OnePlus 9R hands-on review

Introduction

Reviewing the OnePlus 9R feels like a deja vu. Except it's not just a fleeting feeling. We have reviewed this phone before. Back then it was known as the OnePlus 8T.

It's not often that we see a manufacturer launch pretty much the same phone twice in a row, but that appears to be the case here. Calling the OnePlus 9R similar to the OnePlus 8T would be an understatement. For all intents and purposes, they are almost exactly the same phone.

OnePlus 9R specs at a glance:

• Body: 161.0x74.1x8.4mm, 189g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frame.
• Display: 6.55" Fluid AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 402ppi; Always-on display.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8250-AC Snapdragon 870 5G (7 nm): Octa-core (1x3.2 GHz Kryo 585 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4x1.80 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.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 1/3.06", 1.0µm.
• 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, 1-100% in 39 min (advertised).
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC.

Okay, there are a few differences. Perhaps the most important one is the fact that the OnePlus 9R is currently exclusive to India, with no announced plans to release it elsewhere. Also, the OnePlus 9R is launching at a lower price than the OnePlus 8T did, starting at INR 39,999 versus the INR 43,999 of the OnePlus 8T.

The other differences are less meaningful. The OnePlus 9R runs on the new Snapdragon 870 instead of the 865. Calling it "new" is greatly exaggerating the situation, as it is essentially the same part as the 865 but with an overclock on the CPU and GPU. And finally, the OnePlus 9R has also received a slight facelift and comes in two new color options.

Is that enough for the OnePlus 9R to be a separate phone? We'll just have to find out.

Unboxing

The OnePlus 9R comes with a fairly standard OnePlus packaging, consisting of the phone, charger, cable, and a clear silicone case. The packaging is identical to the OnePlus 8T, except for one major difference.

Both the OnePlus 9R and 8T claim to come with the Warp Charge 65 charger, but they are not the same models. The OnePlus 8T comes with WC065A21GB in India, while the OnePlus 9R comes with WC065B22GB. The difference is that while both can send 65W of power to a compatible OnePlus device, the OnePlus 8T charger can also send up to 45W to a USB-Power Delivery (PD) and Programmable Power Supply (PPS) compatible devices.

OnePlus 8T charger on the left and OnePlus 9R charger on the right

On the other hand, the OnePlus 9R charger will fall back to standard 10W charging when connected to a non-OnePlus device. It also has a standard USB-A port, unlike the USB-C port on the 8T charger, which is necessary to support USB PD. This doesn't change anything for charging the OnePlus 9R itself. Still, if you also intend to use the charger for other devices around you, especially USB PD devices, then the OnePlus 9R charger isn't going to be anywhere as good as the OnePlus 8T's charger.