OnePlus 5T: Review

Oneplus 5T Review, Content

1. Oneplus 5T Parameters and Price
2. Oneplus 5T Packaging and Accessories
3. Oneplus 5T Processing and Ergonomics
4. Oneplus 5T Display
5. Oneplus 5T Performance and Storage
6. Oneplus 5T Battery Life
7. Oneplus 5T Operating System and Software
8. Oneplus 5T Camera
9. Oneplus 5T Rating

Oneplus 5T Parameters and Price

It has not been a long time since the introduction of the Oneplus 5. Is it worth getting the 5T? Can Oneplus 5T compete with the Galaxy S8 or LG G6? It is definitely worth considering, and let us explain why.

Everyone wants an extremely powerful phone, but they are sometimes unable to get what they want due to the price. Oneplus has always been on the border, where there is minimum compromise in comparison to the market leaders, but the price is much lower. The 5T model is no exception.

The Oneplus 5T is a great smartphone to use for games, multimedia, work, and anything in between. It has a frameless design, a large display and a powerful performance, two SIM card slots, and a reliable update support.

Oneplus 5T vs. Oneplus 5 vs. Samsung Galaxy S8

Oneplus 5T Packaging and Accessories

The Oneplus 5T travels from far away. Don't be surprised how durable the box is - you could easily climb on it. Inside, you will find less than you think. In addition to the phone itself, you will also receive a charger and a cable.

However, you will definitely use them. Not because you would not be able to purchase a USB-C cable anywhere else or use a different charger, but the one that is supplied supports Dash charge, which is the fastest charging technology nowadays. The manufacturer does not provide headphones, but it has a headphone jack that is compatible with most headphones.

Oneplus 5T Processing and Ergonomics 

Although Oneplus has never had a distinctive signature design, some elements were repeated on the phones from previous generations. You could recognise it due to its slider button to select sound profiles,the typical, navigational sensor keys underneath the screen,and the fingerprint reader.

The Oneplus 5T differs highly from its predecessor. Everything has changed. The traditional smartphone has become a progressive device. The Oneplus 5T has leaned towards a frameless design, which comes with a few essential changes.

The most important thing is the larger display. After keeping a 5.5" diagonal for a long time, the newest generation has jumped to a 6" diagonal. Now it covers 80% of the phone area, therefore the overall size has changed only a little. The navigation buttons below the screen are gone, and the fingerprint reader is now on the back.

Not many elements fit on the front, just the receiver, status diode, front camera and the proximity sensor. Despite the dimensions of 151.1 × 75 × 7.3mm, the Oneplus 5T is a relatively subtle device, while the older generations were much bulkier.

The top is neat, and the sides of the smartphone seem neat at first sight as well. However, it's just a game of light and shadow that masks the Dual SIM slot and the power button. You will find that on the right side, while the volume control and audio profiles are located on the left. Due to the thin profile of the phone, however, the keys are quite narrow, which does not help the ergonomics, and pressing the power button is particularly unclear. This is not a crucial issue, but a more sensible button would be better. On the bottom, you will find the speaker, the USB-C connector, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. 

Oneplus 5T Display

For 2017 top-of-the-line smartphones, a high QHD resolution was typical. However, there are power-saving modes that reduce the resolution. It would be wrong to assume that a higher resolution is automatically better.

Oneplus does not go for extremes and uses an OLED display with al resolution of 2160 × 1080pix. Basically, this is a classic Full HD. A navigation bar has been added to the screen, which give the screen an aspect ratio of 18:9. Its edges are not curved like the edges of the Galaxy S8, therefore you will not feel like the phone is unnaturally elongated - the effect actually comes closer to a classic 16:9 ratio.

How does the Oneplus 5T do with colour rendering? The OLED panel creates a perfect black colour, which is expected from this technology. The colour tones may vary. The colours are very lively in default, warmer in the sRGB profile, and more vivid in DCI-P3. You can choose the colour temperature manually or use the adaptive mode just like we did. It worked smoothly, we never felt like the colours were unnatural.

