OnePlus is off to a flying begin in 2025 with the OnePlus 13. It goals to ship in all areas and solely misses the mark in a pair whereas exceeding expectations in others. Battery tech, longevity and quick charging are a selected spotlight, whereas the digital camera – though good – doesn’t fairly give prime competitors trigger for concern.
Value When Reviewed
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Finest Pricing At present
Though the OnePlus 13 initially launched in China in late 2024, followers internationally have needed to wait till the beginning of 2025 to get their arms on the corporate’s newest flagship cellphone. So the query is, has it been definitely worth the wait?
As is customized, OnePlus has clearly labored to make its newest flagship probably the most aggressive but, beating Samsung’s Galaxy S25 to the punch with using Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, boasting cutting-edge silicon-carbon battery tech, the corporate’s fifth-generation Hasselblad digital camera system and a dressing of recent AI options.
The {hardware}/software program mix served up by the 13 seems to be aggressive by any measure however holds specific clout within the US, the place lots of its most like-minded rivals – particularly Oppo, Vivo Honor and Xiaomi – don’t characteristic.
The OnePlus 13 begins at £899/$899 so is it value your money?
There’s no denying that the OnePlus 13 seems to be like a premium little bit of package, however I might posit that the design succeeds despite itself.
It’s plagued by plenty of high-end smartphone tropes, whereas additionally persevering with the aesthetic narrative the corporate first set out upon with the OnePlus 10 Professional, however the finish outcome simply isn’t as cohesive as I anticipated.
In isolation, the display, mid-frame and again are all well-executed. The entrance contains a predominantly flat show with flippantly curved edges and balanced bezels, there’s a sophisticated metallic body with chamfered edges, and the again is both textured glass (with a wood-grain impact, should you seize the Arctic Daybreak mannequin) or the world’s first rendition of microfibre vegan leather-based on a smartphone, should you go for the Midnight Ocean model which I examined.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
It’s the sheer quantity of various surfaces, radii and finishes at work that I believe over-complicate the OnePlus 13’s look, however when not below such scrutiny, it’s a sexy cellphone.
Maybe extra importantly, regardless of its dimension, it’s surprisingly gentle within the hand (notably lighter than its predecessor, in addition to the likes of the Apple iPhone 16 Professional Max and Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely), in addition to being pleasantly skinny.
The OnePlus 13 is without doubt one of the most practically-minded flagships on the market, proper now
All three colourways repel fingerprints nicely, and whereas I used to be fearful that fancy new microfibre materials would climate about as badly as Apple’s ill-fated FineWoven iPhone instances, it’s stood as much as the punishment of on a regular basis life over the month or so of testing, with none signal of apparent put on.
Offered you will get on board with the silver and darkish blue color scheme (which I additionally don’t assume fairly works), the Midnight Ocean variant’s vegan leather-based again is softer and much much less inclined to thermal conductivity than the glass backs of the Arctic Daybreak and Black Eclipse fashions (to not point out metal-bodied OnePlus telephones, just like the OnePlus Nord 4).
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
In truth, the OnePlus 13 is without doubt one of the most practically-minded flagships on the market, proper now. In addition to high-end aesthetics, OnePlus has additionally pushed for IP68 and IP69 certification; that means it’s constructed to face up to mud ingress, in addition to being each submerged or subjected to pressurized jets (at as much as 80°C) of water. The addition of that IP69 score renders it hardier than huge rivals, like Apple’s, Google’s and Samsung’s newest, too.
The model’s signature three-stage bodily alert slider is current and proper on the left aspect of the 13, letting you turn between ring, vibrate and silent profiles (mirrored within the working system’s new Dwell Alerts characteristic – extra on that later).
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
Similar to the newest entries (the Oppo Discover X8 and Discover X8 Professional) from its sister model, the OnePlus 13 can be the primary of the corporate’s telephones to undertake a brand new magnetically removable accent ecosystem.
