That moment which all the Android enthusiasts have been waiting for is finally here. OnePlus is going to grace the Indian smartphone market with its presence at last. The company has sent out invites for the much-awaited event going to be held on 2nd December, where it will launch the company’s blockbuster OnePlus One.
The Chinese smartphone manufacturer has been tight-lipped about the plans for the launch of the CyanogenMod-powered smartphone. However, the recent report has suggested that the OnePlus will be sold exclusively via Amazon. The company had also previously announced that their smartphone, the One, would be available in India through an exclusive invitation system.
[quote text_size=”small” author=”Vikas Agarwal” author_title=” General Manager for OnePlus India”]
As announced earlier, the product will be exclusively available through our e-commerce partner for users who have a valid India-specific invite
[/quote]
In a teaser image posted on amazon.in, the online retailer says that the smartphone, popularly known as a ‘flagship killer’, is expected to be available in the coming days. Amazon India, who has got exclusive rights to sell OnePlus One, says in a teaser, “The Smartphone you have been waiting for, is coming soon,” accompanied by a image of OnePlus One and a hashtag ‘#TheOneThing’.
Pricing, which is one of the most important parts of OnePlus One’s success, has also been a mystery for the Indian market. However, as we reported earlier, the 64 GB variant is expected to cost around Rs. 24,990 while the 16 GB variant is likely to come at a price of Rs. 19,990. The company’s newly appointed General Manager for OnePlus India, Vikas Agarwal, posted a forum on Saturday which said,
Firstly, we are thrilled to confirm that the One will be available for our Indian users in December. We can’t wait to bring your favourite phone to your hands. As all the details have now been perfected and last-mile hurdles have been cleared, the exact launch date will soon be announced in the coming days on our forums.
The OnePlus One is one complete device when it comes to hardware and build quality. Thanks to the inclusion of CyanogenMod, the ROM gives Android an adrenaline boost with regular updates and bug fixes. For a price sensitive market like India, the cost of the phone will be a major factor. In an interaction with The Indian Express, the company claimed that the invite system will prevent shortage of devices for potential customers in India. The invite process is also fair and transparent than the flash sale model.
Where companies like Xiaomi have gained respect and market share simply by cutting down on administration, distribution and marketing costs, OnePlus may bring the One at a premium in India. The company will continue the invite system for the Indian market and those interested in an invite will be able to get one from oneplus.net/in starting right now.
If you are successful in getting an invite a spanking new OnePlus One will await you at : www.amazon.in/oneplusone on the 2nd of December 2014. Excited yet? Catch our Review below.
It would be fair to say that OnePlus One has become a cult smartphone, partly because it is hard to get one. The company has opted quite an unconventional way of selling the exceptional device, the invitation-only system, and not to forget their terribly misguided marketing scheme.
However, at an expected price of Rs. 25,000 for a 64GB variant, the headaches are worth the wait for smartphone enthusiasts. Having had my share of experience with the One while we were reviewing the device, there is no doubt that the company left no stone unturned in delivering top-end specs with a low-end price and a premium design (especially the Sandstone variant).
We gave it an impressive 8.7 score saying ‘it is the best phone for its price’, however, there was one problem and that’s its availability. OnePlus founder Carl Pei in an interview with PC magazine explained why is that so. “We set some goals for this year. Thirty thousand was a realistic goal, 50,000 was a pretty good goal and 100,000 was a stretch goal,” he said. “We now aim to ship a million devices this year, and we’ve already surpassed half a million.”
The problem is to deliver such a product with high-end specs and low-cost, the company has to cut down margins. And because it makes so little money on each phone, it doesn’t want to make more than it can sell. The OnePlus One hasn’t followed the typical rules of phone demand because it is not a usual phone. Typically, when some phone launches, there’s a strong demand for about two months and then it starts tapering off. But nobody’s been able to match the OnePlus One’s price/performance balance, so demand for the phone has just been rising exponentially with time.
“Sooner or later, it’s going to stop, and we don’t want to be caught with too much inventory. With no margins, we can’t have a situation where we have too many units and we’ll have to discount them. For us, the first year was about survival. We understand it’s been really hard to buy,” Pei said.
There is a lot of traction between the manufacturer and consumers here as the firm sells its products directly (no middleman involved). However, we need to know that what the company is doing is really difficult. The worst case scenario is if the demand dries out, then they’ve got no chance to recoup with what would be nearly 100% loss. The easy answer is to discount the device, but again the margins are already tight.
