TechRadar Verdict
OnePlus 7 is the most balanced phone you will probably hold in your hands this year. It's got a design that works with some minor touch-ups, a great viewing experience, sheer power under the hood and decent pair of cameras that won't let you miss any moment. On combining these elements with OxygenOS optimizations, we have a great flagship phone that does the basics right and then some.
Pros
- +
Value for money
- +
Great viewing experience
- +
Extremely powerful
- +
Slickest UI ever
- +
Superior audio experience
- +
Respectable battery life
Cons
- -
No Type-C to 3.5 mm headphone jack adapter
- -
Cameras need more polishing
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OnePlus 7 went on sale earlier this week. Launched alongside the OnePlus 7 Pro which took away all the limelight, the OnePlus 7 is as premium a smartphone as they come. While the Pro variant places itself in a superior segment of phones, the regular chap keeps its foundations strong with a great quality-to-price ratio. With the OnePlus 7, the changes are mostly internal over last year’s OnePlus 6T.
However, OnePlus is still selling that phone at a lower price which leads us to certain questions. Why should one get the OnePlus 7? Are the internal upgrades enough to influence potential buyers? What about the owners of OnePlus 6T, should they switch base? Who should buy the OnePlus 7?
I have tried to answer these questions and a couple more in this review of the OnePlus 7.
OnePlus 7 price and availability
OnePlus 7 is available in India starting at Rs 32,999 for the variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB storage. Another variant with 8GB of RAM and 256GB storage costs Rs 37,999 and also comes in Red color (exclusive to India and China) along with Mirror Gray finish.
Interested users can head to Amazon India, OnePlus India Store and OnePlus Experience centers to purchase the OnePlus 7.
OnePlus 7 also comes in Nebula Blue colour variant just like its elder sibling which was launched earlier this week during Amazon Prime Day 2020 sale in India. It has 6GB of RAM and 128GB storage and is priced at Rs 32,999. A maxed out Nebula Blue OnePlus 7 with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage hasn't been announced yet.
Design
Cosmetically, there aren’t many differences between the OnePlus 7 and 6T, except for the noticeably protruding camera module and the wide mesh for speakers. Other than the larger sensor, there doesn’t seem to be a logical reason behind this increase in the width of the camera module, which also houses the LED flash now.
So, other than this minute detail, OnePlus 7 embody’s much of the profile of the 6T. The chassis is aluminum and it even measures the same. It is the thickest at 8.2mm. Interestingly, the OnePlus 7 weighs 182 grams which is 3 grams less than the 6T. Practically speaking though, regular users wouldn’t notice the difference. Having said that, between the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro, I’d much rather prefer the ergonomics of the former. It feels solid in the hand but more than that it comfortably fits in small to medium hands and can be used with ease. The same can’t be said for the Pro variant.
The back of the phone is covered in Gorilla Glass 6 which tapers towards the edges that make for a snuggly grip. Then again, the glass is something that makes it vulnerable to fingerprints. So if you plan to use the OnePlus 7 without a cover, it’s going to be a tough road ahead for you keeping that gorgeous back smudge free.
The company does provide a transparent case with the phone in-the-box that should help to keep this issue at bay, but if you’re planning to get the Red colour variant, we recommend going for the red TPU case the company offers for the OnePlus 7.
Talking about colours, OnePlus 7 is available in two hues- Mirror Gray and Red. The former looks supremely classy and the dark garnet shade oozes every bit of elegance with a glossy finish.
To sum it up, OnePlus 7 has a functional design that looks and feels premium. For me personally, though, I’d have loved to see a smaller OnePlus 7, possibly with the Nebula Blue colour that graces the OnePlus 7 Pro.
Display
OnePlus 7 carries the same display from the OnePlus 6T. It is a 6.41-inch, Full HD+ (2340 x 1080 pixels) resolution screen with a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The AMOLED panel has been sourced from Samsung and supports DCI-P3 and sRGB colour gamut. The screen is topped with 2.5D Gorilla Glass 6 for added protection against drops or marks from daily wear and tear. The phones are additionally shipped with a pre-applied screen guard.
Unlike the Pro variant, OnePlus 7 has a waterdrop notch on the front and while many won’t consider that to be an upgrade, it does its part in offering the best viewing experience possible. Of course, there’s the OnePlus 7 Pro with a notch-less curved screen, but then there’s a premium that comes along with those upgrades.
A couple of additional features include-- night mode, reading mode and video enhancer that fine tunes the colour during video playback. Here, I’d also like to mention that the optical fingerprint sensor embedded into the display has been upgraded to a 3-element lens and a larger sensor. This results in upto 38% faster unlock speed over the 6T and it shows in our usage as well.
OnePlus offers a better viewing experience with every update and the OnePlus 7 is a testament to that. Rest assured, watching content on the phone is a delight and the addition of stereo speakers ups the experience by manifolds. To add a cherry on the cake, recently Netflix also certified the phone along with the Pro model for HDR10, which means, it is one of the best screens to binge-watch your favorite shows on.
