There's now little doubt that OnePlus is working on a new rear camera design for an upcoming handset, after another image showing the rumored layout appeared.
The shot comes from reliable leaker @evleaks, who posted the image on Twitter in response to a post from December 2018 by a different leaker who published an image showing OnePlus CEO, Pete Lau, in a meeting looking at a screen with the design in question displayed on it.
Leaks say that the handset is expected to launch soon, but just exactly how soon is still up for debate. We expect the OnePlus 7T and OnePlus 7T Pro launch to happen sometime in October (going on the firm's previous launch record) - but the 'T' variants tend to be incremental upgrades from the year's earlier device launch.
The leaked images show a radical design shift from the rear camera setup on the back of the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro, and it would be surprising - but not out of the question - if OnePlus made the switch for the 7T series.
- The Google Pixel 4 could arrive at a similar time
- But first we'll see the iPhone 11
- And have you checked out these 5G phones?
Could this be the OnePlus 8?
Another option is the handset we're looking at here is actually the OnePlus 8 or OnePlus 8 Pro, which we don't expect to arrive until May 2020.
We'd expect the 8 series to feature bigger upgrades over the 7 and 7T devices, and an overhaul of design has - in the past - usually been reserved for OnePlus' new number models.
There's also the option that we'll never see a OnePlus device with this particular rear camera design, as we could just been looking at prototype concepts which may not see the light of day.
If the leaked design is accurate, it means a major photography update could well be in line for future OnePlus smartphones - although details on what will be housed in the large black circle are still unknown for now.