Chinese mobile superstar, OnePlus is reportedly creating a new Android ROM for the upcoming OnePlus Two. The CEO of the company told the Chinese media that the company is planning to ship one variant of the Two with a home grown ROM.
OnePlus One is known and demanded world over for its high specs, awesome design and low price. The device is especially appreciated for running the Android based CyanogenMod, that keeps the devices updated. Apart from this, the device ships with Color OS in China. Color OS can be found on the devices from OnePlus’s sister enterprise, Oppo. It seems that OnePlus might bid farewell to the Color OS for its own operating system.
The OnePlus One currently runs CyanogenMod and it is unanimously appreciated for it.
In the past, the company has taken multiple steps to reduce its dependency on CyanogenMod. They had released a stock Android ROM for their devices. Apart from that they had also offered support for other ROM’s like Paranoid Android and SlimKat ROM.
It is highly unlikely though that the company may dump CyanogenMod altogether after a regularly updated ROM is one of the centerpieces of the device. But it will be interesting to see if a homegrown ROM will match up to the amazing CyanogenMod.
OnePlus has also just announced that they will be bringing the One to India with a geography limited invite system. Considering the massive demand for the device, we will assume that they will repeat the millisecond vanishing act that has been perfected by its compatriot, Xiaomi. As for the OnePlus Two, it would be arriving somewhere around the second or third quarter of next year. We are waiting for your arrival OnePlus.
The OnePlus One has been sold on an invite system from the get go. In doing so, the company continued to receive the orders, yet restricted orders enough to ramp up production. It might come across as a surprise at this point, but OnePlus One will be available for pre-orders on October 27th at 11am. Why, you might ask, are we specifying the time? Well, here’s the catch – the phones will be up for pre-orders only for an hour.
Although the time limit is unfortunate, however people finally get the chance to own the phone, without waiting for an invite. If you are able to place an order within that hour, you will be entitled for a OnePlus One smartphone. The phone’s shipping date will be determined by factors such as how many total orders are placed and how quickly one places their order. To further simplify the process, OnePlus is allowing customers to set up their shopping carts early. This way, all you need to do is to checkout when the clock hits eleven. All OnePlus accessories will be up on sale as well.
If users happen to receive an invite after an order is placed, the phones will be shipped immediately.
It was previously reported that the company will be doing away with the invite system for a pre-order system. Carl Pie said, “We understand that our current method may be slowing our growth down, but we’d rather grow slower and in a healthy way than take too much risks and go out of business. Risk management is extra important in our scenario where we don’t have hardware margins.”
We were really impressed by the device in our review, if you really want to get your hands dirty on this slick device, head over to preorder.oneplus.net and be prepared. Sadly, preorders are not available in India yet.
We have seen lot of Windows handset launched this year, and it look like one more manufacturer is interested in launching a device on the platform. OnePlus, a Chinese company has made waves this year with its zero-margin OnePlus One, a high-end 5.5-inch smartphone running on the Android-derived CyanogenMod OS, which sells for half the price of competing phones.
Now, the company is looking to branch out into other areas and operating systems. Speaking with the Indian Economic Times, director of OnePlus Global Carl Pei revealed, “We have had discussions with Microsoft over a Windows Phone smartphone. We are still looking into it.”
At this stage, it is not known whether the manufacturer is looking to offer the OnePlus One with Windows Phone much like HTC has done with the One M8 for Windows or whether an entirely new handset is in the works.
As the report also notes, OnePlus is planning a successor to the OnePlus One. The OnePlus Two was officially confirmed as being in the works late last month. The OnePlus Two will arrive in the second or third quarter of 2015.
The Market has been recently flooded by Chinese smartphones, and everyone is confused. The question, however, has always been : are these phones really worth of all the hype they create?. The Xiaomi Mi3 showed us that a great phone package can come for a decent price, and the Redmi 1s is taking it hard to the competition.
One phone is still missing from the equation and with its arrival in India soon, does the OnePlus One threaten the existence of many brands here in the country? Lets find out.
Overview
The OnePlus One is a complete device when it comes to hardware and build quality. Thanks to the inclusion of CyanogenMod the software is mostly community dependent and is expected to get great support for a long period of time.
