OnePlus brings the killer flagship with the 8 Pro that the world needs.
From the past years, OnePlus has delivered two things in perfection i.e. powerful hardware and refined software experience in the form of OxygenOS.
OnePlus 8 series has been launched in the market and brings along some newer designs with a curved display, a newer chipset that supports 5G, and much more.
The OnePlus 7T was an outstanding smartphone with a powerful chipset, a good set of cameras, and much more which made it a more viable option to consider than the flagship OnePlus 7T Pro which was also launched alongside and sports a massive 6.67 inches display and a larger battery.
However, the OnePlus 7T Pro being priced much higher lacked an IP rating and there was not any support for Wireless Charging which most of the flagships like Samsung, Apple offered.
The cameras on the OnePlus 7T and 7T Pro were the same but now the OnePlus 8 Pro makes itself a very competing smartphone in the market as brings along some flagship features which includes support for wireless charging, IP rating and a good set of cameras.
The smartphone brings along the support for 5G also. Since there are many other flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S20 series, Realme X50 Pro, etc., the OnePlus 8 Pro is trying to take on these and is set to seal a spot in the flagship segment.
Is the OnePlus 8 Pro worth the flagship, the world was waiting to see and is it worth buying?
At the bottom, there is a loudspeaker vent, a USB Type-C port, and a SIM card tray slot as there is no dedicated microSD card slot for expansion.
The smartphone does feel heavier due to a massive 4510mAh battery underneath. The back of the OnePlus 8 Pro gets the IP68 rating which many OnePlus customers were waiting for i.e. the smartphone is dust and water-resistant (can be submerged under fresh water up to 1.5 meters) like all other flagship smartphones.
The back also has support for 30W wireless charging which is quite fast and there is even support for 3W reverse wireless power share that we had first seen on the Samsung Galaxy S10+.
The OnePlus 8 Pro is provided in three colors - Onyx Black, Glacial Green, and Ultramarine Blue.
Overall, with a good curved design for the display and the addition of IP rating, wireless charging makes it a striking option to consider.
The level of detail is good but not as good as something say a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. The dynamic range is wide enough and with HDR, the images come out more naturally.
Similarly, at night with the larger 48MP camera, the images capture more detail, and here with the dedicated NightScape, the images have good dynamic range and the details in the shadows or low-lighting areas come out good and even better compared to some of its rivals.
The 8MP telephoto camera of the OnePlus 8 Pro may seem to be lesser in resolution but takes very good images with up to 3x optical zoom which looks decent but does miss out some highlights as it crops the images.
But still, it is a good camera but compared to the competition it does feel a bit short.
During the night, the telephoto camera gives average results as the images have much more noise and the 3x optical zoom does a decent job.
The macro shots were taken from the ultrawide camera come out good as they are captured at 12MP. The autofocus works very well and let's get close to subjects and capture a good amount of detail as it has that large 48MP sensor.
It seems strange as the OnePlus 8 Pro instead of a macro camera or a depth sensor, has gone for a color filter camera which is kind of a bit weird and strange too. This particular camera can look through objects and has a special filter to look into different spectrums of light.
Pointing towards metallic things and some plastics the color looks weird and even this camera can turn human subjects into white tones. This camera is a gimmick and OnePlus is working on an update to disable this camera software.
Coming to portraits, the OnePlus 8 Pro takes some very good images with proper subject separation from the background and the edge detection works well. The OnePlus 8 Pro uses either the main 48MP camera or the 8MP telephoto camera for the portrait shots. The dynamic range works well for the telephoto camera and the skin tones look natural.
On the front, you get the familiar 16MP f/2.5 camera which has been seen on most OnePlus smartphones like the OnePlus 7T,7TPro, etc. This camera has an excellent dynamic range and the skin tones look natural too.
Coming to portraits from the front camera, the images have good subject separation from the background and edge detection works well too.
