OnePlus 10T review: Speed above all

When OnePlus does a mid-year refresh of its telephones, sometimes you find yourself with a barely snappier gadget with a handful of slight refinements. However with the brand new OnePlus 10T, it appears like lots was sacrificed for the sake of going all-in on velocity. Updates embrace a sooner Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, a 120Hz show with an adaptive refresh charge, even sooner charging and a few tweaks for improved wi-fi connectivity. Sadly, OnePlus’ signature Alert Slider and wi-fi charging have been eliminated, and water resistance is weak. So whereas the 10T is a stable gadget with an inexpensive value of $649, it would not have the identical mass attraction as a few of OnePlus’ earlier choices.

Design

For the 10T’s design, OnePlus recycled the template it created for the ten Professional, however with some cost-saving tweaks. You get Gorilla Glass 5 in back and front, with the jade inexperienced mannequin sporting the graceful, shiny end you’d anticipate. However on our Moonstone black evaluation unit, OnePlus used two totally different processes so as to add a textured end the corporate says was impressed by basalt. This makes the cellphone sparkle within the daylight, which could be good for Twilight followers or individuals who aren’t planning on instantly throwing this factor in a case. That stated, I believe you might get an identical impact with glitter, however greater than that, it makes the again of the cellphone really feel sort of plasticky, as if it got here out of an inexpensive 3D printer. Do not get me fallacious, this can be a actually minor offense, but when I used to be shopping for one, I would go along with the jade model.

The OP10T additionally options three cameras in again with a smoothed-out hump, a speedy in-screen optical fingerprint scanner and stereo audio system which are comparatively loud, although there is not a lot to say about its general audio high quality. Sadly, what you will not discover is an Alert Slider, which is a function that has been current on almost each OnePlus cellphone because the OnePlus 2 approach again in 2015. OnePlus claims its removing is because of house necessities for bigger antennas, an even bigger battery, sooner charging and extra, and that the slider will make a return on future gadgets. However all that sort of makes not having it on the 10T really feel even stranger, whereas additionally eradicating one of many few options that offers the cellphone a little bit of character.

Moreover, as a downgrade from the OnePlus 9, the 10T solely will get IP-54 mud and water resistance, which is just rated to resist a splash or two as an alternative of a full 30-minute dunk (as much as 5 ft) such as you used to get. Throughout, it appears like OnePlus is regressing a bit on the design entrance.

Show

The 10T packs an enormous 6.7-inch 2412 x 1080 OLED show with flat edges and a 120Hz refresh charge, there’s little or no to complain about right here. Colours are brilliant and punchy whereas nonetheless delivering pretty inky blacks. In the meantime, utilizing a lightweight meter I discovered that the OP10T’s display delivers a peak brightness simply shy of 800 nits, which is nice. And because of the addition of an adaptive refresh charge that may swap from 120Hz to 90hz or 60hz relying on the content material, you additionally get improved battery life with out impacting picture high quality.

Efficiency

In the case of velocity, one of many greatest upgrades is the transfer to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, which presents 30 p.c higher energy effectivity and 10 p.c sooner graphics in comparison with the usual SD8 Gen 1. You can even configure the OP10T with as much as 16GB of RAM, which OnePlus claims is sufficient to maintain as much as 35 apps open within the background, together with as much as 256GB of storage.

All this makes the cellphone really feel reasonably spritely, although there’s not a lot that may actually tax a cellphone with flagship-level efficiency these days. Actually, I can not consider 35 and even 20 apps I would wish to maintain working on a regular basis, and in side-by-side comparisons with SD8 Gen 1 telephones, it is laborious to discern a lot of a bonus in velocity. However should you completely must have the quickest silicon you will get in an Android cellphone, nicely right here you go.

Along with its new processor, the 10T additionally will get the identical 1,000Hz contact sampling charge you get on the ten Professional, alongside OnePlus’ HyperBoost Gaming engine which makes an attempt to easy out any hiccups or stutters in your framerate. And for individuals who care about getting one of the best Wi-Fi speeds, OnePlus additionally created its Sensible Hyperlink function, which is designed to proactively search out sturdy networks. This works in tandem with the OP10T’s 360-degree antenna design, so you will get optimum sign energy no matter the way you’re holding the cellphone or the place your connection is coming from.

Cameras

In the case of pictures, the 10T’s cameras are one of many greatest departures from its costlier sibling. Not solely does the 10T not have any options or tuning from Hasselblad such as you get on the ten Professional, it additionally lacks a devoted telephoto lens. As an alternative, you get a 50MP principal digicam primarily based on a Sony IMX766 sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide cam and a 2MP macro cam.

Fortunately, even with out assist from Hasselblad, the 10T’s picture high quality remains to be fairly good. Throughout the day, you get wealthy saturated colours and comparatively sharp particulars. It was solely after I in contrast the 10T’s pics with related pictures from the $500 Pixel 6a that I observed it generally oversharpens issues a contact or exaggerates extra vivid colours just like the oranges on a flower. At night time, the 10T holds up fairly nicely too, although I nonetheless have to provide the Pixel 6a a bonus in low mild because of Google’s Evening Sight mode. Typically, the 10T captured sharp, well-lit photographs that had been a contact behind what I shot utilizing the Pixel 6a.

As for the opposite cams, the ultra-wide is completely serviceable and offers a extra expansive 120-degree subject of view in comparison with the 50MP principal lens. Sadly, the macro cam is sort of a bust, as a result of whereas it may possibly take pictures from simply an inch and a half away (4cm), its low decision and hit-or-miss focus means you’re usually higher off simply utilizing the primary cam and cropping.

