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OnePlus Open Review |
Another day. Another foldable. Yes, 2023 saw the introduction of foldable cellphones into common parlance. People on the metro, chatty coffee drinkers at the table next to me, friends, and many more can't quit raving over the foldable (in this case, the OnePlus Open) in my hand/on the table. They may not buy one right away because the cost needs to be considered, but the majority of them anticipate themselves wanting to acquire one sooner than later. The potential for foldables is enormous.
Earlier this year, Samsung introduced the Galaxy Z Fold 5, and now the OnePlus Open has joined a slew of other folding smartphones. I've been using the OnePlus Open for over two weeks, and I'm quite impressed. Foldables have come, and how. The OnePlus Open isn't ideal (it wobbles when placed on a flat surface), but it's quite excellent. So much so that I've totally forgotten about the Galaxy Z Fold 5. Samsung is on its sixth generation of Galaxy Fold phones, whereas OnePlus is on its first.
The OnePlus Open is available in a single 16GB RAM + 512GB storage configuration in two colors, Emerald Dusk and Voyager Black, for a hefty price starts at $1,700. That's a lot to pay for a smartphone.
What is OnePlus Open?
The OnePlus Open features a 6.31-inch cover display. The display is Dual 2K OLED (with a resolution of 2484x1116, a refresh rate of 120Hz, and a peak brightness of 2,800 nits). When unfurled, the OnePlus Open has a 7.82-inch display (with a 2440x2268 resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, and a peak brightness of 2,800 nits). OnePlus has attempted to reduce the look of the wrinkle, and it shows.
When unfurled, the OnePlus Open measures just 5.8mm thin and weighs 239 grams. The smartphone is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 CPU. As previously stated, you receive 16GB of LPDDR5x RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.0 storage.
The rear panel features a triple camera setup. There are three cameras: a 48MP main (Sony LYT-T808), a 64MP OmniVision telephoto (with 3x optical zoom), and a 48MP ultra-wide angle lens (Sony IMX581). The front-facing cameras are 20MP primary and 32MP secondary.
The smartphone has a 4,805mAh battery and supports 67W SuperVOOC charging. There is an 80W SuperVOOC adaptor in the box. The smartphone runs OxygenOS 13.2 (which is based on Android 13).
Connectivity options include 5G, Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3, a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, USB Type-C connector, an alert slider, and more.
The OnePlus Open's hinge is one of its most remarkable features (particularly if you've already experienced a foldable smartphone). When open, it lies perfectly flat. The hinge is designed for 1,000,000 folds, which is absurd. The crease is present, but hardly perceptible. The sole disadvantage is that the smartphone does not "lock" into angles as quickly as the Galaxy Z Fold 5.
The OnePlus Open is slimmer than the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and weighs less. At times, it seems like a regular clamshell smartphone, which is the highest compliment a foldable can receive.
Even with its debut foldable smartphone, OnePlus has come out strong. It's an amazing design, and there's not much to complain about.
With booklike foldables, you want to utilize the external screen for the most of your day. When you want to multitask, watch the India vs Australia T20I action, or simply play games, you should crank the screen up. The exterior screen should feel familiar, and OnePlus has done exactly that.
Where can one find fault with OnePlus' hardware, you ask? The OnePlus Open only has an IPX4 certification, but the Galaxy Z Fold 5 has an IPX8 rating.
When the phone is closed and placed on a table, it continually wobbles, which is my issue with this smartphone. There's a huge camera bump on the rear. The camera boost is justified (more on that later), but it isn't completely worth it.
The king of foldable smartphone displays
Thanks to the bigger 20:9 aspect ratio on the outside display, I can do many of my regular duties without having to unfold this smartphone. Along with the 2,800 nits of peak brightness on both panels, I never have to worry about readability, indoors or out.
Both screens on the OnePlus Open are stunning. As previously said, they become brilliant, with rich and vibrant hues and crisp writing. Scrolling is quite smooth (due to the 120Hz refresh rate). The interior display has an anti-reflective coating (which helps to hide the crease) that is useful when unfurled outside in bright sunshine.
It's enjoyable to watch sports, movies, YouTube videos, and other content on the internal display. I've just enjoyed unfolding it at a café (to everyone's astonishment) and consuming stuff on a wider canvas.
With the larger display, it is much easier to examine spreadsheets, take notes, and chart (for the stock market).
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| OnePlus Open Review |
Yes, the OnePlus Open is not ideal. Despite its excellent performance, OxygenOS falls short in a few critical areas. Multitasking is the finest I've seen in a foldable, however for some reason, I can't launch three apps as I desire. Let me clarify. I cannot have two applications in a top-bottom split and one on the side. This means you can't engage with all three applications at once. Swiping with four fingers allows you to compress the applications and display them all on the same screen. At that time, you may interact with them all at once. In summary, it's doable but inconvenient, especially on a tiny canvas.