In terms of video, the OnePlus 8 Pro can shoot up to 4K video at 60fps which is the maximum resolution. There is no support for 8K video recording but still, the 4K video footage comes out good with wider dynamic range and now there is a Super Steady Mode for 4K video also.
The Super Steady Mode with the OIS makes the videos come out well stabilized and the colors look punchier and there isn't any noise in the videos.
Similarly, the 1080p videos also have the Super Steady Mode support and the ultrawide camera also takes 4K videos using this mode.
There is support for 1080p@240fps slow-motion videos also.
The front camera can only capture videos up to 1080p@30fps which is a sort of disappointment as other flagships like iPhone 11 Pro, Samsung S20 Ultra can record 4K videos from the front camera.
Overall, the cameras are good on the OnePlus 8 Pro and significantly better than the OnePlus 8/7T Pro. Though the gimmick remains the color filter camera and lack of 8K video recording which may not be a big concern to some. Considering the cameras, the OnePlus 8 Pro is a good option to consider.
The smartphone brings along the support for 5G also. Since there are many other flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S20 series, Realme X50 Pro, etc., the OnePlus 8 Pro is trying to take on these and is set to seal a spot in the flagship segment.
Is the OnePlus 8 Pro worth the flagship, the world was waiting to see and is it worth buying?
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Design:
The OnePlus 8 Pro sports the same design as its predecessor, the OnePlus 7T Pro but is slightly taller. The screen is curved at the edges of the OnePlus 8 Pro with a punch-hole design on the top. The curved finish on the sides makes it look premium but has some accidental touches. The OnePlus 7 Pro and 7T Pro had a pop-up camera mechanism but here OnePlus has gone for a punch-hole screen display. Both the front as well as back are protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5.
There are minimum bezels to the side which makes the smartphone look good.
On the back, there is a frosted matte-finish which makes it look premium and does not catch fingerprints. The camera module is also slightly different from its predecessor with the addition of a color filter camera.
To the sides, on the right side lies the power button with the alert slider which is used to control notifications which when required. To the left, is the volume controls. All the controls feel tactile.
On the top of the display is the earpiece which together with the bottom loudspeaker acts as stereo speakers. There is a secondary noise-canceling on top.
There are minimum bezels to the side which makes the smartphone look good.
On the back, there is a frosted matte-finish which makes it look premium and does not catch fingerprints. The camera module is also slightly different from its predecessor with the addition of a color filter camera.
To the sides, on the right side lies the power button with the alert slider which is used to control notifications which when required. To the left, is the volume controls. All the controls feel tactile.
On the top of the display is the earpiece which together with the bottom loudspeaker acts as stereo speakers. There is a secondary noise-canceling on top.
At the bottom, there is a loudspeaker vent, a USB Type-C port, and a SIM card tray slot as there is no dedicated microSD card slot for expansion.
The smartphone does feel heavier due to a massive 4510mAh battery underneath. The back of the OnePlus 8 Pro gets the IP68 rating which many OnePlus customers were waiting for i.e. the smartphone is dust and water-resistant (can be submerged under fresh water up to 1.5 meters) like all other flagship smartphones.
The back also has support for 30W wireless charging which is quite fast and there is even support for 3W reverse wireless power share that we had first seen on the Samsung Galaxy S10+.
The OnePlus 8 Pro is provided in three colors - Onyx Black, Glacial Green, and Ultramarine Blue.
Overall, with a good curved design for the display and the addition of IP rating, wireless charging makes it a striking option to consider.
- Check here: OnePlus 8 5G Review: Does it feel like a proper flagship when compared to others in the market?
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Display:
The OnePlus 8 Pro has a massive 6.78 inches screen like its predecessor, the OnePlus 7T Pro but is slightly taller.
The OnePlus 8 Pro sports Quad HD+ (3168 x 1440 pixels) Dynamic AMOLED display with a screen to body ratio of 19.8:9, but here the refresh rate has increased from 90Hz to 120Hz.
