It is the best OnePlus 11 flagship phone in years and is priced appropriately

OnePlus is at a crossroads. Although OnePlus 11 is all in one phone but the business that began with intriguing “flagship killers” is now better known for its mediocre cheap phones. But OnePlus intends to change that, and its new flagship phone, the OnePlus 11, is the first significant move in that direction.

As a fresh start, the OnePlus 11 comes with a new and more polished appearance including a stunning round camera system, but the larger changes are on the inside. It helps that all of this transformation is being driven by the excellent new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, one of the strongest mobile CPUs in recent years. The phone also has characteristic OnePlus features such as incredibly quick charging speeds and the handy Alert Slider.

Price when reviewed: €799.80 | Check price at Amazon

OnePlus 11 KEY FEATURES

The OnePlus 11 is an excellent all-rounder that meets the majority of the criteria for a flagship smartphone. Sure, there are some minor exclusions, such as wireless charging, but for the most part, the OnePlus 11 is a compelling alternative for the 2023 market. The 6.7-inch AMOLED display is one of the best available, with a 120Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision HDR compatibility, and LTPO 3.0 technology. Of course, all those pixels are powered by the latest and best Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, which is paired with up to 16GB RAM.

The photography department also gets a significant improvement, with a 2x telephoto camera with a large 32MP sensor and an ultrawide camera that is now 48MP and supports autofocus. Furthermore, the 11 now includes Hasselblad Color Calibration, which was not available in the 10T from last year. Oh, and the alert slider is back! Wireless charging is not on the menu this year, but we do have 100W fast charging practically everywhere except in the United States, where it is 80W, which is a welcome boost in both markets. It should charge the battery from flat to full in just 25 minutes. With Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, you can anticipate top-tier performance no matter what you’re doing.

Other notable features include sophisticated cooling gear, a Dolby Vision- and Dolby Atmos-tuned display, and speakers, respectively. This should enable a rich multimedia and gaming experience on the go. Of course, we put it to the test in the following pages, so stay tuned to find out if this year’s OnePlus phone is worth your hard-earned money.

ONEPLUS 11 UNBOXING

The OnePlus 11 comes in a traditional OnePlus-style huge, red box with all of the usual accessories, including user manuals, a USB-A to USB-C charging cable, and the requisite 100W charger. Interestingly, the OnePlus 10 Pro last year had a USB-C to USB-C cable. However, OnePlus stated that due to customer input, they decided to return to USB-A because most sockets and PCs still support the older standard, offering them greater flexibility.

There is no protective case this time around. Only Chinese customers receive an extra case.

CAMERA

• Capable triple camera rear configuration.
• Significant improvement in low-light photography.
• The selfie camera is relatively rudimentary in contrast.

The OnePlus 11’s rear camera consists of three lenses: a 50MP f/1.8 IMX890 main sensor with optical image stabilization (OIS), a 48MP f/2.2 IMX581 ultra-wide sensor (with a 115-degree field of view), and a 32MP f/2.0 IMX709 portrait lens with 2x optical zoom, which the company claims allows for DSLR-quality portraits. The configuration is much different from last year, with the portrait lens replacing the telephoto lens and the sensors changing. The cameras here, like those on the OnePlus 10 Pro, have Hasselblad branding and technology, but there is also a new 13-channel multi-spectral sensor for light-color detection, which should improve photo color accuracy.

The OnePlus 11 main camera captures warmer colors with a moderate amount of saturation. Images are contrasty, with deep blacks, and we enjoy the overall look; it’s a little more toned down than your usual Samsung phone, but considerably more bright than a Google Pixel, so it strikes a solid balance.

The OnePlus performs admirably in low-light conditions. Exposure is decent, detail is slightly sharper than ideal, but not as intense as on the latest iPhone 14 Pro or Galaxy S23 Ultra, which is a good thing.

During the day, the OnePlus 11’s ultra-wide camera favors richer colors and a brighter exposure, just like the main camera. This is one of the greatest ultra-wide cameras we’ve tried in 2023, and the photographs look amazing both day and night.