By the use of 4 new instances (in brown or black wooden grain finishes, in addition to a blue and crimson aramid fibre, and a sandstone darkish grey case) you may connect a brand new magnetic 5000mAh energy financial institution or 50W AirVOOC wi-fi charger to the again of the OnePlus 13.
Higher but, the design is suitable with the Apple MagSafe ecosystem too, massively increasing the accent marketplace for the corporate’s newest, a trait I hope continues with future iterations.
Display & Audio system
6.82-inch ProXDR LTPO 4.1 OLED show
Ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensor
Ceramic Guard
Persevering with the themes of sturdiness and practicality, the OnePlus 13 is fronted by an expansive 6.82-inch panel that, not like its predecessors, is not protected by Corning-made Gorilla Glass, and as an alternative depends on what OnePlus manufacturers as ‘Ceramic Guard’, very like what’s discovered on the outer display of its OnePlus Open foldable.
The corporate claims that it’s “probably the most sturdy smartphone show glasses” on the market, and reportedly gives superior drop and scratch safety, in comparison with Gorilla Glass Victus. Add to {that a} pre-fitted display protector out the field, and it’s no marvel that – past the anticipate micro-abrasions – the panel on my OnePlus 13 has no apparent injury or put on to talk of.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
In true OnePlus fashion, the corporate has thrown virtually every part on the show on its newest flagship, and in consequence, it’s the primary smartphone to bag DisplayMate‘s A++ score.
You’ll discover comfort aids like a Glove Mode and its newest Aqua Contact 2.0 algorithm (guaranteeing dependable operation even with water droplets hitting the display or moist arms), in addition to the newest LTPO 4.1 OLED tech, which not solely helps a dynamic refresh price vary of 1- to 120Hz (permitting for super-smooth visuals and higher energy administration) but in addition helps two refresh charges, concurrently; additional lowering battery drain, in comparison with extra conference 120Hz LTPO panels.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
Regardless of that display protector, the OnePlus 13 additionally sees the corporate lastly make the transfer to an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, instead of the optical choices it’s used because the OnePlus 6T.
In addition to being safer (because it accounts for depth) and quicker (by as much as 35%, in accordance with OnePlus), it doesn’t require a shiny gentle under-finger when pressed and bolsters that Aqua Contact 2.0 tech by additionally proving practical with moist fingers. It’s an improve we’ve solely seen a couple of different cellphone makers flip to on higher-end handsets, with Samsung being one of many longest-standing customers of the tech throughout its Galaxy S sequence.
there’s no denying that the OnePlus 13 is a feast for the eyes
As for OnePlus’ ProXDR viewing expertise, the {hardware} on supply is phenomenal, as anticipated. The 2K OLED panel gives nice distinction with true blacks and vibrant color output, plus a normal brightness output of 1600 nits and a peak of a whopping 4500 nits.
That interprets to a considerably sharper and brighter viewing expertise than any of the 13’s most outstanding rivals.
Add to that extra in depth color calibration than the trade normal, and a wealth of instruments to customize your viewing expertise on the software program aspect, and there’s no denying that the OnePlus 13 is a feast for the eyes.
The cellphone’s default ‘Pure’ color area must be excellent for many customers, but it surely’s good to know there’s fine-grain management over color temperature, in addition to two further color profiles to select from, in ‘Professional’ and ‘Vivid’.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
As for eye consolation, in addition to staples like Adaptive Tone, which alters color temperature relative to your environment, OnePlus has taken a leaf out of the likes of Honor’s e book and added new 2160Hz PWM dimming into the combo too; to raised cut back show flicker at totally different brightness ranges and thus eye pressure.
In addition to Bluetooth 5.4 and assist for wi-fi high-res audio over the likes of LHDC 5.0 (as supported by the latest OnePlus Buds Professional 3), the 13 additionally packs a pair of stereo audio system, which ship clear sound all through their vary.
I’d have appreciated higher bass response and better general loudness too, however what you get is serviceable loudspeaker audio should you worth readability over physique, relating to output.
