Unpacking The Hype Around OnePlus 12: Flagship Or Not?

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By: Mukesh Chaudhary|| Jan 24, 2024

Since the launching of the OnePlus One over a decade ago, the business has provided Android users with phones that prioritize performance while remaining affordable. Some may argue that it strayed from that course with a couple of generations of smartphones, but it appeared to genuinely go back on track with the OnePlus 11 in 2023.

Now, halfway through January 2024, we’re off to a strong start with the OnePlus 12. In the roughly two weeks I’ve spent using this phone as my daily driver, it’s evident that OnePlus has learnt from last year’s few blunders. Aside from boosting the phone’s internal specifications, OnePlus is putting some serious power behind the camera system. I put the OnePlus 12 through everything that comes with being a daily driver, including picture tests, gaming sessions, and pushing the display’s boundaries, all to see if the phone can compete with the big boys in the Android ecosystem. Spoiler: it is.

Display & Design

But I’ll start nonetheless. The OnePlus 12 boasts an eye-catching and unusual design. Looking at the smartphone, you can tell it is a OnePlus device. The circular camera module with Hasselblad branding, the marble-like back panel, the curved display in the front—it’s all OnePlus. Personally, I enjoy the marble-like finish on the back panel, which has been a OnePlus signature since last year’s Marble Odyssey Edition OnePlus 11 model.

The display is also one of the highlights of the OnePlus 12 so far. Since this is a first impression story, I haven’t had a chance to test the display to its fullest potential, but it does look amazing. The display is 6.82 inches in size and has a QHD (2480 x 1440 pixels) resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, and LTPO (Lightning Fast Off) 4.1GHz. In terms of specs, it ticks all the boxes that you’d expect from a good flagship. Not only that, but the OnePlus 12 is said to have a peak brightness of 4,500 Nits. How close to reality this is will be subject to more in-depth testing, but it looks bright enough to be used in a variety of environments. Even in extremely bright suns, the visibility isn’t the best, but it’s still good enough to be used.

Battery & Performance

OnePlus listened to its critics and brought wireless charging back to the 12. It’s a good thing because the OnePlus 12 charges at an absurdly fast 50W, which is better than anything else on the market.

Battery Life has been a big part of the OnePlus series for a while now, and it continues to be one of the highlights. The OnePlus 12 comes with a whopping 5,000mAh battery, which should be able to get me through a full working day without needing to be recharged. I find it to be at around 25% capacity most days, which is certainly better than most phones out there, but it’ll really show its age after some proper benchmarking.

The OnePlus 12 will likely beat the previous year’s OnePlus 11 by a good margin on Tom’s Guide’s battery benchmark test of 13 hours and 10 minutes, but I suspect it’ll go much longer thanks to the Snapdragon 8 gen 3’s power efficiency.

While the OnePlus 12 isn’t the first smartphone to feature Qualcomm’s latest flagship mobile chipset, it still flexes its muscles thanks to the company’s latest generation of mobile processors.

Even the simplest of tasks, like scrolling through the UI and launching apps, are met with a tight response on the OnePlus 12. That’s thanks to the phone’s 120 Hz refresh rate, which smooths out every animation to make them appear more fluid.

Camera & Software

OnePlus phones have historically fallen short in the camera department when compared to their competitors, but the OnePlus 12’s new triple camera configuration hopes to change that. The OnePLus 12’s 4th Generation Hasselblad Camera for Mobile system has a 50MP primary camera, a 48MP ultrawide, and a 64MP periscope camera with 3x optical zoom.

The telephoto camera is an iterative improvement over the OnePlus 11’s 32MP 2x telephoto zoom, but I’m pleased to report that almost every performance statistic around the cameras is better than before.

Another area where OnePlus could have gained momentum is with its OxygenOS interface, which doesn’t provide anything worthwhile. OnePlus maintains a clean, modern UI with its own set of unique features, such as the smart sidebar, which allows me to select apps for easy access to them. But OxygeneOS lacks the AI elements that make the Pixel 8 and Galaxy S24 more appealing.

Clearly, AI features require resources to develop and polish, which is why OnePlus has partnered with Google to bring certain AI features to the OnePlus 12. The OnePlus 12 will include Magic Compose, a Google-developed tool that will use generative AI to present customers with personalised texts.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the OnePlus 12 is a solid flagship smartphone that offers a great balance of features and performance. It boasts a striking design, a top-notch display, and impressive performance thanks to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip. The camera setup is versatile and capable, and the device supports fast charging.

However, there are a few areas where it could improve. The lack of AI features at launch, underexposed low light photos, absence of IP68 ingress protection, and software glitches are some of the cons noted by users.

Despite these drawbacks, the OnePlus 12 is a terrific flagship that holds its own against the best that Samsung, Xiaomi, and Google have to offer. If you’re in the market for a high-end smartphone, the OnePlus 12 is definitely worth considering.