OnePlus 11, High-end Performance For $700

Launched in China in early January 2023, the OnePlus 11 is coming to the U.S. (and the world) today. According to a message written by OnePlus President Li Jie on Weibo, the new flagship smartphone broke “the fastest sales record in the history of OnePlus” just two hours after the launch in China.

Looking at the impressive specs list in relation to the price, we understand the instant success. The successor of the OnePlus 10 Pro (released in the U.S. in April 2022 at $899), the OnePlus 11 boasts an upgraded Snapdragon flagship SoC, a slightly better rear camera, and an upgraded fast-charging adapter (U.S. market).

No more Pro

The manufacturer dropped the “Pro” from its flagship’s name, and the new branding reflects the convergence of high-end specifications with a premium price in one single device. Offering great performance at “an extremely competitive price point” seems to be OnePlus’s top priority, according to OnePlus founder Peter Lau’s presentation at the OnePlus 10T launch last August.

To achieve this goal, OnePlus has focused on several things but if we had to boil it down, it would come down to excellent computing platform performance, fast battery charging, and a very good camera.

Better performance

To claim the high-end title, the OnePlus 11 had to feature Qualcomm’s latest flagship processor, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, that powers the recently launched Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, S23 plus, and S23.

The OnePlus 11 gets a significant boost in performance over its predecessors equipped with the previous generations of the Snapdragon 8, the 8 Gen 1 (10 Pro), and the 8+ Gen 1 (10T).

Qualcomm claims that the new generation CPU is 35% faster while delivering 40% greater power efficiency. The graphics performance increased by 25% with a 45% improvement in power efficiency. After running a few benchmarks on the OnePlus 11, we can confirm the performance boost approximately along those lines. Stay tuned for our OnePlus 11 review with the benchmarks’ charts.

When RAM and storage are concerned, there are two variants, one with 8GB RAM and 128 GB storage that costs $699, and another with 16GB RAM and 256GB storage, for $100 more.

Display

The 6.7-inch WQHD (3216×1440) AMOLED display features an upgraded LTPO 3.0 adaptive refresh rate technology that automatically selects the best refresh rate from 1Hz to 120Hz depending on the user’s activity. Similarly to LTPO 2.0, LTPO 3.0 operates at variable refresh rates from 1 to 120Hz but is supposed to offer an improved power efficiency.

Camera

The camera system tuned by Hasselblad is better than the previous flagship model, although the price of the new phone is $200 lower than the launch price of the OnePlus 10 Pro ($899).

The primary camera sensor is a Sony IMX890 50MP 1/1.56” (quad-pixel) that is paired with an IMX58 48MP Ultrawide camera and an IMX709 32MP 1/2.74” RGBW sensor with 2X optical zoom that OnePlus calls “Portrait Tele.” The phone maker dedicates the third camera to portrait shots and claims it improves the bokeh effect by providing more details in the blurry background.

To evaluate mobile cameras, we use our CAMERA HW score. Based on the specifications, we calculated a CAMERA HW score of 178, which places the OnePlus 11 in the ballpark of the Xiaomi 12T Pro (176), the Xiaomi 12 Pro (177), the Pixel 7 (180), and the Pixel 7 Pro (189). This is an upgrade from the 164 CAMERA HW score of the OnePlus 10 Pro.

Battery

Charging speed is one of the strengths of OnePlus, the OnePlus 10T is the fastest-charging phone available in the U.S. that offers 160W supports and goes from 1% to 80% in only 13 min! (as we measured for our review) Due to the voltage limitation in North America, devices can charge at a maximum of 120W.

The OnePlus 11 model for the U.S. comes with 5000 mAh battery and 80W SUPERVOOC charging technology while the Chinese version offers 100W. As we measured, the OnePlus 11 charges from 0% to 63% in 15 minutes, which is way faster than the high-end phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (16%), the iPhone 14 (25%), or the Pixel 7 Pro (18%).

OnePlus Buds Pro 2

Alongside the new smartphone, OnePlus is launching the OnePlus Buds Pro 2, a pair of wireless earbuds that support spatial audio with six-axis sensor head tracking. Featuring active noise cancellation, 54 ms low latency, Hi-Res audio, and IP55 water resistance, the Buds Pro 2 deliver 39 hours of playback on a single charge.

Price and Availability

The smartphone and the earbuds will be available for pre-orders on Feb 7th, 2023, and for sale on Feb 16^th, 2023. The OnePlus 11 comes in two colors, Titan Black or Eternal Green, and costs $699 for the 8GB+128GB version, and $799 for the 16GB+256GB model. The OnePlus Buds Pro 2 comes in Obsidian Black or Arbor Green for $179.