Specs & Efficiency
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset
As much as 16GB RAM & 512GB storage
RAM Enlargement as much as an extra 12GB
Even with the staggered rollout of the OnePlus 13 (following its preliminary launch in China, in late 2024), the cellphone’s early January 2025 international launch means it’s one of many first telephones to the worldwide stage rocking Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Elite flagship silicon (coming in simply behind the likes of Asus’ ROG Cellphone 9 Professional).
For tech-savvy early adopters, unwilling to attend for Samsung’s Galaxy S25 sequence, its launch timing offers the 13 an simple edge; to not point out the clout to overshadow virtually each different cellphone at the moment available on the market.
OnePlus has clearly labored laborious to enhance facets like sustained efficiency and cooling
OnePlus 13 benchmarks
In testing, it bested MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400 – which powers the latest Oppo Discover X8 Professional – and even outpaced Apple’s A18 Professional, discovered inside the newest iPhone 16 Professional and Professional Max.
Past the benchmarks, which spotlight the bountiful headroom (ultimate for years of use), OnePlus has clearly labored laborious to enhance facets like sustained efficiency and cooling, by means of using an excellent bigger pair of vapour chambers (9925mm2, versus 9144mm2 within the OnePlus 12); making this a terrific low-key gaming cellphone too.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
Upgrades to the corporate’s Trinity Engine (a {hardware}/software program interface layer which OnePlus developed in collaboration with Qualcomm), paired with performance-specific additions inside the newest launch of OxygenOS (particularly a part known as Parallel Processing), assist ship an excellent snappier feeling and looking consumer expertise; from UI animations, to app opening speeds, to multitasking efficiency.
AI-based options are extra prevalent than ever on the OnePlus 13, so the truth that the Elite additionally packs in a stronger NPU (neural processing unit) in comparison with the one contained in the 8 Gen 3-powered OnePlus 12, is vastly appreciated too.
OnePlus cites a forty five% uplift in AI efficiency between generations, and established options like AI Eraser are actually as much as 3 times faster.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
The unit I examined got here backed by 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and a peak 512GB of UFS 4.0 (each the quickest and most energy environment friendly reminiscence requirements generally in use within the cell market, proper now), however 12GB of RAM and 256GB storage variants are additionally out there in choose markets.
As with most different latest OnePlus telephones, you even have the choice to reallocate a few of that speedy storage (as much as 12GB) as further RAM as an alternative, serving to additional enhance duties like resuming suspended apps.
This was one thing that stood out while utilizing the 13 greater than different latest flagship Android telephones. I used to be in a position to return to apps after far longer intervals of time than on rival gadgets, and the given app would merely be prepared and ready for me to select up the place I left off.
Cameras
50Mp most important, ultrawide and 3x telephoto sensors
32Mp selfie digital camera
Triprism folded telephoto optics
Whereas a well-recognized 50Mp Sony LYT-808 sensor leads the OnePlus 13’s digital camera array – simply as on its predecessor – it’s now accompanied by two extra 50Mp sensors (instead of the the OnePlus 12’s 64MP telephoto and 48Mp ultrawide).
Equally to the Discover X8 Professional, the 13’s 3x telephoto depends on a brand new triprism part that’s allowed OnePlus to squeeze in a bigger sensor, with out including bulk to the cellphone’s digital camera bump.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
The ‘Fifth-gen Hasselblad digital camera system for cell’ ups the ante on the prevailing standout options of the OnePlus 12’s system, with portrait capturing now accessible throughout 1x, 2x and 3x magnification, and 4K Dolby Imaginative and prescient video recording throughout all the cellphone’s sensors (together with the selfie snapper), together with the flexibility to maneuver between all the cellphone’s rear sensors, while capturing 4K HDR video; a characteristic with restricted availability throughout lots of as we speak’s rival flagships.
While there are new sensible scenes (Stage, Fireworks and Silhouettes), which robotically tailor ISO to greatest match a state of affairs (successfully taming the difficult lighting of London’s varied Christmas shows, throughout testing), the OnePlus 13’s normal color science attire photographs with a usually interesting, albeit particular look.
