OnePlus

A brief history

OnePlus was founded in December 2013 in Shenzhen by Pete Lau and Carl Pei, both ex-Oppo. The original OnePlus One (2014) launched on an invite-only system with the "flagship killer" tagline, undercutting Samsung and HTC prices by roughly half while shipping Snapdragon 801 silicon. The brand built a cult following over the OnePlus 2 through OnePlus 7 era, then gradually moved upmarket — the OnePlus 8 Pro (2020) was the first model to ship at proper flagship pricing. In 2021, OnePlus formally merged into Oppo under BBK Electronics, sharing R&D, supply chain, and the ColorOS-derived OxygenOS codebase. The Nord sub-brand reintroduced the mid-tier value play in 2020. Today OnePlus ships premium and mid-range Android phones in nearly all major markets except (officially) the US carrier mainstream.

What OnePlus is known for

OnePlus's identity is built on spec-per-dollar flagships, fast charging, and high-refresh displays. The brand was an early mover on 90 Hz and 120 Hz panels in the Android industry, and SuperVOOC wired charging — derived from Oppo's VOOC platform — remains the fastest in mass production. The OnePlus 15 ships with 120 W wired and 50 W wireless, fully recharging a 7,500 mAh silicon-carbon battery in roughly 35 minutes. Hasselblad partnership branding has been on the camera system since the OnePlus 9 era, primarily contributing color science tuning.

Segments are split between true flagships (OnePlus numbered series, OnePlus Open foldable), mid-range Nord devices, and accessories — OnePlus Buds, OnePlus Watch, and the Pad tablet line. OxygenOS is now functionally a skin over ColorOS but retains a lighter visual identity and slightly faster animation defaults. Software-support length sits at four major Android updates and six years of security patches on the OnePlus 13 generation onward, behind Samsung and Google but matching most other Android peers.

Where OnePlus excels on vsMars

OnePlus competes most directly in the smartphones category, where the numbered series consistently ranks well on battery, charging, and screen-quality axes of the Mars Score; the OnePlus 15 currently sits in the upper bracket of our best smartphones shortlist. The Nord sub-line dominates mid-range comparison pages we run against Pixel a-series and Galaxy A-series equivalents. The OnePlus Open and successor foldables are tracked in our foldable subcategory comparisons. OnePlus Buds Pro entries appear in wireless earbuds and the OnePlus Watch 2 in smartwatches, though both lag the category leaders.

Trade-offs to know

The honest trade-offs are clearest in software and support. Four major Android updates is competent but a generation behind Samsung's and Google's seven, and OxygenOS in some regions ships visibly more pre-installed apps than the marketing materials suggest. Camera systems, particularly telephoto reach and low-light consistency, trail Apple, Google, Samsung, and Xiaomi at the flagship tier despite the Hasselblad branding. US availability is limited and carrier support inconsistent — buying unlocked is generally required. Build choices favor lower weight over IP rating: only the most recent numbered flagships have reached IP68, and accessory ecosystems (cases, official chargers) are thinner than at larger brands. Finally, the BBK merger means a OnePlus phone, Oppo phone, and Realme phone often share a chassis and mainboard with different software skins — the differentiation is real but smaller than the branding implies.