Basically, there is not much of a difference between 90Hz and 120Hz, but the higher 120Hz refresh rate comes into the picture while playing games supporting it and other tasks like scrolling or switching between applications.
The 120Hz refresh rate was first seen on the Samsung Galaxy S20 series on which the 120Hz refresh rate can be used when keeping the screen in full HD+ resolution.
But with the OnePlus 8 Pro, the 120Hz refresh rate can be used at the Quad HD+ resolution. The 240Hz touch response makes the smartphone smooth to use.
The brightness is also capped at 1300nits, so visibility is good under direct sunlight and during the night also, the screen has good visibility and there is also the blue light filter.
The OnePlus 8 Pro supports HDR10 contents and has Widevine L1. There is also the DCI-P3 that enables color flickering as seen on most AMOLED displays.
The OnePlus 8 Pro sports Quad HD+ (3168 x 1440 pixels) Dynamic AMOLED display with a screen to body ratio of 19.8:9, but here the refresh rate has increased from 90Hz to 120Hz.
Basically, there is not much of a difference between 90Hz and 120Hz, but the higher 120Hz refresh rate comes into the picture while playing games supporting it and other tasks like scrolling or switching between applications.
The 120Hz refresh rate was first seen on the Samsung Galaxy S20 series on which the 120Hz refresh rate can be used when keeping the screen in full HD+ resolution.
But with the OnePlus 8 Pro, the 120Hz refresh rate can be used at the Quad HD+ resolution. The 240Hz touch response makes the smartphone smooth to use.
The brightness is also capped at 1300nits, so visibility is good under direct sunlight and during the night also, the screen has good visibility and there is also the blue light filter.
The OnePlus 8 Pro supports HDR10 contents and has Widevine L1. There is also the DCI-P3 that enables color flickering as seen on most AMOLED displays.
The OnePlus 8 Pro has an in-display fingerprint scanner that is fast and accurate and has a very cool animation while touching it and can be customized. The face unlock is fast and works well too.
There is a new feature called MEMC or motion graphics processing which increases the frame rate of the video that you are watching i.e. a 30fps videos can look like 120fps video which is a good additional feature. This feature is available only in landscape mode and is a bit cumbersome sometimes. It also does drain some battery.
Overall, with a huge and brighter display and combined with a 120Hz refresh rate, the OnePlus 8 Pro is a very good option for content consumers.
There is a new feature called MEMC or motion graphics processing which increases the frame rate of the video that you are watching i.e. a 30fps videos can look like 120fps video which is a good additional feature. This feature is available only in landscape mode and is a bit cumbersome sometimes. It also does drain some battery.
Overall, with a huge and brighter display and combined with a 120Hz refresh rate, the OnePlus 8 Pro is a very good option for content consumers.
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Performance:
The OnePlus 8 Pro like all OnePlus smartphones is shipped with a flagship chipset. This year it has the powerful Snapdragon 865 chipset which powers all flagship smartphones of 2020 like the Samsung Galaxy S20 series, Realme X50 Pro, etc.
The Snapdragon 865 chipset shares a lot of similarities with the last year's flagship Snapdragon 855/855+ as both are built on the 7nm process.
The Snapdragon 865 chipset shares a lot of similarities with the last year's flagship Snapdragon 855/855+ as both are built on the 7nm process.
The Snapdragon 865 has 1x2.84 GHz Prime core (Cortex A77) + 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 585 (Cortex A77) which are meant for performance and another 3x1.78 GHz Kryo 585 Silver cores (Cortex A55) for power efficiency. The OnePlus 8 Pro is paired with 8/12GB RAM which has LPDDR5 configuration which means the faster speed of RAM compared to earlier LPDDR4X.
The Snapdragon 865 brings along 5G as it is aired with that X55 Modem and has also support for sub-6GHz Wifi and 5mm wave networks.
Then there is 128GB/256GB storage UFS 3.0 which means faster read and write speeds.
When it comes to gaming, the OnePlus 8 Pro ran all heavy games like PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty with ease in the highest graphics settings. There is a dedicated RAM booster that enhances the performance and gaming up to a certain level which is good.