The OnePlus 13, doesn’t suffer from this effect. The company has ensured that even with burst shots, their Dual Exposure Algorithm works to keep subjects sharp, while still being able to apply the full image processing pipeline, and generally, results are pleasing. Shadows are where they’re meant to be, without leaving contained details under-exposed, giving more drama to most scenes than you’d get out of the likes of a Pixel 9 Pro.
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That heavier contrast does sometimes hurt colour reproduction, with greens and yellows, in particular, skewing darker than true-to-life, and oversharpening rearing its head under scrutiny, especially past 3x magnification.
It’s odd that the phone’s AI Zoom doesn’t kick in until 10x magnification, meaning it’s nothing but lossy zoom between the sensor crop-based 6x magnification and 10x, but detail in long-range shots is otherwise better than expected until you move past 20x, at which point the optical and electronic stabilisation can’t keep up if you’re shooting handheld, and post-processing oversharpens in an attempt to compensate.
Low-light shooting impressed, with regards to light capture and shutter speed, while the processing and exposure compensation on selfies felt more in line with that specific HDR look mentioned earlier, meaning well-exposed but less natural-looking snaps.
Greater colour consistency is needed, especially between the main and ultrawide, which could be fixed via a software update, while the oversharpening issue can be triaged in post, thanks to the ever-expanding suite of AI photo editing tools OnePlus puts at your disposal.
Within the native Photos app AI Editor, you can upscale shots using the AI Detail Boost feature, remove unwanted subjects and unblur intended ones, as well as remove reflections. Everything works as advertised and works well, with the reflection removal tool perhaps being the weakest of the lineup, at launch.
OnePlus has achieved this feat by switching from conventional lithium-ion (Li-ion) to far more energy-dense silicon-carbon (Si-C) battery tech. In fact, OnePlus claims that the power plant inside the OnePlus has the “highest energy density in a serial dual-cell design,” of any smartphone, right now.
From the battery standpoint, there’s little else that can match the OnePlus 13
As you can imagine, this leads to outrageous batter benchmark scores – particularly for a non-gaming phone – with real-world usage clocking in at an astounding 13 hours of screen-on time, guaranteeing a day of intense usage, two days of normal use, or potentially even more, if you’re sparing.
Add to that OnePlus’ ongoing commitment to granting its phones some of the fastest charging in the business, and from the battery standpoint, there’s little else that can match the OnePlus 13.
Check out our rundown of the best battery life phones for more.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
100W wired charging is blisteringly fast, surpassing 50% charge in just 15 minutes and refilling completely, consistently, in 36 minutes. OnePlus’ battery tech also allows for Smart Charging and Charge Limiting to 80%, ensuring better long-term battery health with reduced degradation.
Those new magnetic accessories include a 50W AirVOOC wireless charging puck (with an integrated fan), which as you might expect takes about twice as long to refill the phone compared to its 100W wired charging (hitting 50% charge after 34 minutes). That’s still significantly snappier than anything the likes of Apple, Google or Samsung offer.
The only real caveat is that you’ll have to fork out extra to charge the OnePlus 13 at its quickest, as neither a power adapter or wireless charger comes in the box.
Software & Apps
OxygenOS 15 atop Android 15
AI features and Circle to Search
4 years OS + 6 years security update support
One of the company’s first phones to come running its latest OxygenOS 15 users experience (atop Android 15) out of the box.
Although the melding of Oppo’s and OnePlus’ interfaces has taken away some of OxygenOS’ individuality, it’s still an undeniably excellent reworking of Android that manages to walk the line between being feature-rich and intuitive to use.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
There’s minimal bloat, with extras you’re unlikely to turn to often, like OnePlus’ own browser, Store and Community apps, but beyond that, the company’s flavour of Photos, the IR Remote app, Recorder and so on, are welcome inclusions.
