V30+ against its competition and see which phone comes out on point:

Specifications	LG V30+	OnePlus 5T	Samsung Galaxy S8	Samsung Galaxy Note8
Price	Rs. 44990	Rs. 32999 (6GB RAM) Rs. 37999 (8GB RAM)	Rs. 53900 (4GB RAM)	Rs. 67900
Display	6 inch POLED display	6-inch AMOLED	5.8 inch Super AMOLED	6.3inch Super AMOLED
Design	Glass front and back Metal frame	Aluminium unibody	Glass front and back Metal frame	Glass front and back Metal frame
Resolution	2880 x 1440 px 537 ppi	2160 x 1080 px 401 ppi	2960×1440 px 570ppi	2960×1440 px 521ppi
Chipset	Qualcomm Snapdragon 835	Qualcomm Snapdragon 835	Exynos 8895	Exynos 8895
RAM	4GB	6GB/8GB	4GB	6GB
Storage	128GB, Expandable up to 2TB	64GB/128GB non-expandable	64GB, expandable up to 256GB	64GB, expandable up to 256GB
Battery	3300 mAh	3300 mAh	3000 mAh	3300 mAh
Primary Camera	16MP f/1.6 Primary + 13MP f/1.9 wide-angle	16MP f/1.7 + 20MP f/1.7	Dual Pixel 12MP f/1.7 aperture	12MP wide angle lens with an f/1.7 aperture 12MP telephoto lens with an f/2.4 aperture
Secondary Camera	5MP f/2.2 aperture	16MP f/2.0	8MP f/1.7	8MP f/1.7
Other Features	HiFi Quad DAC Fingerprint Sensor Facial and Voice Recognition Wireless charging	Face Unlock Fingerprint Sensor	Fingerprint Sensor Iris Scanner Wireless Charging	S Pen Iris Scanner Wireless Charging

In terms of specifications, there is very little separating the three phones, with the OnePlus 5T the clear winner if you’re looking for more RAM. The LG V30+ and Galaxy S8 provide the option of expandable storage while the OnePlus 5T runs close to pure Android OS. If you are an audiophile, then the LG V30+ should be your choice considering the presence of the HiFi Quad DAC. The OnePlus 5T loses out in the display department and thanks to a higher ppi count, the Galaxy S8 should have the most vivid display out of the three with the LG V30+ not far behind. If you are a creator and believe that the S Pen can genuinely contribute to the productivity of your day, then the extra cash for the Samsung Galaxy Note8 is justified.

At the end of the day, it boils down to what features you prefer over the other. If price is your main criteria, then the OnePlus 5T wins by a long shot but, if you can’t compromise on your wide-angle shots, then the Galaxy Note8 and LG V30+ should be the two phones you should consider.

Watch Our LG V30+ unboxing-

Watch our full review of the OnePlus 5T

Watch our Galaxy Note8 Unboxing-

Watch our full review of the Samsung Galaxy Note8

December 13, 2017

OnePlus Is Giving Away 10,000 Star Wars: The Last Jedi Tickets
OnePlus burst on to the scene back in 2014 with “flagship killer” OnePlus One. Three years on, the Chinese company is preparing to launch the Star Wars limited edition OnePlus 5T in India on the 14th of December. To celebrate 3 years in India, OnePlus is giving away 10,000 tickets for the upcoming movie, Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Vikas Aggarwal, General Manager at OnePlus India said:

The OnePlus 5T Star Wars Limited Edition is dedicated to the OnePlus and Star Wars fans in India. We are humbled by the phenomenal response to our smartphones this year that has made OnePlus the best selling smartphone in premium segment and has reinforced the trust that our fans have instilled in us.

