OnePlus 8T hands-on review

Introduction

Six months after the launch of the OnePlus 8, the company has launched its successor in the form of the OnePlus 8T. The OnePlus 8T arrives in isolation without an accompanying OnePlus 8T Pro, as the existing OnePlus 8 Pro will continue to be the company flagship.

The OnePlus 8T features several changes across the board, including an updated display and camera system along with a radically improved charging system. The OnePlus 8T also launches with the new OxygenOS 11, which is based on the latest Android 11. And it does all of this at a lower price than the outgoing model.

OnePlus 8T specs at a glance:

• Body: 160.7x74.1x8.4mm, 188g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass), glass back (Gorilla Glass), aluminum frame; Colors: Aquamarine Green, Lunar Silver.
• Display: 6.55" Fluid AMOLED, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 402ppi; Always-on display.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8250 Snapdragon 865 (7 nm+): Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 585 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4x1.8 GHz Kryo 585); Adreno 650.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM; UFS 3.1.
• OS/Software: Android 11, OxygenOS 11.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 48 MP, f/1.7, 26mm, 1/2.0", 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 16 MP, f/2.2, 14mm, 123˚, 1/3.6", 1.0µm; Macro: 5 MP, f/2.4; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.4; Dual-LED flash, HDR, panorama.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 1/3.06", 1.0µm; Auto-HDR.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, Auto HDR, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS.
• Battery: 4500mAh; Fast charging 65W, 100% in 39 min (advertised).
• Misc: Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer (market dependant); NFC.

With the 8T, OnePlus will be competing in the increasingly competitive $700 segment. We have already seen some strong competition in the segment in the past from devices like the iPhone 11 and the recently launched Galaxy S20 FE. Google also just joined the fray with its new Pixel 5. As such, the OnePlus 8T has its work cut out for it.

In this review, we will see how much of an improvement the new OnePlus 8T is over its predecessor, how it compares against its closest rivals, and if it's worth your money.