OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: What’s the difference?

OnePlus 10T vs OnePlus 10 Pro
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Now that OnePlus has expanded its flagship phone lineup, picking the victor in the OnePlus 10T vs.OnePlus 10 Pro match-up depends on what you want from a flagship Android phone, and how much you're prepared to pay for it.

The OnePlus 10 Pro already established itself as one of the best Android phones, and best phones overall, offering a speedy chipset, rapid charging, strong cameras and a beautiful display. But the OnePlus 10T takes a different tack, cutting back on photography and display tech in favor of increasing the performance and charging speed even more. It also happens to be start at a much lower price than most premium phones — including the OnePlus 10 Pro.

If you're stuck trying to decide which phone is the one you need or you just want to know about the OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro differences, our analysis comparing each phones' key features should help. But if you decide you need to look at devices beyond what OnePlus offers, consider our Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra vs. OnePlus 10 Pro and OnePlus 10 Pro vs. iPhone 13 Pro Max face-offs to see what your other options could be.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro specs

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Row 0 - Cell 0 OnePlus 10TOnePlus 10 Pro
Starting price$649/£629$799/£799
Display6.7-inch FHD AMOLED (2412 x 1080)6.7-inch QHD AMOLED (3216 x 1440)
Refresh rate120Hz/90Hz/60Hz adaptive1-120Hz adaptive
Rear cameras50MP main (f/1.8), 8MP ultrawide (f/2.2), 2MP macro48MP (f/1.8) main, 50MP (f/2.2) ultrawide, 8MP (f/2.4) 3.3x telephoto
Front camera16MP (f/2.5)32MP (f/2.2)
ChipsetSnapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1Snapdragon 8 Gen 1
RAM8GB/16GB8GB/12GB
Storage128GB/256GB128GB/256GB
Battery4,800 mAh5,000 mAh
Charging150W wired (125W in U.S.)80W wired (65W in U.S.)
Size6.4 x 3 x 0.34 inches(163 x 75.3 x 8.7mm)6.42 x 2.91 x 0.34 inches (163 x 73.9 x 8.5mm
Weight7.2 oz (203 grams)7 ounces (200 grams)

 OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Price and availability

The OnePlus 10 Pro is already on sale both in the U.S. and the U.K., selling at £799 or a newly discounted $799. The OnePlus 10 Pro's price is already on the cheap side for a flagship phone, but the 10T is a bit cheaper, starting at $649/£629. That's an unusual price for a premium flagship phone, making it hard to compare to other devices, but you can't argue against the $150 you'd save by going for the 10T over the 10 Pro.

The OnePlus 10T is pre-orderable now in the U.K., and goes on open sale on August 25. American customers will have to wait longer, as the 10T won't be available for pre-orders until September 1; sales begin September 29.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Design

The 10T and 10 Pro have a strong family resemblance. Both phones are 6.7-inch handsets with essentially the same same shape and size, except the 10 Pro has curved display sides and the 10T has flat ones.

Looking at the precise measurements, we can see the 10 Pro is slightly lighter than the 10T and a little skinnier across its width. Both phones feel comfortable to hold though, so don't let the small difference in inches and ounces influence your decision too much here.

OnePlus 10T vs OnePlus 10 Pro

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

On the front, the two phones diverge in their selfie camera placement. It's centrally aligned on the 10T, but tucked into the left corner on the 10 Pro.

Turning the phones over, the camera bumps look the same from a distance but up close they're easy to tell apart. The flash is in different positions on both phones, and the bump itself is glossy metal on the 10 Pro but etched with a radial pattern on the 10T. On the 10 Pro, there's a small lip between the bump and the back, but it flows into the side rail. The 10T gradually curves from the bump into the main back panel, but doesn't connect with the side rail.

OnePlus 10T vs OnePlus 10 Pro

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

Both phones come in either green or black, but they're two quite different versions of these colors. Volcanic Black on the OnePlus 10 Pro has a soft matte texture whereas Moonstone Black on the 10T has a rock-like matte texture. Meanwhile, the OnePlus 10 Pro's Emerald Forest uses the same matte texture as Volcanic Black, while Jade Green is a paler hue with a glossy finish.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Display

Both the OnePlus 10T and the 10 Pro use 6.7-inch displays, but the 10 Pro's screen is better in two key ways.

OnePlus 10T vs OnePlus 10 Pro

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

First, the 10 Pro has a higher QHD resolution, instead of FHD like the 10T, making for more detailed images. Second, the 10 Pro uses a fully adaptive 120Hz refresh rate by leveraging LTPO 2.0 technology. That allows the refresh rate to drop all the way down to 1Hz when screen activity is static, saving battery life.

