With the launch of the OnePlus 6T, a lot of OnePlus 6 users are going wonder whether it makes sense to upgrade
OnePlus is a brand that has really done well to create a sense of doubt and uncertainty in the minds of its consumers every year, nay every few months. Uncertainty not regarding whether one should buy a OnePlus phone over another Android phone, but on whether one should buy a new OnePlus phone after just purchasing a OnePlus phone a few months ago. Time and again, OnePlus users are faced with this perplexing question on whether a new phone has enough to warrant an upgrade. With the launch of the OnePlus 6T, a lot of OnePlus 6 users are going to be facing this same question.
The OnePlus 6T is now official in the US and in India. The phone brings an updated design language over the OnePlus 6, but at the same time keeps a lot of the same features. And while a big edge-to-edge display, in-display fingerprint sensor and a terrifically fast Snapdragon 845 chipset may sound appealing for OnePlus 5T and older users, the same cannot be said for those who may have just purchased the OnePlus 6. For them, the OnePlus 6T may not have enough to push for an upgrade. Here are five good reasons for that.
The biggest visual change that the OnePlus 6T brings to the table is a bigger display and smaller bezels. Unlike the iPhone X-like notch on the OnePlus 6, the notch on the 6T is much smaller. It is a waterdrop-style notch that has been seen previously on phones like the Oppo F9 Pro and Vivo V11 Pro. Its size makes it far less intrusive and distracting than most other notched phones in the market. This also allows for a bigger 6.4-inch FHD+ AMOLED display on the 6T.
But the 6.28-inch AMOLED display on the OnePlus 6 is pretty big as well and the difference between the two displays won’t be that noticeable. The notch on the OnePlus 6 is wider and the chin is slightly thicker than the 6T, but OnePlus’ software optimisation will mostly hide the forehead in most situations, which means you’re likely to get the same visual experience on both the phones.
The biggest exclusion on the OnePlus 6T, and one that a lot of consumers may not be too happy about, is the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack. It’s not a surprising move as most mainstream companies have ditched the jack. But it happens in the same year when OnePlus held a poll that showed around 90 per cent still believe in the jack. The OnePlus 6 retained the jack because that’s what consumers wanted. Five months later, OnePlus decided to do away with it, but a large portion of consumers still want the 3.5mm option.
OnePlus phones have been lauded in the past for how fast biometric features like Face Unlock and fingerprint sensor have been. The OnePlus 6 offers both these features that are incredibly snappy. With the OnePlus 6T, the company decided to do away with a physical fingerprint sensor for an in-display fingerprint sensor. Now, in-display fingerprint technology is still in its early stages and nowhere near as fast as physical sensors.
The OnePlus 6T is quite simply a phone that’s trying to keep up with all the trends right now. The in-display fingerprint sensor is futuristic no doubt, and OnePlus claims it is the fastest in-display fingerprint sensor in the market. But even a little speed bump doesn’t make it faster than a traditional fingerprint sensor, and this will surely be something that a consumer coming from a OnePlus 6 device is going to notice.
While most of the changes happen on the outside, the inside of the OnePlus 6T largely remains the same. It gets the same Snapdragon 845 processor as the OnePlus 6. It also comes with 6GB and 8GB of RAM options. The software is on Android Pie on day 1, and the OnePlus 6 is also updatable to Pie. This means the performance on both the devices are on par.
Here’s the thing, the OnePlus 6T is a terrifically fast device, but so is the OnePlus 6. You’re unlikely to notice any difference in the speed with which apps open and load, the smoothness when it comes to browsing through the interface or the performance while playing graphic intensive games. Both the phones have speed aplenty and OnePlus 6 users can be content with that idea.
In addition to rocking the same Snapdragon 845 chipset, the OnePlus 6T also gets the same cameras as the OnePlus 6. You get the same 16MP + 20MP configuration on the back with an f/1.7 aperture and OIS + EIS. The front also sees the same 16MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture. This means that you’re unlikely to see any significant difference in photo quality between the two phones. One of the highlight features that OnePlus spoke about was Nightscape, which tries to improve low-light photography through HDR algorithms. The company explains that Nightscape uses a combination of long exposure photography and HDR bracketing to reduce the amount of noise in low-light shots.
The Nightscape feature will be coming to the OnePlus 6 as well along with Studio Light soon via an OTA update. This basically closes the gap between the cameras on the OnePlus 6 and 6T. Without any major upgrade to the optics and performance, the OnePlus 6T makes little sense to upgrade if you are a OnePlus 6 user. The only reason one may consider upgrading is because of a (slightly) bigger display and a futuristic in-display fingerprint sensor. OnePlus 6 users will likely want to hold on to their devices a while longer until the OnePlus 7 comes out which should bring a next-gen Snapdragon processor and upgraded optics, among other things.
ALSO READ: OnePlus 6T launched in India starting at Rs 37,999, will go on sale from November 1
