Introduction
There's a new OnePlus 6T flagship in town, one uniquely similar and all the while, different from its predecessor. A new and bigger AMOLED panel, with a smaller notch and cutting-edge in-display fingerprint reader, plus a bigger battery pretty much define the upgrade over the OnePlus 6. However, the OnePlus 6T also marks the official removal of the headphone jack - surely, a downgrade and sad occasion for many long-term fans.
OnePlus's success is one of the textbook examples of viral online marketing in the smartphone industry. The Chinese manufacturer has built its reputation as an enthusiasts brand up from total obscurity relying on cutthroat pricing, lofty slogans and a loyal, tight-knit community.
A hip, fan-friendly public image is great to have and OnePlus managed to craft one for itself truly masterfully. However, when it actually comes time to mass-produce handsets, the manufacturing realities ruling the parent company BBK Electronics Corporation impose a whole other set of necessities. In this regard, OnePlus, Vivo, Oppo, and even the young Realme are all subject to pretty much the same limitations and constraints that the whole industry abides by. And OnePlus is no longer positioned as the market disruptor it used to be so we can't realistically expect more.
Unboxing
That experience starts with the package and accessories. In a way, the brand itself has added value. Few companies have managed to craft such an appealing signature image as OnePlus. Everything from the "Never Settle" slogan and mission statement it conveys to the recognizable logo design and materials, and the exclusive materials such as sandstone or wood have remained part of the package the consumer is getting. What's more, you can accessorize the OnePlus 6T heavily to the point it even matches your attire on different occasions and OnePlus would love it if you consider them a lifestyle brand for the fashion-conscious.
This approach and the attention to detail have served them well. The retail package of our OnePlus 6T review unit is nothing short of a perfect embodiment of the company's long-standing PR image efforts. It includes things like inspirational quotes and a letter from the CEO. All of them making it abundantly clear that you - the OnePlus community is at the core of the company itself.
There are no headphones in the box, although, there is, at least a little Type-C to 3.5mm adapter included. On the other hand, we can't really complain too much, since our box came with a thick clear rubber case. Another level of protection you get, out of the box is a precision-cut, pre-applied screen protector. It's not glass, but still looks and feels pretty good
Design and 360-degree spin
Circling back to the whole BBK Electronics Corporation ownership situation, it's pretty easy to understand the design trends and limitations the lines of Oppo, Realme, Vivo and OnePlus have to work with.
Overall, you get the same familiar metal frame, glass sandwich design. It is still the prevalent look of the day. The OnePlus 6T is 2mm taller than its predecessor and about 5% thicker, also a bit heavier. Still, it does include a larger battery and bigger display. Unfortunately, ingress protection is still not on the OnePlus list of features. However, the front protective glass layer has seen a upgrade to the new Gorilla Glass 6 material, compared to Gorilla Glass 5 on the OnePlus 6.
In case this is your first encounter with the tech, it does have certain limitations to overcome. Since the reader is optical by nature and placed a few inches away from the display glass surface, reading requires plenty of light and good transparency (which the OLED panel provides), a good and wide surface area without a lot of motion and a second or two to complete. Hence, for the best result, you need to get the finger placement right on top of the reader, conveniently marked with an on-screen circular animation then press slightly harder, so your finger spreads out more and doesn't move too much.
Enough beating about the notch then, shifting our eyes up a bit from the trendy in-display fingerprint reader, we instantly spot the "teardrop" notch - another 2018 trend. Now, we won't go defending the notch design regardless the shape or size it comes in. However, to OnePlus's (or rather BBK's) credit, the one on the OnePlus 6T is really small. Definitely a lot less intrusive than the one on the OnePlus 6. Well, a hole is still a hole and if you really despise it, you will probably have to hide it from the settings menu and sacrifice a bit of screen real estate.
Display
Now, compromising on quality of life extras like ingress protection or stereo speakers is one thing, but an inferior display is something central to a phone's experience, which will definitely drag it down. Thankfully, OnePlus has its priorities straight in this regard. Aside from the questionable notch, the 6.4-inch AMOLED panel on the OnePlus 6T has little faults to speak of.
At 6.41 inches in diagonal, it is definitely a step up in size from its predecessor. Of course, not all of that screen real estate is created equal or universally usable, due to the "skinny" 19.5:9 aspect ratio. For most vertically scrolling UI components, like lists and web pages it works pretty well. Multimedia is a bit of a different story.
Resolution is still set at an ultra-wide FullHD of 2340 x 1080 pixels, in this particular case. This is both a cost-saving measure and potentially a small battery-conserving one. Frankly, at 402 ppi, we still find the picture on screen perfectly sharp.
Battery life
Looking at a quick specs comparison between the OnePlus 6T and its predecessor, one thing almost instantly sticks out - the 400mAh or so, bump up in battery capacity. The handset now rocks a 3,700mAh pack, which is only natural, considering its bigger display and bigger body, all around.
The OnePlus 6T scored a great 90 hour total endurance rating in our battery test. Looking back at the OnePlus 6 and its endurance rating, the variance in individual on-screen tests, namely web browsing and video playback mostly falls in line well with the increase in battery capacity.
Now, we've already established that you don't get any fancy new ultra-fast charging tech with the OnePlus 6T, a la Oppo's new 50W standard. Still, the trusty old 20W technology (even if they've dropped the Dash name) is still speedy and efficient and safe in its "divide and conquer" approach to charging two halves of the battery simultaneously. With the included wall charger, the OnePlus 6T managed to get from 0% to 55% in 30 minutes, and a full charge was completed in just over an hour.
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