OnePlus is up to its teasing tricks again having released a new video this week which hints at the release of a new product. The video went live yesterday and is titled ‘What’s in the Box?’ and shows a number of people reaching into a box to try to guess what’s inside the box by touch alone. The video concludes with a confirmation that the “mystery” will be unboxed in January 2018. Which naturally suggests a CES announcement from OnePlus may be in the works.
As for what is inside the box, the video does not provide too many details to work off of. Although there are numerous references made to the item’s feel which is said to be “smooth” but also “textured.” Some pick up on the use of brushed metal, while others suggest that it might be a little sand-like in feel. Towards the end of the video a number of the people point out that it feels a lot like sandstone. Which of course is one of the materials OnePlus previously used for the original OnePlus One and the follow-up device, the OnePlus 2. Since then however, sandstone has not really made its way to the next few OnePlus smartphones although the company has sold cases which offer a similar experience, like the sandstone protective case for the OnePlus 5T.
Naturally, this is leading to the suggestion OnePlus could be preparing to announce a sandstone version of the OnePlus 5T, especially considering the company did already announce an additional edition of the phone earlier in December, the Star Wars Edition OnePlus 5T. Although at the moment this is more speculative than anything else and it should be taken into consideration that OnePlus has used sandstone for some of its other products, such as power banks. Speaking of which, OnePlus has often teased launches which have led many to assume a new device or variant of an existing device was on the way only to have another accessory announced. So it could be the case that this is a sandstone OnePlus 5T, or a sandstone accessory, or something completely different. The video is below for those who would like to see if they can identify any additional clues.