The 10T also has an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate, but it can only drop to 90Hz or 60Hz via its LTPS panel. That means you'll not save quite as much power when viewing static images on your screen, but the two displays should look equally smooth when scrolling through social media feeds or web pages.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Row 0 - Cell 0 OnePlus 10TOnePlus 10 Pro
sRGB (%)179.6 (vivid) / 127.7 (natural)173.6 (vivid) / 119 (natural)
DCI-P3 (%)127.2 (vivid) / 90.5 (natural)123 (vivid) / 84.3 (natural)
Delta-E (lower is better)0.31 (vivid) / 0.21 (natural)0.32 (vivid) / 0.23 (natural)
Max brightness (nits)727 nits 734 nits

According to measurements taken during our testing of both phones, the OnePlus 10T actually has a slightly more color-accurate and color-rich display than the OnePlus 10 Pro. However, the 10 Pro just about beats the 10T on brightness.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Cameras

The OnePlus 10 Pro enjoys a significant advantage over the 10T when it comes to cameras. That applies not just to the sensor, but also the tuning of those sensors, which was done in partnership with camera maker Hasselblad.

OnePlus 10 Pro cameras

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

On the OnePlus 10 Pro's back, there's a 48MP main camera, a 50MP ultrawide camera with optional 150-degree/fish-eye modes, and an 8MP telephoto camera with 3.3x optical zoom. That's topped off with a 32MP selfie camera.

OnePlus 10T cameras

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

The cameras on the OnePlus 10T are decent, but not in the same league. OnePlus' newer phone offers a 50MP main camera, an 8MP ultrawide camera and a 2MP macro camera on its back, with a 16MP selfie camera on the front.

You can see the difference in these comparisons. Using the main cameras to take a shot looking east down the River Thames from the Golden Jubilee Bridges, we can see the OnePlus 10 Pro offers more accurate colors, capturing the warmth of the late-evening sun that the 10T seems to miss.

As for this portrait selfie, the difference is smaller. The bokeh effect is equally good on both phones, but I again prefer the 10 Pro's coloring. I look too pink in the 10T's shot.

Megapixels alone don't make for better cameras, but between their resolution, sensor sizes and camera types, the OnePlus 10 Pro conquers the OnePlus 10T resoundingly for photography.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Performance

In this category, the OnePlus 10T is able to strike back at the OnePlus 10 Pro. The 10T offers a higher maximum RAM of 16GB (plus a standard 8GB version) and a newer, stronger Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset . 

The 10 Pro is still quite powerful, offering either 8GB or 12GB RAM and a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset. The lack of Plus means benchmark scores are not quite as good, as you can see in the table below, but the OnePlus 10 Pro doesn't trail the 10T too significantly — in fact, it beats the OnePlus 10T when it came to transcoding a video in Adobe Premiere Rush, which is a measure of real-world performance.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Row 0 - Cell 0 OnePlus 10TOnePlus 10 Pro
Geekbench 5 (single / multicore) 1,025/ 3,476995 / 3,482
3DMark Wild Life Unlimited (Score / FPS) 10,997 / 6610,221 / 61
3DMark Wild Life Unlimited (Score / FPS) 2,752 / 162574 / 15
Adobe Premiere Rush video transcode time (Mins:Secs)1:051:02

For both phones, the standard storage is 128GB, with 256GB on offer if you pay extra. Neither phone offers additional storage or microSD card support, but that should still be plenty of room for anyone.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Battery and charging

The OnePlus 10T offers the fastest charging around with its 150W standard, although that drops to 125W in the U.S. due to differing voltages. In its 150W guise, the 10T can charge its 4,800 mAh battery from 1 - 100% in 20 minutes, or 1 - 100% in 24 minutes with the 125W version.

The 10 Pro offers 80W charging in the U.K. and 65W in the U.S. That fills the phone to 98% and 93% in 30 minutes respectively. While that's not as fast as the 10T, it's still pretty quick, especially when you consider the 10 Pro's larger 5,000 mAh battery.

OnePlus 10 Pro event

(Image credit: OnePlus)

In terms of battery life, the OnePlus 10 Pro wins, though the difference isn't that big. The 10 Pro managed to last 11 hours and 52 minutes in full 120Hz mode on TG's custom battery test, which involves constantly scrolling through websites at 150 nits of brightness until the battery dies. The OnePlus 10T survived 10 hours and 59 minutes with the same settings. The 10 Pro's performance lands it on our best phone battery life list, while the OnePlus 10T falls just short.

One extra advantage that the OnePlus 10 Pro has that the 10T does not is wireless charging support. The 10 Pro can charge at up to 50W wirelessly with a compatible charger, which lets you power up at a much faster pace than other phones. Not having any wireless charging at all, not even basic Qi-standard charging, is a black mark for the 10T.

OnePlus 10T vs. OnePlus 10 Pro: Outlook

The OnePlus 10 Pro earns its pro title since it’s a much better overall phone than the OnePlus 10T. Key smartphone features like the display, battery life and cameras are much better on the Pro than the T model, so it’s the better phone to get for most people.

There will be users who will prefer the 10T, but the reasons for that are limited. The additional power is good if you like playing mobile games or using demanding apps — we include the OnePlus 10T among the best gaming phones — and the faster charging speed could be important if you use your phone heavily during the day (although it comes at the expense of wireless charging). The lower price may appeal as well, as $150 is a considerable price gap.

Most users will be better off going for the more well-rounded OnePlus 10 Pro, but if you value wired charging speed and chipset performance above better cameras, battery life and display, the 10T is still a good pick if you're dedicated to the OnePlus brand.

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Richard Priday
Assistant Phones Editor

Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.