The OnePlus 9T has reportedly been canceled, according to leaker Max Jambor. In a two-word tweet, he spelled doom for the OnePlus flagship device, which was slated to launch in the latter half of 2021. We reached out to OnePlus, but the company declined to comment.
While not having the 9T could make some OnePlus fans sad, it probably isn't all that bad. There is no reason why the excellent OnePlus 9 needs a T successor this year. And it would keep OnePlus from adding to its messy portfolio of phones — something we've discussed a couple of times.
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Back in 2016, OnePlus revealed the OnePlus 3T, which had a few slight upgrades over the 3 that had released earlier that year. Then came the 5T, which introduced the 18:9 aspect ratio to OnePlus phones (and which was a good device in its own right). With the 6T came the first in-display fingerprint sensor for OnePlus, as well as a teardrop notch instead of the iPhone X-esque notch.
But when the OnePlus 7T and 7T Pro came out, there wasn't much innovation. The same held true for the 8T, which offered few tangible improvements over the OnePlus 8 from earlier in 2020. The T series has lost its steam and I don't think a 9T would add much, considering how good both the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro are.
No 9TJuly 27, 2021
It's not that surprising that OnePlus declined to comment on Jambor's tweet. There are still a couple of months to go before we'd see the OnePlus 9T. Plans could change between now and then, or OnePlus could clarify the issue later on.
The two-flagship-phones-per- year thing got old quick — people railed against Sony for doing the same thing, but OnePlus somehow got a pass from some fans. The T series introduced a feeling of FOMO, like you were losing out if you bought the early-year model. Perhaps OnePlus saw that the 9T could eat into the sales of the 9 and 9 Pro, and canceled the phone because of that.
Whatever the potential reason, we don't know anything right now. If you're holding off on purchasing a OnePlus 9 or OnePlus 9 Pro in case the 9T comes out, I'd encourage you to consider buying one of the existing 9 phones instead. They're very good, and will still be excellent phones whether the 9T comes out or not. You can play the waiting game in perpetuity and never truly win.