Another nice feature is the ambient display, which is a display of basic data on the black background of a turned off screen in order to save energy. Nothing prevents you from turning off the notifications and adjusting the colours of the notification diode, but having the extra option is always welcome. The Oneplus is generous: you can set the vibration intensity for different events, activate the reading mode that dims the colours into gray tones, turn on the blue light filter and even change the colours of the user environment between a light and a dark theme. We recommend doing this as soon as possible, as the OLED display covered in black has a much lower power consumption than when it's white.

Oneplus 5T Performance

What is the most powerful mobile phone nowadays? It is difficult to say, but the Oneplus 5T is the hottest candidate up for first place. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 hardware can handle anything you can find on Google Play. This MSM8998 chip uses 8 cores with a Kryo 280 architecture at a maximum of 2.45GHz with Adreno 540 graphics support and DSP Hexagon 682 graphics. The only competitor of this beast is Exynos 8895, which wins in some benchmarks, but the differences are small compared to  Snapdragon.

The Oneplu 5T has 8GB of RAM. Even though it may seem like you won't be able to use that much memory storage, remember that it won't take long, and the 4GB of memory storage that most competitors use will be a minimum for Android. A year and a half ago, 2GB of RAM were above standard. Today, it is a necessary minimum.

Results of the Antuta Benchmark

• Total score: 178,101
• 3D: 70,949
• UX: 58,039
• CPU: 38,973
• RAM: 10,140

You will only find 8GB of operating memory on the phone with 128GB of internal memory. A cheaper version with 64GB of storage has "only" 6GB available, which is more than enough.

Oneplus 5T Battery and Battery Life

A giant battery will not fit in a slim phone. On the other hand, the large screen diagonal means that it does not have to save as much power. The result is a decent compromise of 3300 mAh, which keeps your mobile running throughout the day. You can chat, browse the Internet and Facebook, play music and movies, but by the time you get home, you will probably have around 30%. It is not enough for the next day, but it is nice to know that even if you miss your bus, you can stay connected.

The Oneplus 5T has a hidden ace up its sleeve. It's not wireless charging, but the Dash Charge function. This is the fastest technology for a quick energy boost. It is not as widespread as Quickcharge, but it works very cleverly - the supplied charger "pre-digests" the current from the outlet so it can enter the battery in a more "digestible" manner. In more technical terms, while Quickcharge charges at high voltage and low current, Dash Charge does the opposite. In the first case, most of the heat is generated in the battery of the phone, but in the second case, a large part of the charger has already absorbed it.

Let's skip the physics talk. Dash Charge charges the Oneplus 5T in half an hour from zero to 59%, after 60 minutes it will be up to 93%. As a result, you will have the impression that the percentage is climbing right in front of your eyes, and 10 minutes on the charger will make a great difference. This fast-charging function has taught me not to charge my phone overnight.

The only downside of the Dash Charge technology is compatibility. You are limited to Oneplus or Oppo accessories, as you will not reach such impressive figures with other accessories.

Oneplus 5T Operating System and Software

The time of massive graphics over Android has come to an end. The trend is evident with many brands and Oneplus has just become another piece of proof. Android 7 Nougat itself has absorbed many features, therefore there is a lesser need for major modifications.

The OxygenOS used on this phone only adds a few features that will not compromise its compatibility and are still useful. I have already mentioned the support of graphic themes, other adjustments are less visible but more pleasant. The navigation bar configurator allows you to assign actions for short press, a long press, a double tap, and even the exchange of the Back and Last Apps button. Waking up by taping on the display and muting your ringtone by turning the phone are not new features, but how many mobile phones can use a display that is turned off to control the phone? It's incredibly addictive to skip a song by drawing an arrow or to turn on the camera by drawing a circle.

There's is no power buttonon the device, but you can transfer music via Bluetooth 5 in a higher quality.

An often talked about feature is face recognition. The iPhone X inspirtation is clear, but it should be noted that it is something like this, but worse quality, and it has been done by Android for several years. Android has had enough time to work out the bugs, so we have decided that we will not be forgiving with Oneplus 5T. Unfortunately, there is not much room for criticism: the camera can register you when it is vertical and horizontal. It will not be confused even if you are wearing a hat or glasses. It even works while you are at a bus stop at night.