The tickets will be given away for the following cities, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, Bangalore and Kochi. In order to win the tickets, one has to simply:
- Visit oneplusstore.in and register your OnePlus IMEI number (If you have registered your IMEI previously, you can skip this step). Choose your city and confirm the movie date and time (tickets are available for 16th and 17th December at select PVR and Cinemax theatres). Click ‘Get It’ button & your ticket coupon code will be generated (Depending on availability)
- Step 2: Once the ticket coupon code is generated, follow the link to the Paytm website, to select from the available shows and complete the checkout process
The Star Wars limited edition OnePlus 5T will be launched on the 14th of December at an event in Delhi. While the hardware specifications will remain the same, there will be a few unique changes in the limited edition phone such as a red colour alert slider and a white coloured back panel.

There is no word on the pricing of the limited edition variant so far and the rest of the details will be announced at the launch event.
December 11, 2017
OnePlus And Project Treble Explained

Android phones apart from Pixel and Nexus devices have been known to receive slow software updates over the years. OnePlus recently conceded that its devices do not support Project Treble. Here is the reason:

Partitions were not required for Android N and previous versions of Android, all of our current devices do not feature a partition. According to our tests, if we were to modify the partition layout via OTA there is a risk that devices will brick during the partitioning.

The reason appears to be valid as the company decided to weigh the pros and cons of this major change and then decided against it. Even without Project Treble, OnePlus believes that it can still quickly and efficiently release Android updates. The good news for some, however, is that most, if not all, OnePlus devices in 2018 should support Project Treble by shipping with Android Oreo and the new partition scheme.

Project Treble is Google’s effort at reducing the time it takes for OEMs to receive the new OS and optimise it for its devices and then push out the update. A few months ago, Android received a new Vendor Interface, which is largely what Project Treble is about. The VI’s aim is to separate the “Vendor Implementation” (that is, “the device-specific, lower-level software written in large part by the silicon manufacturers”), from the Android OS framework.

The new VI is supposed to sit between the Android OS framework and Vendor Implementation. And the new VI will be validated by a Vendor Test Suite (VTS), which is analogous to the Compatibility Test Suite (CTS) that Google has been using for API testing of apps. The VTS ensures forward-compatibility of the VI.

What all of this means is that if a phone supports Project treble, it is more likely to receive fast software updates as compared to other smartphones that don’t.

December 7, 2017
OnePlus 5T Star Wars Limited Edition Announced

It appears that OnePlus has decided to jump aboard the Star Wars hype train this year. At the Bengaluru Comic Con, the Chinese smartphone maker announced the OnePlus 5T Star Wars Limited Edition which most likely go on sale close to the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in second week of December.

If you’re bored of the same old grey and black colour phones then the OnePlus 5T Star Wars edition does bring a different colour scheme to the table. It has a white colour finish at the back along with the red colours Star Wars logo beneath the fingerprint sensor. Another interesting thing here is that the alert slider is also red in colour. The phone will also ship with default Star Wars themes, ring tones, and effects.

A report claims that only 15000 such units will be made and it will be an India exclusive device. It further claims that the device will be unveiled on the 16th of December at an event in Mumbai. There is no word on the price of the phone yet.

OnePlus 5T Has A 6-inch Display With Thin Bezels

Other than the colours and exclusivity of the device, nothing will change in terms of hardware or software.

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio. This is a huge detour from the short history of OnePlus devices which have so far had a 5.5-inch display.

Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top. OnePlus has promised an update to Android 8.0 Oreo by early 2018. The Android 8.0 Oreo beta update will be pushed out to OnePlus 5T in late December 2017.

Due to thin bezels, there is no place for a home button and the fingerprint sensor has now been shifted to the back of the phone and is placed right above OnePlus logo. The OnePlus 5T also features facial recognition for unlocking the device.

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 20MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Watch Our Full Review:

December 3, 2017
Test Shows OnePlus 5T Is The Fastest Charging Flagship Phone

As smartphones get thinner, manufacturers usually resort to reducing battery sizes in order to maintain the thickness-to-tech inside ratio. The good news is that the chipsets are getting better at power management and fast charging is really good. Even wireless fast charging is catching up these days and almost every flagship phone now has a USB Type C port.

