ET Review: OnePlus One a revelation at Rs 21,999

To a certain set of people, you will never have to explain what OnePlus is and why they’re so popular. Less than a year after inception, this Shenzhen based company founded by two young entrepreneurs has managed to capture the hearts and minds of geeks everywhere.

The reason is simple — the company wants to get the best possible product out at the best possible price. They make little to no money upfront (on the sale of the phone), instead choosing to first acquire ‘fans’, disrupt the current state of the industry (which they see as flawed) and then look at monetising in the long term. Demand for their first phone, the One, is so strong that they have to use a unique invite system to get the product to their fans. The invite system has been called various names by detractors, but it works — skyrocketing the product’s popularity and at the same time, allowing the young company to scale up gradually without over-stressing the manufacturing, logistics and service.

The device itself is a revelation considering the price. There is only one version available right now — the 64GB sandstone black (which is again unique in terms of the sandpaper-like back panel). The rough finish feels unlike any other phone you may have held, but in a good way. It’s memorable and makes for a great grip.

The attention to detail is astounding and the One reeks of quality workmanship and design. The back panel is removable though you would need a special tool called a spudger — it’s not designed to be user removable so the micro SIM is housed in a removable tray. The memory is not expandable which could be a deal-breaker for some (not because of the lack of space — you have 64GB — but for those who like to swap cards between devices).

CyanogenMod was touted as one of the main features of the One — the super-customisable ROM has a large fan following and active community around the world. However, because of an exclusive deal that Cyanogen has signed with another Indian company, it will not be officially supporting the OnePlus One. The device will still come with CyanogenMod and you can choose to retain it and do updates manually. Or, you could choose to upgrade to OnePlus’ own Android L based ROM which will be out in Feb 2015. The company promises that the new ROM will be close to stock Android without any bloatware to slow down the device. This spells good news for anyone who likes to run their Android phone fast and lean.

SPECTACULAR VALUE & PERFORMANCE

The display is a 5.5-inch 1080p IPS LCD and offers good performance — especially with colours and outdoor readability. The contrast and viewing angles may not match a super amoled panel but are still pretty good. Having said that, there are some irregularities in the display.

Specifically, we have observed a yellow hue on certain parts of the screen and different colour casts on different devices. The irregularities, if present, are minor irritants at best and only noticeable to those in the know, when viewing a white test screen.

The camera is a 13MP unit with multi lens optics and an Exmor sensor borrowed from Sony.

While it can’t match the expensive new flagships like the iPhone 6 Plus and Galaxy Note 4 in performance, it still performs well above its price range with rich colours, good low light performance, depth of field and sharp details. As a plus, it offers brilliant uncompressed 4k video recording too while the front camera is capable of 1080p video. Performance from the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 quad core processor is strong — bolstered by the 3GB RAM and Adreno 330 GPU. The software benchmarks place it above the Xiaomi Mi4 and HTC One M8 but below the Samsung Galaxy Note 4.

HARD TO RESIST BUT DIFFICULT TO GET

Some of the unique software enhancements include the AudioFX (5 band equaliser plus other effects), Screencast (to record everything on the screen as a video, complete with screen presses), Privacy Guard (to control the amount of information about you that the installed apps can access), a built in call/message blacklist and loads of customisation options that go beyond what the typical Android phone gives you (processor performance profiles, custom notification lights, custom lock screens, navigation bar, screen off animations, notification drawer behaviour and so on).

If we were to nitpick, OnePlus could still add a few more things — an IR emitter (for universal remote), microSD slot, removable battery and water/dust proofing. So, in a nutshell, you get fantastic hardware and performance, great camera, good battery life and unbeatable value. Anyone looking for a flagship phone for less money will find it hard to resist. It is highly recommended and definitely worth a buy — provided you can get your hands on an invite.