A weak spot is the implementation into the operating system. The phone unlocks as soon as it recognises you, which means that you do not get to see a notification screen. Sometimes you want that, and sometimes you don't. The second shortcoming is the usable tracking distance, which is around 30-50cm from your face. Since you cannot see the display from a different distance, you will be rarely asked to use an alternative verification option.

Oneplus 5T Camera

The camera is very often a component that separates the good from the bad. The dual lens on the back brings many expectations, especially after the results of the previous generation of Oneplus 5. While the fifth generation uses the second lens for optical zooming, the 5T only has it for sharpness depth and a low-light photography. Both lenses have an f/1.7 luminosity and differ only in resolution (16 and 20MP).

You'll notice the most when you take a picture of the same scene in the camera application, but you only have use the zoom once. At that point, it is clear that the zoom is only digital, and it is only a cut-out from the original.

However, that does not change our claim that that the Oneplus 5T can take good pictures. The details are clear, and the contrast and colour rendering is natural. Unlike more expensive competitors, it is not enough to just focus and take the picture. It is necessary to stay still, because the exposure time is often a fraction of a second longer than necessary, resulting in a slightly blurred image. In the original picture, you can notice the slight diffusion of colours, which is very easy to see when taking pictures of nature and panoramas. The absence of optical stabilisation is a great disadvantage in this case; on the contrary, the macro can be impressive.

OIS is available for video recording, and the electronic stabilisation fulfills its purpose. Movies and video clips can be recorded at a 1280 × 720px resolution, Full HD at 30 and 60 fps, and in 4K at 30fps. At the highest quality, we measured a 40Mb/s bitrate, which is almost as good as a third-generation GoPro camera. It's just a shame that the camera uses an H.264 codec, because the videos would be smaller with HEVC.

Oneplus has a rather specific approach to selfie photography. In the basic photo mode, you can switch to the front 16MP camera, and it even allows you to automatically smooth out your skin. By swiping to the side, you can activate a special portrait mode that has the same function, but does it not allow for a manual changes.

Test image gallery

 Oneplus 5T Evaluation and Comparison

If you're looking for a top-of-the-line smartphone, but you're reluctant to pay a large amount of money, the Oneplus 5T is a device that can and should captivate you. Its amazing hardware has enough power, so you will not have to upgrade it for the next three years. Fast charging is something you might not care about at first, but after the first try, you will absolutely adore it. OygenOS is Android in a simple form, which allows for quick updates. Yes, the Oreo 8.0 version is already available! The fans of the classic headphone jack will be pleased, and the frameless display will capture everyone.

Does the Oneplus 5T have any disadvantages? Maybe a few. The biggest one is its durability. There is no IP68 or 67 certification, so this phone is definitely afraid of water. The second disadvantage is the absence of a memory card slot. The difference between 64 and 128GB is not as striking as on an iPhone, but more would simply fit on a micro SD. The third disadvantage is the camera that I would evaluate as "very good". When compared to all smartphones, it is a champion. In comparison to premium devices, it still falls behind.

You will also be interested in the comparison of the Oneplus 5T with its competitors. We would nominate LG G6 as its biggest rival. It is cheaper, a little weaker, but it also features a frameless display. The Oneplus 5T is great for someone who wants brutal performance but doesn't mind a weaker camera and durability. The Samsung Galaxy S8 is more expensive, but it surpasses its Chinese rival with its durabilty, display resolution and itst memory card support. It loses points due to its operating system and update speed. These three phones are great, and your selection will therefore only depend on how much you want to pay and which parameters are the most important to you.

Oneplus 5T

Mobile Phones

Oneplus 5T is a top-of-the-line amazing smartphone that masterfully balances the latest trends and benefits of conservative access. It benefits from the combination of a 6" AMOLED display with a frameless body, an uncompromising performance, an optimised operating system, and a fast charging.

This phone will be mostly appreciated by those who want a high-performance mobile phone, are okay with frequent updates, enjoy smart technology, and have been disappointed by Google's Nexus/Pixel series due to its price or design.

Pros

• Great performance
• OxygenOS function and frequent updates
• Slim profile
• Small frames
• Extremely fast charging

Cons

• No increased resistance
• Unused camera potential