The higher 120Hz refresh rate comes into the picture with games supporting that higher frame rates and with OnePlus's Fnatic Mode on, the gameplay enhances further.
In synthetic benchmarks like Geekbench 5.1, the single-core score was 906 and 3374 was the multi-core score which is the highest for any Android device.
Check also: Realme X50 Pro 5G Review: Is this 5G smartphone the true flagship and worth buying?
Check also: Realme X50 Pro 5G Review: Is this 5G smartphone the true flagship and worth buying?
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Software:
The OnePlus 8 Pro runs the latest OxygenOS 10.5 built on top of Android 10. As we all know, OxygenOS has been the smoothest and provides almost Stock Android-like experience and it's no different here.
With the OnePlus 8 Pro, there have been some changes like now to the left of the home page, there is a Google Feed instead of the Shelf which was seen on earlier OnePlus smartphones.
With the OnePlus 8 Pro, there have been some changes like now to the left of the home page, there is a Google Feed instead of the Shelf which was seen on earlier OnePlus smartphones.
There is also the new theme store with Dark Theme 2.0 which applies to third party apps like Paypal, Google Play, etc. and Ambient Display customizations.
The GameTurbo provides a Fnatic Mode that provides unparalleled gaming experience by enhancing the CPU and GPU clock speeds and blocking some unnecessary notifications, thus improving on the network speed also. There is a new set of wallpapers that look good and give a welcome message when unlocking the smartphone.
The front camera has nice lighting around it when face unlock is done.
OnePlus has the Zen Mode which comes in handy for small children and mostly keeps people away from usual apps and functions certain apps, and there is also what OnePlus calls the Horizon Light similar to Samsung's edge lighting with can be customized further.
This new OxygenOS 10.5 also brings along Deep Battery/ Optimized Battery customizations that enable the battery to charge the smartphone efficiently.
The front camera has nice lighting around it when face unlock is done.
OnePlus has the Zen Mode which comes in handy for small children and mostly keeps people away from usual apps and functions certain apps, and there is also what OnePlus calls the Horizon Light similar to Samsung's edge lighting with can be customized further.
This new OxygenOS 10.5 also brings along Deep Battery/ Optimized Battery customizations that enable the battery to charge the smartphone efficiently.
Since there is that 120Hz refresh rate, the opening, and closing of applications feel much faster thus providing a top of the level software experience.
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Cameras:
The OnePlus 8 has the older 48MP Sony IMX586 main camera which was seen on the OnePlus 7 Pro/7T etc. Instead, the OnePlus 8 Pro uses this particular camera as its ultrawide camera.
The OnePlus 8 on the other hand, uses the 48MP Sony IMX689 sensor as its main camera for better low light performance and better details.
There are another two cameras that consist of the telephoto camera and a color filter camera which is strange and seen first time on a smartphone. The four cameras are:
The OnePlus 8 on the other hand, uses the 48MP Sony IMX689 sensor as its main camera for better low light performance and better details.
There are another two cameras that consist of the telephoto camera and a color filter camera which is strange and seen first time on a smartphone. The four cameras are:
- 48MP f/1.8 Sony IMX689 main camera with All Pixel Omni Directional phase detection
- 8MP f/2.4 telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom
- 48MP f/2.2 Sony IMX586 ultrawide camera with 119-degree field of view
- 5MP f/2.4 Color Filter camera
- 16MP f/2.5 Sony IMX471 front camera
The level of detail is good but not as good as something say a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. The dynamic range is wide enough and with HDR, the images come out more naturally.
Similarly, at night, the new camera sensor captures better images compared to OnePlus 8 as the new sensor gathers more light and with the OIS, the images come out well detailed. The contrast works well too but at some places, the light in shadows does lose a bit of detail.
With the dedicated NightScape mode, the images come out better with grainy areas turned to lighted ones.