Hardware
The OnePlus One comes with top notch hardware for its time, apart from the 5.5 inch LTPS display with a 1920 x 1080p resolution, Gorilla Glass 3 :
The OnePlus One is superb, the fact is that anyone who has seen the phone in my hand, especially the sandstone variant, has been amazed with the way this phone looks and feels. The brilliance is in fact in the overall look of the phone, it’s just the right size, has just the right amount of chrome and metallic accents, subtle logos, simple buttons and the nicely printed Cyanogen at the back helps too.
The built of the phone is also pretty superior, although we wouldn’t say the phone can be dropped several times (especially because if you break it, you will go through hell to get another one). The display is protected with Gorilla Glass 3, but it’s not the ultimate form of protection, and thanks to the large damageable screen real estate, one should be extra careful. The back is a solid plastic, coated with the sandstone finish in the 64 GB variant and a polycarbonate white on the 16 GB variant, both of which feel great and look great too.
Display and Camera
The LCD is impressive, it’s quick and bright, has great viewing angles and the touch is very sensitive. We also found colours to be very accurate. You do have several display modes that will help you adjust between temperatures and also customise the display of the phone as per your colour tone preference. Video playback is great, and deep blacks and greys are separately identifiable resulting in a viewing experience that will leave you satisfied.
The camera on the OnePlus One is equipped with a 13 MP Sony BSI sensor, which by far is the best implementation of the equipment. Shutter Lag is close to none, the response times are amazing, shot composition accurate, focus fast and colours are deep and rightly defined. The camera is equipped with a dual led flash with one amber and one white light, giving the device the ability to correctly compose the shots, especially so, in low light conditions.
Aqua Filter
Without HDR
HDR
Indoor
The Camera also does 4K video, which in this day of flagships is only restricted to a few. You also get time-lapse and slow motion video at 120 fps on 720p which works really well. Video is really smooth and jitter free, and the end resultant is rather satisfying, included preview filters and pre shooting tweaks make it easy to compose and deliver the right kind of footage.
The sensor is bright with a f/2.0 aperture , giving it a great deal of low light visibility, although noise is still prevalent on low light images.
Multimedia and Performance
Thanks to the mix of the high end specs as well an a fantastic display, Multimedia capabilities are right up there with all other flagship devices. In certain cases even better so than the other. The low end on the spectrum for OS functions in the background, less busy Cyanogen OS and 3 GB of onboard RAM really improve things on the OnePlus One.
Performance wise, the OnePlus One aced all benchmarks and kicked it in gaming, with little of no lag on high end graphics and all games running on full juice. Impressive day to day usage and the fluidity of the performing tasks is really appreciable.
Considering the kind of awesome experience you get with the OnePlus One, we feel that the company should’ve just called it “Two”. because it offers double the experience of any regular manufacturer smartphone, with performance, gaming and built.
Benchmarks and Gaming Video
Cyanogen and Android
Today Android is really in a good place, and with Android L on the verge of launch, a lot is expected from the OS. Generally one should choose hardware that not only supports the update, but a manufacturer that is willing to do so. In most case scenarios you would have to wait months before the next big Android OS would be pushed out by manufacturers. The last version of Android aka Kitkat is now available throughout the segment, however it was announced a year back, and yet today some phones ship with Jelly Bean.
OnePlus One Runs on Cyanogen and it’s a great user experience.
With the Oneplus One and Cyanogen Mod OS, you will never have to worry about that, this group of developers managed to run Android on the HP Touchpad, and now it is updated to Android 4.4.4. So with the Oneplus One you can not only expect quick updates, you can also expect some nifty features and usage improvements.
The UI is very customizable and theme-able using their theme changer and by downloading themes from Play Store, and other resources. Cyanogen allows you to mix and match different elements of different themes to make the one perfect theme for you.
Conclusion
The OnePlus One is not here yet, the company is busy working out a strategy and will have the phone in India, as early as Sept-Oct 2014. However, for a price sensitive market like India, the cost of the phone will be a major factor. Another big deal is the fact that the company is doing away with its invite system, and hopefully by the time they arrive in India, they can ensure supplies to the huge and impatient market.
Where companies like Xiaomi have really gained respect and market share simply by cutting down admin, distribution and marketing costs, OnePlus may bring the One at a premium in India.
The Oneplus One is expected to be priced around Rs. 21500 for the 16GB variant and Rs,. 25000 for the 64 GB variant. Although the prices are more than the $ price, they are much less than the Indian price of major flagships. So for the price of one LG G3, HTC One M8 etc you could typically get , “One Plus One” = 2 phones.
