OnePlus Open launch live blog — all the big news as it happens
Get ready for your first official look at the latest foldable phone
Good morning, and welcome to the OnePlus Open live blog!
There are still a few hours to go until the event begins in Mumbai, but we're taking one last look at everything we know so far to get ready. Starting with a phone from a completely different company.
The Oppo Find N2, a China-only foldable launched earlier this year, could give us a strong indication of what the OnePlus Open will be like to use. That's because OnePlus and Oppo are partner companies, and have shared all sorts of tech and components in the past, including OnePlus' famous fast charging systems. And the rumors we'll be getting into shortly sure do paint a picture of a phone resembling the Find N2.
Then again, we already know that the OnePlus Open won't be a carbon copy of the Oppo Find N2. OnePlus CEO Pete Lau has confirmed that the device is a collaboration, and it means the OnePlus Open will also be available from Oppo at a later date — albeit with a slightly different name.
The idea was to leverage the expertise of both phone companies into creating a better foldable. From Oppo that was extensive experience in foldable hardware, and for OnePlus it was apparently the ability to create "a fast and smooth experience" while pushing the limits of the hardware itself.
We don't know when the Oppo-branded device will arrive, or what it will be called, but it probably won't be a very long wait.
About those leaked OnePlus Open specs: Here’s what we think we know heading into the big announcement later today.
- Inner display: 7.82-inch AMOLED (120Hz refresh rate; 2,800 nits max brightness)
- Outer display: 6.31-inch AMOLED (120Hz refresh rate; 2,800 nits max brightness)
- CPU: Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
- RAM: 16GB
- Storage: 512GB
- Outer cameras: 48MP main, 48MP ultrawide, 64MP telephoto (3x zoom)
- Front camera: 32MP (cover display); 20MP (interior display)
- Battery size: 4,805 mAh
- Charging speed: 80W
- Size: 6.03 x 5.63 x 0.23 inches / 153.4 x 143.1 x 5.8 mm
- Weight: 8.64 or 8.43 ounces / 245 or 239 grams
- Colors :Voyager Black, Emerald Dusk
It’s hard to talk to foldable phones without focusing on price. After all, these tend to be some of the most expensive phones out there, so we’re always interested to see if a newcomer can come along and undercut the existing devices on price.
We had hoped that would have happened with the Pixel Fold, but no dice — it debuted with the same $1,799 price tag as the Galaxy Z Fold 5. Now it’s the OnePlus Open’s chance to maybe drive prices down. And it just might do that — a leak that occurred when OnePlus first announced today’s event— claimed the Open would cost $100 less than the Z Fold 5.
If you’re trying to sort out whether the OnePlus Open launched already, it’s not just your imagination. We were expecting to see OnePlus’ new foldable a little bit earlier than today.
A rumor claimed an August 29 release date for the phone, which would have put the Open’s launch closer to the release of the Galaxy Z Fold 5. But allegedly, there were last-minute changes involving the display the phone wound up using. That led to a change in plans as to when the OnePlus Open would be ready — or so the rumor goes.
Some features about the OnePlus Open we know for certain heading into today’s announcement. Courtesy of OnePlus founder Pete Lau, we know that the phone maker has taken the hinge from Oppo’s foldables and redesigned it. Lau says the hinge is 37% smaller than the one on the Oppo Find N2, but that the new version will be both lighter and stronger.
To us, it sounds a lot like similar improvements Samsung made to the hinge on the Galaxy Z Fold 5. That not only allowed the phone to close flat, it also made the new model much lighter than its predecessors. And one of the issues with early foldable phones is that they’re really bulky to tote around.
Because they’re going to rock similar designs, it’s only natural that people are going to want to compare the OnePlus Open with the Galaxy Z Fold 5. (The latter is, as of this moment, our recommendation for the best foldable phone overall.) Ahead of the OnePlus Open’s launch, let’s look at how it can beat the Samsung foldable.
The OnePlus Open isn’t the only foldable phone joining the mix this week. Today, the Motorola Razr goes on sale — this is the scaled-back version of the Motorola Razr+ flip phone that sacrifices a few features like a larger exterior display in exchange for a much lower price tag. At $699, the Motorola Razr is now the cheapest foldable phone you can get.
