The OnePlus 7T series is right around the corner, and… well, it seems like OnePlus is launching them just for the sake of it. That is especially true for the OnePlus 7T Pro, which is the main focus of this article.
Just to be clear, I’ve been using OnePlus’ phones for years now, and do really like their products. I’ve been using the OnePlus 7 Pro since launch, and do believe it’s one of the best phones out in the market at this moment.
Having said that, the OnePlus 7T series of devices seems completely unnecessary. On top of that, the OnePlus 7T and OnePlus 7T Pro are too similar one to the other, at least according to rumors.
You may disagree, of course, but hear me out first. Before we begin, once again, these two devices have not been announced yet, but the vast majority of info leaked already, from reputable sources.
The OnePlus 7T Pro will retain the same design
Based on what leaked thus far, the OnePlus 7T Pro will look basically the same as the OnePlus 7 Pro. One rumor said that it will sport a different glass on the back, the anti-glare one, but the look will remain unchanged it seems (save for the color).
One might argue that what I just said is completely irrelevant. The OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T looked the same, and if the design works, who cares, right? Well, yeah, that may be true, even though it will bother some people.
OnePlus could have changed some details in the OnePlus 7T Pro’s design to differentiate the phone from its predecessor, other than its color. I’m not saying that the OnePlus 7 Pro’s design is bad, quite the contrary, the phone looks great and feels great as well… but, this is supposed to be a new product.
I do agree that this would be a minor issue if not for the spec aspect. The OnePlus 7T Pro will be an upgrade over the OnePlus 7 Pro, but a minor one, at least in my opinion. Read on.
Specifications will barely change
Based on rumors, the OnePlus 7T Pro will retain the exact same display as the OnePlus 7 Pro. The phone will include a 6.67-inch QHD+ Fluid AMOLED panel with a 90Hz refresh rate. That display is great, there’s nothing wrong with it, quite the contrary, it’s one of the best around.
The device will probably include the same RAM setup as the OnePlus 7 Pro, minus the 6GB RAM model. The OnePlus 7T Pro is expected to ship in 8GB and 12GB RAM models, with 128GB and 256GB of storage. Speaking of which, this will be UFS 3.0 storage, same as on the OnePlus 7 Pro.
The phone is also said to include the very same camera hardware on both the back and the front. This means that you’ll get 48, 8, and 16-megapixel cameras on the back, and a 16-megapixel one on the front.
Not only will the sensors be the same, but lenses are expected to remain unchanged as well. This is all rumored info at this point, but that information did come from reputable source, so… we’re presuming it’s accurate.
The OnePlus 7T Pro will add some new camera capabilities, including more capable slow-motion video recording. Those features are expected to make their way to the OnePlus 7 Pro as well, though.
The OnePlus 7T Pro will offer a new SoC, slightly larger battery & 20% faster charging
The OnePlus 7T Pro will include a larger battery than the OnePlus 7 Pro, but only slightly. It will ship with a 4,085mAh battery, compared to a 4,000mAh unit included in the OnePlus 7 Pro. That difference is more or less negligable.
The OnePlus 7T Pro will also include faster charging than the OnePlus 7 Pro. It is said to ship with WARP Charge 30T, compared to WARP Charge 30 on the 7 Pro. That wired charging is rumored to be 20-percent faster than what the 7 Pro offers.
This handset will also ship with a more powerful processor. The Snapdragon 855 Plus will be included, instead of the Snapdragon 855. The Snapdragon 855 Plus is not a major upgrade, though, it’s only a boosted version of the Snapdragon 855. Truth be said, it does include some gaming-specific benefits, but all in all, it’s not a reason to upgrade from the Snapdragon 855.
Android 10 will bring new features to the OnePlus 7T Pro, along with OxygenOS 10, but the OnePlus 7 Pro will get all those features. The OnePlus 7 Pro may even receive a stable version of Android 10 before the OnePlus 7T Pro arrives. Two beta builds have been released at the time of writing this article, so the stable one is right around the corner.
The bottom line
So, the OnePlus 7T Pro will essentially be the OnePlus 7 Pro with a new SoC, slightly larger battery, and slightly faster charging. On top of that, it will include some software features that will make their way to the OnePlus 7 Pro as well.
The design will be unchanged, as will the vast majority of the phone’s specifications. That actually makes us wonder why the 7T Pro model exists. Something similar happened with the OnePlus 3T as well, true, but that doesn’t change the fact that the OnePlus 7T Pro seems completely unnecessary.
The regular OnePlus 7T will be a more considerable improvement over the OnePlus 7, on the other hand. That phone doesn’t seem to be necessary next to the 7 Pro model. The fact that it will be a considerable improvement over the OnePlus 7, brings it closer to the OnePlus 7(T) Pro territory.
All in all, it just seems like the OnePlus T series is here to fill the H2 gap for the company. The OnePlus 7T series does not seem like a considerable boost over the OnePlus 7 series, especially the OnePlus 7T Pro.
It has been that way for years now, though the regular and T series were never this similar. Those similarities are even more pronounced now as the company is launching twice as many phones.