If you can get your hands on an invite today, do not think twice and get the phone, in fact you should have owned it yesterday. As far as warranty issues are concerned, the company has great service support, but you will have to deal with shipping to their support centers overseas, or wait for the Indian one/s.
It’s no secret that Chinese phone manufacturer OnePlus is coming to India soon. Their phenomenal product, the OnePlus One is a flagship killer that brings top level specs in affordable pricing encased in eye appealing exteriors. The phones have been built in limited quantities because of the manufacturing restrictions of the company that led it to sell the phones through an invite system.
The invite system has been the company’s business strategy since they started. Customers who aspired for the products had to get the time limited invites to be able to buy the phones. But this system caused a lot of heartaches amongst the potential customers who couldn’t get an invite. (Play in our Invite Giveaway Here)
Interestingly OnePlus is going to do away with the invite system altogether. In a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) the representative had this to say; “We are working on a pre-orders system, we were initially aiming for September but it’s been slightly delayed, hopefully we’ll be ready to launch it in October.”
Now they haven’t mentioned as to what this new pre-order system would look like, but it sure will make a lot of folks in India happy as the company plans to bring the One to India, most probably by the end of this year.
The phone will also offer some great back panels and accessories
OnePlus One’s specs help make it the only phone capable of taking on the Xiaomi Mi 3. Its interiors are made of Snapdragon™ 801 processor with 2.5GHz Quad-core CPUs, 3 GB RAM and runs Android 4.4 based Cynogenmod. One the exteriors the device has a 5.5 inch full HD display with a 13 MP camera on the back and a 5 MP camera at the front. Not just that, the device also offers a good number of accessories like back panels and flip cases.
The fall of the invitation system will be rejoiced by the folks waiting to land the device for themselves. With its high specs, the phone is future proof for at least the immediate future. Considering its closest competitor, Xiaomi also facing stocks shortages; OnePlus is pretty safe in its market for now. Hopefully, the new pre-order system would cause a lot less heartburn and bring a powerful mobile experience to the folks who’ve been waiting for it for a long while.
We recently unboxed the OnePlus One Smartphone, and everyone has been asking us for invites to this mammoth spec’d phone. It’s that time of the month, and we are giving away 5 invites to purchase the OnePlus One Smartphone in the first of our two part giveaway. Simply enter the sweepstakes below and you stand a chance to win.
Follow the Instructions carefully and read the terms and conditions on the form as well as here. This Giveaway is open globally, so no matter where you are you can take part by entering below.
To be clear we are giving away 5 invites in this lot and we will giveaway 5 invites in the next one.
To Order this phone you will need to be in or be able to order to one of the following countries :
United States
Sweden
Denmark
Netherlands
United Kingdom
Spain
Germany
France
Italy
Finland
Belgium
Austria
Canada
Hong Kong
Taiwan
Portugal
The Contest is Over : Winner Make Sure you register on Oneplus.net with the Same Email.
Earlier today iGyaan had issued the news that OnePlus is eagerly and actively pursuing India operations and will be here as early as next month. Today OnePlus has confirmed that they are actively seeking for a General Manager for India operations. This will show that the company is dedicated to shake the Indian market with their handset, and they want to do it fast.
If you are keen on working for the company, you might wanna give this one a quick look.
Read the full requirements and responsibilities below.
General Manager – India, Operations
We’ve seen tremendous interest from India in the OnePlus One, but to enter the market we’ll need the help of a local visionary. You will be the sun, the light that leads OnePlus into the Indian market; the center of orbit for all projects, operations, and service; the ambassador that spreads the OnePlus brand across India like a wildfire.
Personality counts as much as experience here. We’re looking for a leader that knows the market, sees issues before they arise, and coordinates resourceful and seamless solutions. The right candidate will successfully incorporate their local knowledge, global experience, and natural talent into building OnePlus operations and brand awareness in India. This position requires authority, leadership, and resolve when things get rough. We need you to weather the storm with us. Are you confident in your abilities and naturally inclined to make things work better around you?
Responsibilities
Be the face of OnePlus India, lead and engage our Indian community, represent and grow our brand.
Listen to Indian customers; ensure the highest standards of service and product support are met.
Act as our company ambassador, the voice of OnePlus, the main contact point for the customer.
Establish and sustain relationships with media in India, assist with planning and organizing events.
Find unique local avenues through which to spread awareness about the OnePlus brand and products.
Create monthly and quarterly reports outlining operations, finance, and marketing activities.
Build a local team of function specific experts to grow OnePlus India operations.