Is it worth it? In our Motorola Razr review, we note that for people who don’t need a powerful processor or a big exterior screen, the lower price is too good to pass up.
It’s widely expected that the OnePlus Open will run on a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. That’s the same silicon found in a lot of the best Android phones — including the OnePlus 11 flagship that came out earlier this year.
It stands to reason than, that if you want some idea of how the OnePlus Open will perform, you should consult the OnePlus 11 benchmarks. The TL;DR version — you’ll see performance that matches the top-performing Android phones (which, coincidentally, also feature the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2). The OnePlus 11 trails recent iPhones on speed, but it did outmuscle A16 Bionic-powered devices on some graphics tests.
Bottom line? The OnePlus Open should be a top-performer.
Here's your first look at the OnePlus Open (with the camera module visible :p)Crease is much better compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 5. Also they are very comparing the camera with Galaxy S23 UltraThe phone comes with a color matched case within the box. pic.twitter.com/ttuvLzKCdaOctober 18, 2023
Leaker Yogesh Brar has already released several OnePlus Open leaks, but has today posted some real-life images of the phone.
As well as showing off the phone's basic shape, Brar explains that the crease in the main display is hard to spot, and that there's a color-matched case included with the phone for users who want a bit of extra protection. Not to mention an 80W charger, as you'd hope to see from a flagship OnePlus phone.
As we count down to the OnePlus Open event's official start time, we can't help but think about what the next OnePlus launch will be. And how it's likely to be the OnePlus 12.
This flagship non-foldable is expected to turn up in China just before the end of the year, and then go on sale early next year everywhere else. It should feature a very bright display, improved telephoto camera and OnePlus' usual speedy chipset and charging system, based on the rumors we've heard so far.
If you really can't wait to see what the OnePlus Open is like, then take a look at the Oppo Find N3, which launched earlier this morning at an event in China.
We won't go into detail on the specs, but chances are they are going to be basically the same as the Open's. Read at your own risk!
Richard Priday (TG's assistant phones editor) here as there's just moments to go before the OnePlus Open event. I'll be taking you through the whole show, and posting all the details as they appear here.
Also, here's a OnePlus 11 - a great phone that undercuts the competition on price. Let's hope the OnePlus Open does the same thing for the foldables category.
We're still waiting...
But at least OnePlus is playing a couple of sizzle reels to pass the time, focusing on the engineering genius that's gone into the OnePlus Open, and the convenience and practicality of its features. Sounds good, but wait for our review to find out if that's true!
Tuomas Lampén, head of strategy for OnePlus Europe, is our first host, and introduces us to the Mumbai venue the event's streaming from.
He goes through foldable phone features that OnePlus users have been requesting, which we assume are all going to be addressed in time during this presentation.
Lampén reminds us that this is the tenth anniversary year for OnePlus, as marked by its current flagship being the OnePlus 11 (Chinese companies always skip the number 4, as it's considered bad luck, like the number 13 is in the west).
Launching a foldable is quite a way to celebrate!
Our first area of focus is the phone's design, which of course features an alert slider like the majority of premium OnePlus phones, and an enormous round Hasselblad-branded camera block on the back.
It's hard to make out the depth of the crease in renders like this, but hopefully it'll not be too intrusive, like previous foldables' creases have been.
Your only color choices for the OnePlus Open are Voyager Black (in faux leather) and Emerald Dusk (in matte-textured glass).
We wish OnePlus would go back to its older, wider color palette for its phones. The silver OnePlus 9 Pro was a gorgeous-looking phone, as was the blue OnePlus 7 Pro.
Lampén points out that compared to the iPhone 14 Pro Max, the OnePlus Open is lighter. Apple has moved to the lighter iPhone 15 Pro Max with its titanium frame, but it's still quite an achievement for a foldable to be this light.
The OnePlus Open's hinge is made of a number of exotic-sounding materials, which help keep the mechanism's weight and complexity down. The average hinge apparently uses 100 parts, while the Open's has a more effecient 69 pieces.
The crease of the OnePlus Open's inner display uses a water drop shape, which we're very glad to hear. Samsung took five generations of the Galaxy Z Fold to add this type of crease, so kudos to OnePlus for taking this lesson to heard much faster.
