OnePlus launches its first Android smartphone offering high-end specs on the cheap
OnePlus has officially announced its first smartphone OnePlus One. Chinese manufacturer OnePlus is a company founded by ex-Oppo vice chairman Peter Lau, and the One is its first foray into the smartphone arena.
The One’s spec sheet is extremely impressive, coming with a 5.5-inch 1080p display (Gorilla Glass 3), 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801 processor, 3GB of RAM, 13MP Sony Exmor sensor (f/2.0, flash, and 4K video), 5MP front-facing camera, JBL-designed stereo speakers and 3100mAh non-removable battery.
Dual stero speakers feature at the bottom of the handset which had some work from audio company JBL involved.
The dimensions are 152.9 x 75.9 x 8.9 mm with a weight of 162 grams. The ‘StyleSwap’ exchangeable back covers will eventually be available and come in several options (wood, kevlar, bamboo and denim), which is similar to MotoMaker for the MotoX.
Operating system wise it runs on CyanogenMod 11S which is based on Android 4.4 KitKat. It comes with its own minimal, flat user interface. The device even has its own custom themes and icons.
The design of the handset is quite impressive as well, after trying out aluminium and stainless steel it found the handset was too heavy so opted for magnesium instead.
There’s the option of a 16GB or 64GB storage version too.
The OnePlus One will launch some time in Q2 in Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, UK and the USA.
For the 16GB it’ll cost you around £229, while the larger 64GB model will cost around £269.
The company also has a ‘Smash The Past†program starting on April 25th where they will be giving 100 people a OnePlus for a dollar if they smash their current device into pieces.[signoff predefined=”Enjoy this?” icon=”icon-users”][/signoff]