Align local activities and collaborate with departments at our home office (marketing, logistics, etc.) to coordinate smooth daily operations in India. Report directly to OnePlus HQ in Shenzhen.
Requirements
Fluency in English, Hindi, Tamil. Intimate understanding of India’s unique geographies and cultures.
Degree from a top school, PMP certification preferred.
6+ years of general management experience working for a tier-1 company.
Deep understanding of operations, finance, marketing, and logistics.
Expertise/Experience in: ecommerce, logistics, customer service, marketing, mobile products.
Proven leader with vision, resourcefulness, intellect, and humility.
Tech enthusiast, intimately familiar with mobile trends, industry and competitive dynamics.
Strong analytical ability; data-driven approach to understanding and solving problems.
Entrepreneurial mindset, independent thinker, can manage effectively under stress.
Just a few hours after our unboxing went live, OnePlus has started pushing Android 4.4.4 to its Global variant One phones. While most issues are okay, the mic fix is the most awaited update and resolves the low audio from the microphone problem.
Full list of updates:
Upgraded to Android 4.4.4
Updated to new versions of Google apps
Added Clear Image
Added new (colder) calibration for the screen
Proximity sensor prevents activation of off-screen gestures while in your pocket
Capacitive touch keys supported in the recovery mode
Increased capacitive button illumination
Improved overall stability
Fixed issues with vibration being disabled during Quiet Hours
Fixed lockscreen not updating the track information during music playback
Fixed microphone volume for all formats in the Voice Recorder app
Fixed “OK, Google” not triggering voice search in Google Now
Fixed Viber calls not working
Fixed battery percent not updating in custom lock screens
Fixed PicasaSync
Fixed Camera “O” gesture activating lockscreen instead of triggering camera
Fixed wallpapers not applying in full screen, taking the wrong size when cropping, etc.
This update also adds the clear image feature, which is taken from the OPPO line of devices. The process basically stitches multiple images up to make one single large image.
If you have the OnePlus One, you might want to stick your WiFi on and get on updating. If you don’t, you can watch our unboxing and play in our OnePlus One invite giveaway, at the end of the week.
China is stirring up a storm, but it’s right here in India. Company after company is parading the smartphone market scene and everybody wants a piece of the pie. Earlier this year, Gionee set a precedent in bringing great build quality and a higher spec set into India by launching phones like the Gionee Elife E7. Later Xiaomi broke the market pricing scheme by launching the Xiaomi Mi3 in India. But is everyone really happy?
The lack of availability in both cases made it really difficult to own these products, while the E7 was fantastic for its time, it arrived almost 3 months too late and with the Xiaomi and its #FailSale strategy, people are essentially looking for a better outcome.
That answer may as well be here, sooner than you imagined. OnePlus is looking to launch their marvelous One in India as early as next month, and the company may bring a simple strategy to the market. The OnePlus One has been sold on an invite system from the get go. In doing so, the company continued to receive the orders, yet restricted orders enough to ramp up production.
The same system applies for India, however, the company has already reached up to required production standards with its current orders and invites are being fulfilled as and when you get them, so when it finally arrives in India, all you’ll need is a friend with an invite to share with you.
Inside the packaging, which is exceptionally high quality, all you get are three things; the OnePlus One unit, the charger and cable and a sim removal tool.
The inbox accessories tell you a great deal of what the end product quality is going to be, and you will be might impressed. not only is it high quality, a great amount of detail has gone into designing each item inside the box and customising the feel of the product.
The phone itself is pretty impressive, for a price of US$ 299 (16Gb) or US $ 349 for the 64 GB seen here (roughly INR 21500) which basically compares with the current flagships of the world.
Specs wise you will get :
Qualcomm Snapdragon 801
Adreno 330 GPU
3GB of RAM
16/64 GB storage
5.5 Inch 1920 x 1080p Display
13 Mp primary camera with 4K video
5 MP front camera 1080p video
3100 mAh – Non Removable battery
Gorilla Glass 3
The software and user interface is familiar and responsive, you will get Android 4.4.2 out of the box with a promised update to 4.4.4 and Cyanogen Mod 11s to get you happy. CyanogenMod will also ensure that you are getting the maximum output from your hardware and customization options are almost endless. Thanks to CyanogenMod you can also expect quick roll-outs of the latest relevant updates on Android, especially the upcoming Android L.
Watch our unboxing Video Below and stay tuned for a flurry of comparisons after the break. Also leave your review requests in the comments for us.
