Could the $299 OnePlus One smartphone be a true Nexus killer?

[Shawn Knight]

A new smartphone called the OnePlus One offers virtually everything you could want in a high-end handset at a fraction of the price. It’s still too early to know for sure but could this be a legit Nexus killer?

The feature-packed handset ships with a 5.5-inch 1080p IPS display coated in Gorilla Glass 3 and is powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC clocked at 2.5GHz alongside 3GB of RAM.

The phone boasts a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera from Sony that can capture 4K resolution video, a 5-megapixel shooter on the front, dual-band 802.11 ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GSM, WCDMA, LTE and a 3,100mAh non-removable battery.

It’ll run a modified version of Android known as CyanogenMod with a nod toward enthusiasts. As you may already know, this Android fork offers up a ton of customization options including the ability to flash ROMs, encrypt SMS and more.

Pricing starts at $299 for a 16GB model in white. If you need more storage (note there is no microSD card slot), a 64GB model in black will only set you back $349. Expect to see the OnePlus One arrive first in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, United Kingdom and the United States by the middle of next month.

Do you think this phone has what it takes to make mainstream OEMs pay attention or will it simply be reserved for the hardcore enthusiast?

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https://www.techspot.com/news/56505-could-the-299-oneplus-one-smartphone-be-a-true-nexus-killer.html

 

[Guest]

I don't know if this will be a nexus killer but it sounds pretty decent for the price not to give it a go.

But seriously I am on this site everyday reading articles and trying to find out lately what was a decent phone to get, and this would of been an option. But I literally just ordered a new phone 12 hours ago.

Damn it to hell.

 

[Gaara]

Wow look good

 

[Guest]

Looks decent? It has better specs than most phones and runs a popular mod. Modders and enthusiast will like.
It may not be for your average user as most have no clue or care about mods. This phone won't be for everyone but if it does well expect for people to start hearing about in the coming months. Won't be easy with Apple getting ready to announce the iphone 6 and Samsung readying to release the Note 4. Both phones, whether you like them or not, sell very very well.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

It looks good and is definitely an enthusiasts phone and the price is hard to snub your nose at. I'd be hesitant about buying a brand of phone that isn't made by one of the big boys but who knows how this will turn out. Maybe this will launch them into the big league, if it does their next model will definitely be something to watch out for.

 

[Jad Chaar]

Interesting how it runs CyanogenMod out of the box. If this phone had an SD card slot it would be a true Nexus killer.

 

[veLa]

Seems amazing for the price.

 

[Burty117]

64GB White model, I am sold, I love my iPhone but I want to get into Android, so far I haven't had a very good experience, this phone sounds like it was literally made for me, a modders dream and powerful, This might just be the phone to change my opinion on Android. I was genuinely looking at the Nexus but now this, this is even better.

 

[Guest17]

If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is. And this, alas, sounds too good to be true.

 

[Guest]

4k Recording. Oh My!

 

[Dukenukemx]

But no SD Card slot. Screw that.

 

[matrix86]

Uhg, can we please get over this 5+ inch bullsh*t? I love these new phones coming out but I HATE the sizes. I want a phone I can easily operate with one hand.

 

[Guest]

If the spec and the price are the same as described above, then it could be not just a nexus killer, maybe S5 killer too

 

[Nobina]

Wait, $299 with or without the contract? It looks nice except the 5.5 inch display which is too big.

 

[Kezhen Gao]

Wait, $299 with or without the contract? It looks nice except the 5.5 inch display which is too big.

I am guessing this phone is starting at $299 unlocked, and not on a contract.

 

[IAMTHESTIG]

Looks great! I'm fine with the 5.5" screen though, I don't want smaller. The 5.0" on my Sony Xperia Z is just a tad smaller than I like.

Speaking of the Xperia... this video shows the phone getting sprinkled on with water. Are they hinting it will be water resistant? That would be a nice touch.

 

[p51d007]

It's built on the same assembly line as the Oppo Find7, according to Cnet, not that it is a problem.
349(usd) for a 5.5 IPS 1080P, 3gb ram, 64gb storage, 3100mA battery?
IF this starts to sell and sell big, hopefully it will start a trend in getting the big boys to drop their prices a bit. What could be happening also, is they are selling at a financial loss, for a period time, to grab market share, then jack the price up later in a few years.

 

[Nobina]

Yeah, this would be good if more companies made phones like this. They don't have to be cutting edge, but something that can be cheap so in a few years we have large amount of phones we can choose from that aren't expensive as iPhone but with mediocre specs.

 

[Guest]

Reliability is what counts it may have lots of bells and whistles but if it is buggy there is no point.

 

[Archean]

But no SD Card slot. Screw that.

Google is starting to make SD Card redundant, with 'forced' changes the way they apps are allowed to access them (Link with solution for now). Google's real intentions at this moment may not be clear on this, but many believe they want to push users towards everything cloud. So, with all major OEMs following Google on this one, SD Card viability in the longer run (on Android) may be in question.

 

[Guest]

Pretty awesome but it's weird they make an android phone on an apple

 

[Railman]

But no SD Card slot. Screw that.

Google is starting to make SD Card redundant, with 'forced' changes the way they apps are allowed to access them (Link with solution for now). Google's real intentions at this moment may not be clear on this, but many believe they want to push users towards everything cloud. So, with all major OEMs following Google on this one, SD Card viability in the longer run (on Android) may be in question.

Not keen on the push to the Cloud. There are many places that mobile internet is patchy or non existent. For example mobile reception whilst on my train to work. Can you get a micro USB data stick?

 

[Dukenukemx]

Google is starting to make SD Card redundant, with 'forced' changes the way they apps are allowed to access them (Link with solution for now). Google's real intentions at this moment may not be clear on this, but many believe they want to push users towards everything cloud. So, with all major OEMs following Google on this one, SD Card viability in the longer run (on Android) may be in question.

Someone will always make a phone with a SD card. I don't like buying a 16GB phone, when my current 3 year old phone has more storage then that, cause of the SD Card. It's also far cheaper then buying the 32GB or 64GB phones. Not to forget, swappable.

As it is when I reach my data cap, then T-Mobile throttles my speed down, making even YouTube videos unplayable. Makes me mad that I didn't download the video onto my SD Card and save myself the trouble. Why in the hell does anyone believe that Cloud services still have a chance in hell for the future?

 

[St1ckM4n]

I'm concerned that there's no detailed view of the front, including screen bezel size.

 

[Guest]

NO