The OnePlus Open runs OxygenOS 13.2, and the company promises four years of OS upgrades and five years of security patches. This is a good change from OnePlus' prior approach. For the most part, OxygenOS 13.2 runs smoothly, and there is little learning curve. It's clean and has its own set of improvements. In addition, there is an alert slider that allows you to rapidly mute your smartphone.
Here are some more disadvantages of the OnePlus Open:
- It falls one step behind Samsung's four-app multitasking approach.
- The OnePlus Open is certified IPX4, whilst the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is rated IPX*.
- There is no wireless charging. This isn't a dealbreaker, but it's still a negative.
- Fast charging is only compatible with OnePlus' proprietary charger.
- There is no DisplayPort over USB-C capability.
The first foldable device with flagship-level cameras
There is a big circular camera module on the rear that OnePlus has installed. It causes the phone to wobble on a flat surface, but not without reason. The OnePlus Open features one of the greatest camera configurations seen on a foldable smartphone to date. OnePlus' cooperation with Hasselblad is still going strong, and it's beginning to pay off. I won't go into detail about each sensor, but let me tell you about the cameras' capabilities.
Sony's primary sensor measures 48MP. There are two cameras: a 48MP ultrawide and a 64MP telephoto with 3x optical zoom. When utilizing the inside display, the selfie camera is 20MP, and on the front (cover screen), it is 32MP.
The cameras are just amazing for a foldable smartphone. They consistently outperform Samsung and other competitors. When shooting with the primary sensor, the color science is spot on. The primary sensor shines in favorable lighting situations and has a wide dynamic range. It occasionally gets washed out/burned out, such as when shooting directly at the sun, but it typically performs well.
The OnePlus Open cameras occasionally oversaturate photographs and perform poorly with skin tones, but for the most part, they do it right.
Overall, the colours are fantastic, the crispness is present, and OnePlus has kept the details. The secondary lenses provide adequate support for the main sensor, and the inclusion of the periscope zoom lens adds the cherry on top. With decent zoom at 3x and 6x, we're all satisfied.
Nighttime photography isn't the greatest in the business, nor are portrait photographs. But the OnePlus Open isn't far behind the competition, which says a lot. The OnePlus Open shoots similarly to the OnePlus 11 while also improving in several areas. I found myself using the OnePlus Open's cameras more than any of the other smartphones I was carrying.
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| OnePlus Open Review |
The basic answer is "yes." With a varied usage pattern, I consistently went to bed with at least 15% of the battery remaining. That's excellent. The OnePlus Open features a 4,805mAh battery. Along with the economical Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 CPU, this is a winner.
I utilized both the outer and inner displays for much of the day, and if I didn't game, I could easily go a day and a half before needing to charge the smartphone.
Using the OnePlus charging brick (included in the box), the smartphone charged from 0% to 100% in 50 minutes. There is no wireless charging, however.
A first attempt that deserves your hard-earned money.
For a first try, OnePlus did an excellent job with both hardware and software. The OnePlus Open is unquestionably the greatest foldable smartphone available in India. It might be because it is less expensive than the Galaxy Z Fold 5, or because it features flagship-level cameras. It might also be because the broader canvas is a pleasant sight to the eyes.
OnePlus has discovered the correct hardware mix and produced a smartphone that will be talked about for months to come. It's lightweight and feels natural in the hand when closed. It has high-quality displays and a reliable camera. You have high performance and great thermal management. The battery life is really reliable.
It's a difficult phone to recommend, as are all foldable phones. Some argue that Google's software is superior on the Pixel Fold (but not available in India) and Samsung's accessory network is larger (correct, but more expensive). Then there's Tecno's considerably cheaper foldable smartphone, which isn't really impressive.
One has great expectations for OxygenOS 14 (albeit it appears to be a disaster right now). Still, OnePlus has gotten a lot of things right, and I've had more pleasure evaluating this smartphone than I have in recent years.
The OnePlus Open does a lot of things right, but it's not perfect, and that's how I'll wrap up my reviews of all the foldable smartphones I've reviewed. I see certain opportunities for development in the firm. OnePlus, for its part, has caused Samsung and others to sit up and take note. Nobody can rely on their design anymore. Nobody can merely evolve. Currently, the game of foldable cellphones is to see who takes the next huge jump.
Until then, my top option among foldable smartphones is the OnePlus Open, despite its high price.