Recently, OnePlus conceded that the company’s own Dash Charging technology is much better than the wireless technology which is available in the market hence, the OnePlus 5T shipped without wireless charging capabilities. So, how good is Dash Charging, then? Apparently, it’s the best in the market and a test has proven that.

The test included all the top flagship phones of 2017, the Samsung Galaxy Note8, LG V30, OnePlus 5T, Google Pixel 2, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X. All the Android phones have a USB Type C port and the three iPhones of course, have the lightning port. The iPhone 8, 8 Plus and iPhone X support fast charging if you buy the adapter and a Type C to lighting port cable from Apple.

The battery percentages were checked after 30 minutes of charging. It is worth noting here that all the screens were off during the test and the three iPhones were charged using the fast charging gear. After 30 minutes, the OnePlus 5T was at 59% while the LG V30 was the first runner-up at 53% and the iPhone X was at 50%.

At the one-hour mark, the OnePlus 5T was the winner again at 93%, 7% more than LG V30’s 86%. The iPhone X was at 81%, closely followed by the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus at 80% and 79%, respectively.

The OnePlus 5T turned out to be better than the competition thanks to its Dash Charge technology, which is different from Qualcomm’s QuickCharge. Dash Charge delivers higher amperage than QuickCharge and uses dedicated circuitry in the charger itself for heat management. So, if charging up your phone at a blazing speed is your top priority, then it is worth taking a look at the OnePlus 5T as your next flagship phone.

December 2, 2017
OnePlus 5T Launched In Lava Red Colour

OnePlus is really trying to differentiate the OnePlus 5T from the OnePlus 5. OnePlus has launched its new flagship, the OnePlus 5T in China in a new colour variant called Lava Red. Unlike its predecessors, the OnePlus 5T was only available in one colour, Midnight Black at the time of its launch.

If you are excited to get your hands on the new Lava Red OnePlus 5T, there is a catch. The smartphone is only available in China as of now and in the pricier 8GB RAM model only. There is no word from the company whether this colour variant will be sold outside of China or not.

At the time of the launch of the OnePlus 5, there were rumours that a red colour OnePlus 5 will be launched. That didn’t happen and instead, OnePlus launched a soft gold colour variant of its summer flagship phone in August. It appears that OnePlus has jumped the RED Product train and similar to what Apple does with its iPhones, a Red coloured OnePlus 5T has been launched.

Other than the fiery red colour, there is no difference in the Midnight Black colour and the Lava Red colour OnePlus 5T.

What A Red OnePlus 5 Could Have Been

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio. This is a huge detour from the short history of OnePlus devices which have so far had a 5.5-inch display.

Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top. OnePlus has promised an update to Android 8.0 Oreo by early 2018. The Android 8.0 Oreo beta update will be pushed out to OnePlus 5T in late December 2017.

Due to thin bezels, there is no place for a home button and the fingerprint sensor has now been shifted to the back of the phone and is placed right above OnePlus logo. The OnePlus 5T also features facial recognition for unlocking the device.

OnePlus 5T

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 20MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Watch Our Full Review Of The OnePlus 5T

November 29, 2017
OnePlus 5 May Be Getting Face Unlock

One of the most interesting features of the OnePlus 5T, the facial unlocking system may be coming to its “older” sibling, the OnePlus 5 as well.

The OnePlus 5T has been in the news ever since its launch. OnePlus decided to keep the price of the OnePlus 5T same as the OnePlus 5 and announced that the OnePlus 5 will be discontinued.

If you still own the OnePlus 5, it appears that there is a slight chance you’ll get access to Face Unlock as well. Spotted by XDA Developers, an Android Oreo beta for the OnePlus 5 shows Face Unlock as an option, but it’s unclear if it will end up rolling out to everyone in the final build.