The OnePlus 11 lacks a dedicated long-range zoom camera, but it does a good job with digital zoom. Sure, it’s a step back from phones like the Pixel 7 Pro, which has a 5X zoom camera, or the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which has two zoom cameras, one 3X and the other 10X, but it’s not far behind.

The camera app has 1X and 2X portrait capabilities. The 1X simulates a 3.5/30mm Hasselblad XCD lens, while the 2X mimics a 2.8/65mm Hasselblad XCD lens with interesting swirly bokeh.

Portrait mode on the Pixel employs very crude cuts from the primary camera, and the quality is the lowest of any current flagship. The OnePlus 11, on the other hand, can take really good portrait mode photos, and the 2X zoom lens is a godsend for portraiture.

For selfies, the differences between the two are highlighted, as the OnePlus catches a brighter exposure than usual, while the Pixel records a darker and moodier photo. Both aren’t ideal, but if we had to choose one, we’d opt for the OnePlus’ brighter shots.

The video may be recorded in up to 8K quality at 24fps or up to 4K at 60fps, and there is a 16MP f/2.4 selfie camera.

DESIGN AND SCREEN

• New circular camera housing on the back.
• Excellent construction quality.
• Top-end 6.7-inch AMOLED display with LTPO 3.0

First and foremost, it’s worth mentioning that there is now only one OnePlus 11 model, the OnePlus 11 5G, which has specifications comparable to a Pro model. As a result, a separate OnePlus 11 Pro is unlikely to be released later, while a OnePlus 11T may appear later in 2023.

In any event, the OnePlus 11 features a new round stainless steel camera module, but it otherwise looks quite similar to the OnePlus 10 Pro, with a glass back in Eternal Green or Titan Black, a metal frame, and a punch-hole camera on the screen.

The black color appears to be inspired by black holes, whilst the green color is supposed to be inspired by a rainforest at sunset. On March 29, OnePlus expanded on the cosmic motif by releasing the OnePlus 11 Jupiter Rock version. This limited-edition variant, available only in China and India, is made of a completely different material from the worldwide OnePlus 11. To construct the phone, the business claims to have used 3D microcrystalline rock and whole new tooling procedures.

HOW’S THE PERFORMANCE?

The OnePlus 11 is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 CPU, which is the fastest in the Android market as of 2023.

The base version of the phone comes with 8GB of RAM, which is adequate, but if you choose the 256GB version, you get the OnePlus 11 with an impressive 16GB of RAM. This is an incredible amount of RAM, and it’s a worthwhile upgrade. According to OnePlus, the standard 8GB RAM OnePlus 11 version can have 18 apps running in the background, whereas the 16GB RAM model can have an amazing 44 apps running. We haven’t tested it, but this is the type of performance you’d expect from a higher-end phone. In terms of RAM, the OnePlus 11 outperforms the Galaxy S23 Ultra, Pixel 7 Pro, and nearly every other phone on the market, except the gaming-focused Asus ROG Phone.

This is perhaps the fourth or fifth phone we’ve used with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip in 2023, and none of them have had such significant throttling. We don’t think this is a big deal for casual players, but if you want to play Genshin Impact on the highest settings, you’ll probably be disappointed.

When it comes to CPU performance, the OnePlus 11 is a significant improvement over the previous generation and roughly online with the other 2023 Android flagships. For gaming, we ran the 3D Mark Wildlife Extreme test for 20 minutes, which revealed very harsh throttling on the OnePlus 11. In only 3 or 4 minutes, performance diminishes dramatically.

This is perhaps the fourth or fifth phone we’ve used with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip in 2023, and none of them have had such significant throttling. We don’t think this is a big deal for casual players, but if you want to play Genshin Impact on the highest settings, you’ll probably be disappointed.

The OnePlus 11 is available in 128GB or 256GB storage options, with the 256GB version including the newer and quicker UFS 4.0 storage, which is one compelling reason to buy it. This newer storage standard significantly improves read/write rates and enables smaller chips. UFS 4.0 offers twice the read speeds of UFS 3.1, reaching up to 4,200MB/s for reading and 2,800MB/s for writing.

The RAM in the OnePlus 11 is also of the faster LPDDR5X variety, which provides a 33% speed boost and is 20% more energy efficient than the previous generation.