Gamers will appreciate the Game Toolkit: an in-game overlay that frees up memory, manages power and touch performance, as well as granting additional control over notifications and other device behaviours, while also letting you capture your best gameplay moments.
Never has AI functionality been more prevalent within OnePlus’ user experience
OxygenOS already served up snappy interactions, but the additional animations that dress OxygenOS 15 add a level of polish and detail that helps the experience stand out against competition.
It looks as though Oppo and OnePlus have been paying particularly close attention to Apple too, with the new Live Alerts capsule unapologetically mirroring the functionality of the iPhone’s Dynamic Island. I do like it though, granting quick visibility or control over media playback and the like, without taking you out of the experience you’re already interacting with on-screen.
A powerful new feature that you won’t readily find on any other Android phone is a new ‘Share with iPhone’ wireless file transfer feature, with those who also use Apple’s smartphones or tablets, will undoubtedly enjoy making use of. It’s not as seamless or as reliable as Apple-to-Apple AirDrop transfers but it’s a bridge few others have tried to build, and that gives those devices with it, an edge.
Never has AI functionality been more prevalent within OnePlus’ user experience, with the aforementioned photo tools being just one-half of the story. Device-wide semantic search makes finding photos, files and accessing information within those files easier and more natural than ever before.
Meanwhile, AI Reply can generate responses based on the context of a message thread on-screen, AI Writer can generate full copy, based on a prompt of your own composition, and the AI Assistant in OnePlus’ native Notes app is great for refining, formatting or reworking your copy to better fit a different tone.
Foundry | Alex Walker-Todd
While not an AI feature in its own right, it was the ever-present Smart Sidebar that I found made accessing and leveraging the 13’s AI features fun and useful. If I was on a web page, the Sidebar would offer up the AI Reader tool, if I was responding to a friend on Instagram, AI Reply would suddenly be made available and AI Writer popped up whenever I opened the Notes app.
This dynamic surfacing of AI features is something I haven’t readily seen from other phone makers and it’s an implementation that I think best balances accessibility, without detracting from existing functionality; think Microsoft’s Clippy, but less pervasive.
A commitment to four years of OS updates and six years of security updates isn’t class-leading, but it should prove long enough for the average smartphone user, based on today’s data surrounding how long people keep their phones before upgrading.
Price & Availability
The OnePlus 13 launched internationally on 7 January 2025, costing £899/$899 for the 256GB model and £999/$999 for the top-tier 512GB variant.
It’s nice that OnePlus hasn’t included a generational price-hike, despite all that’s new inside the OnePlus 13.
The starting price means it undercuts the likes of the iPhone 16 Pro, Google Pixel 9 Pro and now year-old Samsung Galaxy S24+ (all of which start at £999), not to mention it’s cheaper than its most like-minded alternative the Oppo Find X8 Pro (which starts at £1049).
Check out our rankings of the best phones to see the top options.
Should you buy the OnePlus 13?
Despite a full month living with the OnePlus 13, I still haven’t fallen in love with its looks. That’s personal and while the camera needs some work via software updates (a characteristic for many OnePlus phones), the overall package marks undeniable value in the flagship phone space.
Its AI implementation is among the most engaging and enjoyable to use today, the performance and snappy software are better than ever, and outlandish battery longevity, paired with flexible fast charging, puts practically every other phone to shame.
If you want a better camera experience, Vivo and Xiaomi deliver while offering up similarly compelling hardware in terms of raw performance and modern battery tech, while Samsung, Google and Apple offer different and interesting AI experiences all their own, for a slightly higher price.
The OnePlus 13 is an excellent all-rounder that should last for years, provided nerdy-level camera performance isn’t at the top of your list.
Specs
OxygenOS 15 atop Android 15
6.82-inch, 19.8:9, 1440 x 3168, LTPO 4.1 OLED, 1-120Hz
Ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset
12GB or 16GB RAM (LPDDR5X)
256GB or 512GB (UFS 4.0)
Cameras:
50Mp 1/1.4-inch f/1.6 Sony LYT-808 main sensor w/ OIS