Talking about OnePlus’ implementation of the face unlock, unlike Apple or Samsung’s implementations of face recognition, the OnePlus 5T doesn’t have any special sensors to aid in identifying your face, it just uses the camera. The company says that it uses over 100 unique identifiers to correctly identify who is looking at it. It’s even designed to work with glasses.

It does so by analyzing, through the front camera, over 100 identifiers on your face such as the distance between your eyes or between your nose and upper lip. We have included numerous parameters, so that Face Unlock works in different lighting conditions as well as when you are wearing glasses.

OnePlus has however conceded that security is not its main concern with Face Unlock.

when we moved the fingerprint sensor to the back on the OnePlus 5T, we wanted to provide users a way to unlock the phone from the front of the device – with a focus on convenience and ease of access. Face Unlock is only designed as an additional option to open your device for the sake of convenience.

The OnePlus 5T went on sale in India on the 21st of November at a starting price of Rs 32999 (same as the OnePlus 5).

November 25, 2017
OnePlus 6T Isn’t A Guarantee, Says OnePlus Co-Founder Carl Pei

In an AMA hosted by OnePlus for the newly launched OnePlus 5T, Carl Pei answered a few important questions. One forum user asked whether or not OnePlus fans should expect a ‘T’ model every year from now on. Knowing the launch pattern of a company helps a consumer plan their purchase and decide when they want to upgrade. OnePlus Co-founder Carl Pei was not able to give a definitive answer to the question:

We’ll make a second T device if there’s enough new technology that’s useful to our users. As of now, we still haven’t decided whether we have enough upgrades next year for a T device.

Back in June, when the OnePlus 5 was launched, it raised a few questions about what the OnePlus 5 could’ve been, especially compared to other 2017 flagship phones at the time. In November, the Chinese smartphone maker launched the OnePlus 5T, it is the phone that the OnePlus 5 could have, or rather should have been.

When the OnePlus 5T was launched, and especially when it was confirmed that the OnePlus 5 will be discontinued, barely six months after its launch, it irked the OnePlus loyalists. If not a loyalist, a smartphone enthusiast or an average consumer who bought the OnePlus 5 must feel a little bad for not holding off on their credit cards a but longer.

This begs the question, whether the OnePlus 6 will be received as well as the OnePlus 5 or the OnePlus 5T? It is possible that after noticing the launch pattern of OnePlus in the past two years, consumers might wait for the ‘T’ model and not take the original variant too seriously.

[poll id=”51″]

November 22, 2017
OnePlus Confirms It Won’t Have Project Treble On The OnePlus 5T

OnePlus held an AMA and answered quite a few questions about the new OnePlus 5T. One user asked if the OnePlus 5T or any other OnePlus smartphone will be updated to support Project Treble, which basically means if any OnePlus device will be fast-tracked for updates. OnePlus confirmed that neither the OnePlus 5T, nor any other OnePlus phone, will be updated to support Treble.

Android software updates have been a painfully long process for devices other than the Pixel or Nexus. That has mainly been due to other OEMs going through their own long process of customising the new version of Android and then slowly rolling out their version of Android to its users.

But, a few months ago Android gained a “Vendor Interface” (VI), largely due to a new development effort from Google called Project Treble. The VI’s aim is to separate the “Vendor Implementation” (that is, “the device-specific, lower-level software written in large part by the silicon manufacturers”), from the Android OS framework.

The new VI is supposed to sit between the Android OS framework and Vendor Implementation. And the new VI will be validated by a Vendor Test Suite (VTS), which is analogous to the Compatibility Test Suite (CTS) that Google has been using for API testing of apps. The VTS ensures forward-compatibility of the VI.

What project Treble brings to the table is quite evident from the two images above. Before, the VI needed to be reworked after every single Android OS framework update, while from now on that won’t be the case anymore.

So, what does it mean for the OnePlus 5T? It means that unless OnePlus is quick with its testing and back-end engineering, the OnePlus 5T will be slow to get the latest Android software update, just like a lot of other Android phones.