The NightScape does work better here for all low-light images thus bringing better highlights in shadows.
The 48MP ultrawide camera does the duty on the OnePlus 8 Pro which with its larger aperture captures better details and the colors in the images almost resemble the main camera images. The 119-degree field of view captures wider images with good detail and also doubles up as a macro camera.
The ultrawide camera captures light better than the 16MP on the OnePlus 7T/7T Pro and the camera does a good job of taking images.
The ultrawide camera captures light better than the 16MP on the OnePlus 7T/7T Pro and the camera does a good job of taking images.
Similarly, at night with the larger 48MP camera, the images capture more detail, and here with the dedicated NightScape, the images have good dynamic range and the details in the shadows or low-lighting areas come out good and even better compared to some of its rivals.
The 8MP telephoto camera of the OnePlus 8 Pro may seem to be lesser in resolution but takes very good images with up to 3x optical zoom which looks decent but does miss out some highlights as it crops the images.
But still, it is a good camera but compared to the competition it does feel a bit short.
During the night, the telephoto camera gives average results as the images have much more noise and the 3x optical zoom does a decent job.
The macro shots were taken from the ultrawide camera come out good as they are captured at 12MP. The autofocus works very well and let's get close to subjects and capture a good amount of detail as it has that large 48MP sensor.
It seems strange as the OnePlus 8 Pro instead of a macro camera or a depth sensor, has gone for a color filter camera which is kind of a bit weird and strange too. This particular camera can look through objects and has a special filter to look into different spectrums of light.
Pointing towards metallic things and some plastics the color looks weird and even this camera can turn human subjects into white tones. This camera is a gimmick and OnePlus is working on an update to disable this camera software.
Coming to portraits, the OnePlus 8 Pro takes some very good images with proper subject separation from the background and the edge detection works well. The OnePlus 8 Pro uses either the main 48MP camera or the 8MP telephoto camera for the portrait shots. The dynamic range works well for the telephoto camera and the skin tones look natural.
On the front, you get the familiar 16MP f/2.5 camera which has been seen on most OnePlus smartphones like the OnePlus 7T,7TPro, etc. This camera has an excellent dynamic range and the skin tones look natural too.
Coming to portraits from the front camera, the images have good subject separation from the background and edge detection works well too.
In terms of video, the OnePlus 8 Pro can shoot up to 4K video at 60fps which is the maximum resolution. There is no support for 8K video recording but still, the 4K video footage comes out good with wider dynamic range and now there is a Super Steady Mode for 4K video also.
The Super Steady Mode with the OIS makes the videos come out well stabilized and the colors look punchier and there isn't any noise in the videos.
Similarly, the 1080p videos also have the Super Steady Mode support and the ultrawide camera also takes 4K videos using this mode.
There is support for 1080p@240fps slow-motion videos also.
The front camera can only capture videos up to 1080p@30fps which is a sort of disappointment as other flagships like iPhone 11 Pro, Samsung S20 Ultra can record 4K videos from the front camera.
Overall, the cameras are good on the OnePlus 8 Pro and significantly better than the OnePlus 8/7T Pro. Though the gimmick remains the color filter camera and lack of 8K video recording which may not be a big concern to some. Considering the cameras, the OnePlus 8 Pro is a good option to consider.
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Battery Life:
The OnePlus 8 Pro packs a massive 4510mAh battery due to the higher refresh rate and the 5G enabled X55 modem that consumes more power. The 120Hz refresh rate of the screen at 1080p gave really good results and with the display turned to Quad HD+ resolution, it was good.
There is also support for 60Hz and with this mode, the OnePlus 8 Pro easily lasted for 2 days with normal usage. With the 60Hz, the average screen on time was 6-7 hours which is really good for such a huge smartphone and 4.5-5 hours when set at 120Hz refresh rate.
However, we tested the smartphone by playing heavy games like PUBG Mobile for 3-4 hours, browsing and viewing content from social media for 3-4 hours, then there was still 10-15 percent battery left.