Battery life and charging

Okay, let’s discuss charging as a result of whereas the 80-watt charging on the ten Professional was something however sluggish, the brand new 150-watt Tremendous VOOC system on the 10T is ridiculously quick and really lives as much as OnePlus’ lofty claims. Beginning with only a one p.c cost, the OP10T added simply shy of 60 p.c battery in simply 10 minutes, earlier than happening to hit 86 p.c in 20 minutes and one hundred pc in lower than half an hour. That is greater than twice as quick as what you get from a number of different high-end Android telephones, together with stuff just like the $1,200 S22 Extremely and its slower 45-watt quick charging.

That stated, there are a variety of caveats concerning the 10T’s 150-watt Tremendous VOOC charging it is best to know. The primary is that you may solely get these speeds when utilizing OnePlus’ included energy adapter and cable. (However hey, a minimum of you get a charging brick within the field not like a number of different telephones.) After I tried charging the cellphone with two different 130-watt or increased third-party adapters, the 10T added lower than 20 p.c battery in 10 minutes, and that was even when utilizing OnePlus’ cable.

Moreover, as a result of OnePlus’ energy brick would not help the 110 or 120-volt shops which are commonest within the US, charging really caps out at 125 watts. Nevertheless, should you’re in Europe or India, you’ll get that full 150 watts. Lastly, for anybody dreaming of juicing up a laptop computer or another gadget with OnePlus’ huge brick, it is best to know that normal USB-PD charging is capped at 45 watts. And regardless of having a label on the brick that claims 160 watts, no matter the place you’re, charging speeds cap out at 150 watts.

As for battery life itself, the 10T is downright implausible. Though it has a barely smaller capability than the OP10 Professional (4,800 mAh vs. 5,000 mAh), it lasted nearly 22 hours on our video rundown check (21 hours and 59 minutes to be actual). That is one of the best time we have seen this yr, even beating out the Pixel 6a’s mark of 19:30.

And for these anxious about what the 10T’s fast charging may do to its battery well being, OnePlus says the cellphone has 13 temperature sensors to ensure it would not overheat whereas charging, whereas its duel-cell energy pack helps unfold electrons extra evenly and effectively. That is meant to assist the 10T retain 80% battery well being after 1,600 charging cycles, although clearly, we have not had time to check that out absolutely.

Software program

In the case of software program, these days most Android cellphone makers have gotten their customized skins in a fairly respectable spot. Nevertheless, with OnePlus’s OxygenOS having transitioned to a platform primarily based on Oppo’s ColorOS beginning with the ten Professional and now the 10T, issues can really feel a bit jarring for long-time OnePlus followers. That is as a result of when you nonetheless get issues just like the OnePlus Sans font, different components just like the settings menu, UI, and even a few of OxygenOS 12’s new sounds continuously remind you that this is not the working system you are used to.

There’s a brand new Shelf that’s type of like a mix between the Management Heart on iPhones and a devoted place for widgets that feels considerably redundant. I’ve additionally observed some odd bugs and inconsistencies like not getting a pop-up to allow file transfers when connecting the cellphone to a PC over USB-C. To repair this I needed to manually allow Android’s developer settings, which is not one thing that a mean person ought to want or must do.

On the brilliant facet, the 10T ought to take pleasure in stable software program help, with OnePlus promising a minimum of three main Android updates and 4 years of standard safety patches. The corporate even says it plans to improve a few of its telephones to Android 13 later this fall, beginning with the OnePlus 10 Professional, not the 10T, and transferring on from there.

Availability

The OP10T will likely be out there in Europe on August twenty fifth beginning at €699 for the 8GB/128GB config, or on September twenty ninth within the US beginning at $649. For US clients, there may also be a handful of pre-sale dates on OnePlus.com on August Third-Sixth, Tenth-Thirteenth, Seventeenth-Twentieth and Twenty fourth-Twenty seventh. OnePlus says anybody who buys a cellphone throughout early entry may also be eligible for a free improve to the 16GB/256GB config together with zero curiosity should you go for the corporate’s 24-month fee plan.

Wrap-up

So, the massive query is do you have to get one? For the sort of people that crave velocity, the OnePlus 10T is an fascinating gadget. It has top-of-the-line efficiency, an enormous OLED display and stupidly quick charging for simply $650 for 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, or $750 for the 16GB + 256GB config. Its digicam high quality is stable too, although I want OnePlus had opted for a zoom lens as an alternative of a macro. And its battery life is actually excellent.

The considerably disappointing half are a few of the cuts made to realize all this velocity. You do not get OnePlus’ signature Alert Slider, there is not any help for wi-fi charging, and its water resistance is mediocre. One other annoying wrinkle is that OnePlus has but to element provider compatibility for the US (the corporate says extra data will likely be out there nearer to launch, keep tuned for updates) .So whereas it is tremendous quick, the OP10T is not as well-rounded as telephones just like the Pixel 6. To complicate issues much more, alongside the 10T’s launch, OnePlus is completely lowering OP 10 Professional’s beginning value from $899 to $799. That places the 10T in a tricky spot between nice values just like the $500 Pixel 6a or the $600 Pixel 6 and extra full-featured telephones just like the S22 and OP10 Professional. However should you gotta go quick and wish an inexpensive cellphone with extra haste, the 10T could be precisely what you want.