November 22, 2017
OnePlus 5 Will Be Discontinued

Soon after the launch of the OnePlus 5T, it has been confirmed that the OnePlus 5 will be discontinued as soon as the stocks run out.

In an interview, the General Manager of OnePlus India Vikas Aggarwal indulged into the Chinese smartphone maker’s product launch strategy and why the company released the OnePlus 5T so soon:

If you look at our previous phone, the OnePlus 3T the last batch was sold out during Diwali and now the product will be discontinued. The same goes for the OnePlus 5, which will also be sold out in sometime, and we’ll have only one product – OnePlus 5T – in the market.

OnePlus 5

Aggarwal says the changes on the OnePlus 5T are not significant enough to classify as a whole new product. Instead, the OnePlus 5T is a “variant” that offers a better display for improving the overall experience.

So as a company which focuses on premium segment, we need to make sure our phones compete with the current available flagships in the market. The OnePlus 5T will do just that, and given this is an extension of the current product line, there was no need for us to raise the price.

It is worth noting that just because OnePlus has discontinued the production of the OnePlus 5, it will stop the software support as well. OnePlus has promised that the OnePlus 5 will receive an update to Android 8.0 Oreo and Android P in 2018 (or early 2019). However, if OnePlus continues to launch a ‘T’ variant after every 5 or 6 months of it launching a flagship, then people will definitely be hesitant before investing in the first flagship of the year and indeed hold off their credit cards for the ‘T’ variant.

OnePlus 5T, as expected, is an incremental upgrade over the OnePlus 5. The most noticeable difference being the display, the OnePlus 5T has a more 2017 look with a 6 inch AMOLED display which has a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and thin bezels.

November 21, 2017
OnePlus 5T Launched At US $499

OnePlus has launched its second flagship smartphone in 2017, the OnePlus 5T at a price of US $499. The device will be available globally on and will go on sale in India on the 21st of November via a flash sale exclusively on Amazon.

The OnePlus 5T is an incremental upgrade over the OnePlus 5 which was launched in June 2017. The hardware is more or less the same as the OnePlus 5, with a new design and display size. The OnePlus 5T is more in line with 2017 flagship phones with thin bezels and a tall display which has become a norm in 2017 flagship phones like the Galaxy Note8 and the iPhone X.

The OnePlus 5T has a 6-inch Full Optic AMOLED display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution and an 80.5% screen to body ratio. This is a huge detour from the short history of OnePlus devices which have so far had a 5.5-inch display.

Under the hood, the OnePlus 5T has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, a 2.4GHz octa-core processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of onboard storage which cannot be expanded. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which supports OnePlus’ DashCharge technology.

Due to thin bezels, there is no place for a home button and the fingerprint sensor has now been shifted to the back of the phone and is placed right above OnePlus logo. The OnePlus 5T also features facial recognition for unlocking the device. The alert slider retains its place at the top left side of the phone which can be used to switch between different modes of notification alerts.

The OnePlus 5T runs stock Android 7.1.1 Nougat with customisability options thanks to the Oxygen OS on top. OnePlus has promised an update to Android 8.0 Oreo by early 2018. The Android 8.0 Oreo beta update will be pushed out to OnePlus 5T in late December 2017.

One big change in the OnePlus 5T is in the camera department. Unlike the OnePlus 5, the OnePlus 5T no longer has a secondary telephoto lens at the back. Instead, OnePlus has decided to focus on the device’s low-light photography capabilities. The cameras do not have OIS and OnePlus has decided to go for EIS on the dual camera setup at the back. The device has a 16MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 20MP sensor with the same f/1.7 aperture and field of view, ie no optical zoom. On the front is a 16MP camera with an f/2.0 aperture.

Priced at Rs 32999 in India for the 64GB variant and Rs 37999 for the 128GB, the OnePlus 5T looks more equipped to be “flagship killer” that the OnePlus was touted to be and the first flash sale will show how many people have accepted the new design of the smartphone.

November 16, 2017