OnePlus in 2021: 5 things we want to see

Last year was important for the Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus. With seven years of experience under its belt, the company used 2020 to cement its ambitions. Now, he has officially moved away from his initial niche and will be playing on the main stage with other big names.

Of course, this transition inevitably required some growing pains. This year, the company launched more phones than before, and this has forced it to slightly reduce quality control. He renewed the Oxygen OS in several ambitious ways, which caused some controversy. She also lost Carl Pei – a co-founder of the company – who represented the young and risky half of the brand’s leadership.

Opinion: OnePlus opposition is getting worse

Unfortunately, these big changes pushed some of the early fans aside. This year, more than any other, we saw the OnePlus change its old skin to flourish into something new. Whether you see it as good or bad, it probably depends on the year you became a fan of OnePlus.

In 2021, OnePlus will no longer experience these growing pains. Instead, it will be laying the groundwork for the company that will be in the next decade. As it opens its new path, we have listed below the five things we expect to see from the company next year.

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1. Setting trends, not tracking trends

At first, the OnePlus hardware did not create any trends. The OnePlus One did not feature anything that we had not seen on other phones. However, One basically kicked off the whole idea of ​​a flagship killer – in fact, the company coined that same term. It was revolutionary just because it existed.

Eventually, OnePlus started pushing new features for its phones that you couldn’t get on many other devices, especially here in the USA. The OnePlus 5 had a dual lens rear camera before any Samsung Galaxy phone. In addition, the OnePlus 6T was the first device to arrive in the United States with a fingerprint sensor on the display. The OnePlus 7 Pro had the first pop-up selfie camera in the United States as well.

See too: OnePlus phones: a history of all devices released so far

However, 2020 saw OnePlus play catch-up more than anything else. The main features of the OnePlus 8 Pro were wireless charging and an IP rating – none of which was revolutionary. The OnePlus 8T’s ultra-fast 65 W wired charging is certainly cool, but several phones already offered 45 W speeds, which is pretty fast. Even the most notable update to Oxygen OS 11 is an always-on screen, which many other devices have been offering for years.

In 2021, we expect OnePlus to again aggressively push the limits of what its products can do. The company has not reached where it is today trying to be like Samsung, Apple or Huawei. That’s where it is now because it’s OnePlus, and you shouldn’t reject it for a seat at the table with the bigger players.

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2. An incredible OnePlus watch

OnePlus has confirmed that it will launch a smartwatch in 2021. Hopefully, CEO Pete Lau’s provocation that it will be launched earlier this year will come true. If we don’t see a smartwatch before autumn, it could be bad news for OnePlus.

There are several reasons why the launch of a smartwatch is so important for this company. The first is just a market analysis: smartphone sales are down, while wearable sales are up. It doesn’t take a genius to conclude that OnePlus needs to establish itself in the market sooner or later. It cannot rely solely on phones and audio products to grow.

Related: OnePlus Watch: All the rumors and what we want to see

OnePlus also has the opportunity to outperform the competition. Samsung’s dressing portfolio is great, but its designs are not incredible. Then, of course, there is Apple. The Cupertino giant leads the market with its incredible Apple Watch range, but all are incompatible with Android phones. OnePlus is in an excellent position to disrupt the smartwatch market, just as it did in the phone market with the OnePlus One.

There is also the elephant in the room: Google’s lack of any type of smartwatch hardware. If OnePlus can enter this market soon and offer something that is well done, inexpensive and designed with OnePlus talent for minimalist beauty, it can quickly gain a considerable share of the market for itself. Of course, it will be too late for the game, no matter what, so the clock is ticking fast.

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3. Maintain the identity of Oxygen OS

As mentioned earlier, Oxygen OS 11 finally brought an always-on display to the OnePlus ecosystem. He also delivered a bunch of new design elements that fans quickly pointed out as borrowed from Samsung’s One UI.

In recent years, the Oxygen OS vs One UI argument has risen to the Mac vs PC or Xbox vs PlayStation levels. In fact, I would say that the fervent devotion to Oxygen OS is a big reason why consumers stick with OnePlus after trying it out. OnePlus would be smart not to play with a product with that kind of power. However, 2020 proved to be fully open to making Oxygen OS more like One UI.

Related: Oxygen OS vs One UI: a complete comparison

This is undoubtedly a mistake and goes well with the first item on the list (don’t be a trend follower).

Now, don’t get me wrong: Oxygen OS is not perfect and OnePlus must absolutely update, change and try it out. The only thing you must not do is to abandon your own identity. It got dangerously close to that with Oxygen OS 11 – that’s why fans were nervous. We hope that OnePlus will take this reaction seriously and will not continue to tarnish one of its most important products in 2021.

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4. Don’t waste the Nord line

The launch of OnePlus Nord – the first entry into the new Nord line – was sloppy. The slow media blitz was exhausting, and the selfish “documentary” was ridiculously terrible. However, the phone itself was really amazing.

For less than $ 500, buyers got most of the things they would like from a great 2020 smartphone: 5G access, multiple front and rear cameras, a great screen, a huge battery and more. Even if the phone did not come with Oxygen OS, it would still be an easy device to recommend to most buyers. But it has Oxygen OS, which makes it a no-brainer.

Our verdict: Review OnePlus Nord

However, the phone has only been released in a few countries. He’s not getting the same priority as his big brothers when it comes to software updates. And to make matters worse, the other two phones in the Nord line are of such low quality that they hardly qualify as OnePlus products. The Nord line has a promising leadership device, but it must overcome many obstacles to survive in the long run.

We can only hope that, in 2021, OnePlus reevaluates its approach to all things Nord. For longtime fans of OnePlus, the Nord line is as close to the “old” OnePlus that today’s buyers can reach. OnePlus should value that and not waste it for some short-term gains.

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5. Remove (or go all-in) the Never Settle slogan

When OnePlus first came on the scene, its “Never Settle” mantra was incredibly powerful. Along with the aforementioned slogan “Flagship Killer”, Never Settle cemented what the OnePlus brand was in two very economical words.

Over the years, Never Settle has ceased to have a positive connotation. When the OnePlus 2 landed without NFC, that was a big ding for the Never Settle armor. The reduced battery of the OnePlus 3, the notch of the OnePlus 6, the removal of the headphone connector on the OnePlus 6T and even the lack of a telephoto lens on the OnePlus 8T this year, all splintered further into the armor of the slogan. At this point, Never Settle has lost all its power. In fact, it is pulled back and is now used pejoratively more often.

Related: How OnePlus phone prices have changed over the years

OnePlus has a big decision to make in 2021: abandon Never Settle, as it is no longer remotely relevant to the brand, or go all-in again. It is not too late for the manufacturer to deliver products that offer almost everything the consumer wants at a price that harms competition. The OnePlus 7T is probably the most current phone that fits the Never Settle ethos, but it doesn’t have to be the last. OnePlus only needs to decide whether to deliver.

Or I could skip all that and just drop the slogan for something more applicable. “Settle Sometimes” just doesn’t have the same meaning, however.

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You tell us: What do you want to see from OnePlus in 2021?

The five points above are what we most want to see from OnePlus in 2021. But now we want to know what you think! Fill out the poll below with your main choice for what you want to see from the company next year.

After making your choice, feel free to go to the comments and give your reasoning. Do you have any other ideas about what you would like (or not see) from the company in 2021? We’d love to hear from you!