Oh, and the hinge is rated for one million folds. So little chance it'll break by itself!
Ishita Grover, director of marketing for OnePlus India is now here to talk about cameras.
The main camera uses a new type of Sony Lytia camera that contains a 'pixel stacked" sensor that apparently delivers the best photography of any foldable thanks to this tech's improved HDR and noise minimization compared to a traditional digital image sensor.
These are certainly some impressive photography samples being demonstrated by a OnePlus community member (I missed her name, will find it out for you later!), especially considering how dark the scenes are.
But this is what an enthusiast can do with these cameras, no doubt with some intensive editing on top. How these cameras will behave in the hands of an amateur user could be another matter entirely.
The photographer was Rafaëlle, apologies for missing your name before!
Now we're going through exactly what pixel stacking means. It's hard to follow if you're not a sensor geek, but more light generally means better photos, and that's what this Sony Lytia sensor is promising.
The OnePlus Open's zoom camera has 3x optical zoom, but OnePlus is promising sharp photos even up to 6x zoom.
The Google Pixel Fold offers 5x optical zoom, which is the current best on a foldable you can buy in the U.S, so OnePlus scores points for telephoto power at least on paper.
Portait mode shots on the Open are enhanced with tuning from Swedish camera maker Hasselblad (or "hostel blood" as the YouTube auto captions just called it).
Hasselblad's been helping OnePlus with its photography for a few years now, and the partnership's paid off. OnePlus phones used to be quite poor on the camera front, but now its devices can hang with Apple, Google and Samsung's best.
Display time now, and OnePlus is introducing its "Pro XDR" standard screens on the inside and outside of the Open.
Sounds a lot like the Super Retina XDR standard that Apple uses for its iPhone displays. Coincidence?
For videographers, the OnePlus Open can capture Dolby Vision footage in 4K at up to 60fps.
OnePlus' partners at Dolby explain this further, making it clear that picture quality is something OnePlus tries hard to focus on with its phones.
Grover hands off to Aske Kjaer, product PR manager for OnePlus Europe, to talk about the OnePlus Open's user experience.
The outer display of the OnePlus Open is 6.3 inches, while the inner display is 7.8 inches. That makes it quite a bit larger than rival foldables.
Both screens have 120Hz displays, 2K resolutions and 10-bit color plus 1440Hz PWM dimming to reduce eye straining. The maximum brightness is an impressive 2,800 nits too.
Ceramic Guard on the outside and ultra thin glass on the inside protect the OnePlus Open's displays. Hmm, there's another term that sounds a lot like an Apple standard (Ceramic Shield).
The speakers on this foldable also use a Dolby standard - Dolby Atmos. Sounds like the Open could get loud!
Now we come to Open Canvas, OnePlus' unique multitasking system.
This lets you split up to three apps at once, and move them around the display, including off-screen, in order to make moving between the apps much easier than on a static split display.
You've also got a task bar that lets you quickly swap between apps or open up recent files.
Tuomas Lampén returns to the stage to tell us about the OnePlus Open's performance abilities.
That performance is driven by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, accompanied by 16GB RAM and 512GB storage. The battery is a chunky 4,805 mAh model, and can be charged at up to 67W.
OnePlus is also promising four years of full Android updates and five years of security patches, so you'll still get the latest Android experience even down the line in 2027.
Here's one for the Bimmer owners - the OnePlus Open can act as a secure key and engine starter for select BMW models.
Lampén is summarizing all the features of the Open, so it feels like we're about to hear the price and availability of the phone. After another sizzle reel of course.
And there's the availability, along with Indian pricing. Pre-orders are open now, with the full launch coming next week on October 27th
As for the U.S., it costs $1,699, and goes on sale from October 26th. You can get between $200 and $1,000 off that price too depending on what you're willing to trade-in.
Europe only gets the green model. It costs £1,599 in the UK and €1,799 for the European market, with the same 19th - 26th pre-order launch window. The pre-order bonus here is a money-off coupon and free OnePlus Buds Pro 2.
Aaaand that's a wrap! Hope you enjoyed the presentation and this live blog, and keep an eye out for our review of the OnePlus Open in the near future.