However, we tested the smartphone by playing heavy games like PUBG Mobile for 3-4 hours, browsing and viewing content from social media for 3-4 hours, then there was still 10-15 percent battery left.
Now like all OnePlus smartphones, the OnePlus 8 Pro is equipped with a 30W Warp Charger which takes it from 0 to 100 percent in 66 minutes which is very good. The first half an hour takes from 0 to 67 percent and OnePlus 8 Pro has a Deep Battery Optimization feature that charges the battery efficiently when or when the smartphone is not in use.
For the first time in an OnePlus flagship, there is support for wireless charging. The OnePlus 8 Pro supports 30W Wireless charging which is very fast when used with the dedicated Warp charging pad which will give a 0 to 50 percent charge in 30 minutes and takes the smartphone from 0 to 100 percent in 66 mins which is very fast.
The 30W Warp Charging pad has a fan built on the back which takes out the heat of the smartphone while charging and maintains the thermal temperature on the OnePlus 8 Pro while charging. There is also the support for 3W reverse wireless charging through which devices like Wireless earphones can be charged when kept on the back of the OnePlus 8 Pro.
The 30W Warp Charging pad has a fan built on the back which takes out the heat of the smartphone while charging and maintains the thermal temperature on the OnePlus 8 Pro while charging. There is also the support for 3W reverse wireless charging through which devices like Wireless earphones can be charged when kept on the back of the OnePlus 8 Pro.
With a larger battery and great features, the OnePlus 8 Pro will be a point of consideration for power users.
OnePlus 8 Pro 5G Audio Quality:
The OnePlus 8 Pro comes with dual stereo speakers that combine the earpiece on top of the camera and the loudspeaker at the bottom which provides good sound. The bass level is good and provides a richer experience.
The haptic vibration motor has also been improved over previous OnePlus smartphones.
The haptic vibration motor has also been improved over previous OnePlus smartphones.
There is also support for Dolby Atmos and since there is no 3.5mm headphone jack present, the wireless earphones' output is good and louder.
Verdict:
Overall, OnePlus has crafted a perfect flagship for the first time with the OnePlus 8 Pro by bringing in a newer design, features like IP rating, support for fast wireless charging and reverse wireless charging, etc.
It brings along 5G with that great hardware i.e. the Snapdragon 865 chipset thus providing excellent gaming and all-round performance. It provides good improved cameras and all the top-end features like wireless charging, IP68 rating, etc.
Then there is the massive display that has support for a gorgeous 120Hz refresh rate which makes things smoother and easier to use whether it is normal usage or gaming.
Then there is the massive display that has support for a gorgeous 120Hz refresh rate which makes things smoother and easier to use whether it is normal usage or gaming.
The 30W Warp wireless charging is faster compared to other wireless charging on other smartphones. The massive battery provides a really good battery life with the screen set to 60Hz and 120Hz.
However, the color filter camera does feel like a gimmick and when it comes to cameras, OnePlus needs to improve a bit with the ultrawide camera and low-light images when compared to other flagships in the market with the likes of Samsung Galaxy S20 series and Apple iPhone 11 Pro.
The OxygenOS provides the best software experience and each update brings along some new features. With the addition of new features, OnePlus has jacked up the prices in the U.S.A and some other countries.
In India, the smartphone is yet to launch will start with a price tag of Rs.54999 for the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage and further maybe Rs.59999 for 12GB RAM and 256GB storage which makes it one of the best value for money flagships in the market without compromising on anything.
The OxygenOS provides the best software experience and each update brings along some new features. With the addition of new features, OnePlus has jacked up the prices in the U.S.A and some other countries.
In India, the smartphone is yet to launch will start with a price tag of Rs.54999 for the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage and further maybe Rs.59999 for 12GB RAM and 256GB storage which makes it one of the best value for money flagships in the market without compromising on anything.
This smartphone is worth buying and with this OnePlus has raised its reputation of being one of the best smartphone manufacturers in the world.
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