If you've been following the rumors surrounding the OnePlus Z, you may know OnePlus is planning to launch a more affordable handset that still promises big power. A Geekbench 5 listing purportedly sourced from the new phone (via Pocketnow) has given us a sense of just how strong OnePlus' upcoming budget-minded bruiser could be.
The listing links a phone with the model designation OnePlus AC2003 to an octa-core Qualcomm chipset with a base clock speed of 1.8GHz, alongside a generous 12GB of RAM. That chip is believed to be the Snapdragon 765G — one of Qualcomm's few 5G chipsets aside from its 865 series processors that appear in more premium handsets, like the OnePlus 8 and Samsung Galaxy S20.
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With that chip, the OnePlus Z is reportedly able to achieve a multi-core Geekbench 5 score of 1,955 points. That's considerably faster than some recent midrange phones we've seen, like the TCL 10 Pro (1,604) and last year's still-compelling Google Pixel 3a (1,336). Unsurprisingly, it's also far off from Snapdragon 865-powered phones, like the OnePlus 8 (3,387), even with all that RAM on board. And forget about challenging the low-cost iPhone SE 2020 (3,226 on Geekbench 5) and its surprisingly powerful A13 Bionic processor.
Now, this isn't the first time we've seen the Snapdragon 765G chip linked to the OnePlus Z. The earliest rumors suggested OnePlus might elect to go with MediaTek Dimensity silicon for the device, though more recent leaks have suggested the company has chosen Qualcomm power instead.
It's too early to say quite how expensive the OnePlus Z will be, but we can look at OnePlus' existing range for a bit of perspective. Currently, the OnePlus 8 starts at $699, so we reckon $599 would probably be the upper limit for OnePlus could charge for this device while still ensuring it serves a different slice of the market. Personally, we'd like to see the OnePlus Z slot in at $449 or $499 to compete against the iPhone SE 2020 and Google Pixel 4a. However, given the phone's 5G connectivity, that simply might not be feasible.
Regardless, the OnePlus Z could be one of the cheapest 5G phones on the market when it launches, and one of the best performing in the midrange category. The Snapdragon 765 isn't a flagship processor, though its performance should suffice for most users.
Furthermore, if OnePlus opts for the "G" gaming variant of the 765, as has been rumored, the phone's graphical capabilities should be strong enough to handle just about any modern mobile title at middle-of-the-road settings — offering a path to quality mobile gaming that's far more affordable than the four-digit flagships so many companies have been launching as of late. Rumor has it the OnePlus Z could even sport a 90Hz display as well.
We don't exactly know when the OnePlus Z will surface, though some rumors have pointed to the launch coming as soon as July — so stay tuned.
