After years of selling its phones unlocked, OnePlus has made an effort to get its more recent releases into the hands of wireless carriers in the U.S. That's going to continue with this year's OnePlus 8, according to a new report, but look for another carrier to enter the mix.
Citing a source familiar with OnePlus' plans, Android Police reports that the OnePlus 8 will launch with Verizon in the U.S. when it arrives later this year. If true, that would be the first time you can buy a OnePlus phone through Verizon, though recent models have been compatible with the carrier's network.
We've been hearing that Verizon would be involved with OnePlus phones in 2020 since last September. Android Police broke that story, too.
Previously, T-Mobile had been the only carrier to offer most of OnePlus's releases since the launch of the OnePlus 6T in 2018. One notable exception is the OnePlus 7 Pro 5G, a 5G-ready device sold through Sprint.
Compatibility with newly launched 5G networks is relevant with the OnePlus 8 news, since this latest report claims that the phone will include 5G compatibility, specifically working with Verizon's millimeter-wave based 5G network. Verizon's 5G service is currently live in more than 30 cities, and it delivers speeds of around 1 Gbps in our tests, though 5G coverage isn't very extensive in those cities and isn't usually available indoors.
The presence of 5G would seemingly confirm that the OnePlus 8 will feature Qualcomm's Snapdragon 865 processor, which will offer 5G connectivity. That's not really going out on a limb, though, as OnePlus phones have traditionally featured the most up-to-date Qualcomm chipset. The OnePlus 7T, for example, runs on a Snapdragon 855 Plus system-on-chip.
Verizon won't necessarily be the only place to get a new OnePlus phone this year. The Android Police report said that it would be surprising if this meant the end of the phone maker's relationship with T-Mobile, for example, since that carrier currently sells both the OnePlus 7T and the OnePlus 7T Pro 5G McLaren for its newly launched nationwide 5G network.
In 2019, OnePlus' phone launches included multiple models — a regular phone along with a Pro version of that handset. However, only one of those versions usually came to the U.S. with the OnePlus 7 Pro arriving in this country last spring, while the 7T launched in the fall.
