OnePlus 15R

The OnePlus 15R has many of the same strengths as the more expensive OP15, but shaves off $200 off by compromising on cameras.

The 15R can go days on a single charge, but its lackluster camera and comparatively high $699 price make it hard to recommend.

OnePlus decided to give its latest R-series phone a personality transplant, with a stronger focus on gaming. The OnePlus 15R has the performance, battery life and display responsiveness to justify this new approach. But a price increase and the removal of a telephoto camera make it harder to recommend this as a flagship alternative.

Because the OnePlus 15R makes a lot more sense as an affordable Android flagship that still delivers on the basics of performance metrics and class-leading battery life. So, if that’s what you’re looking for, you won’t be disappointed.

OnePlus chose not to skimp on the 15R's display or the battery, and would rather make its cuts by going with a slightly less powerful processor, skipping wireless charging and omitting the telephoto camera. The result is a mighty $700 phone, even if it's noticeably not going to outdo the more expensive OnePlus 15.

With a 165Hz display, 7,400mAh battery, and Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip, the OnePlus 15R is a dream phone for spec-heads. While all of those things are great, missing features, confusing software choices, and another price increase make the 15R a complicated recommendation.

The OnePlus 15R smartphone is a great mid-tier device if you don’t think you will ever use a telephoto lens—and you use yours more than you think. The battery is outstanding, and gaming performance is great. I just can’t stomach the lens loss.

I don't get what OnePlus wants to achieve with the 15R; earlier devices in the R series delivered a good value and exceled as all-rounders, but you just don't get that here. Yes, you get a massive battery and great performance, but that's the case with every phone. OnePlus deciding to not include a dedicated telephoto camera on the 15R basically kills the device, even if it has a decent 50MP main lens.