OnePlus 15 review – GSMArena.com tests | Infinium-tech

Introduction and Specifications

It’s time for the next generation of OnePlus phones, and the 15 is just in time. The new handset gets a complete design overhaul, upgraded hardware (in most cases) and keeps the familiar formula of slimming down flagship phones without making too many compromises along the way.

Again, the OnePlus 15 starts at a little under €1,000, but we already have some flagship phones from this year that cost similarly, so the newcomer will face some serious competition.

Luckily, the OnePlus 15 has the hardware and features to compete. Of course, it’s running on the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, a flagship-grade LTPO OLED panel with a refresh rate of up to 165Hz, and perfect camera hardware.

Specifications of OnePlus 15 at a glance:

• Body: 161.4×76.7×8.1 mm, 211 g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), aluminum alloy frame, glass back (Gorilla Glass 7i or Crystal Shield Glass) or glass fiber back; IP68/IP69K dust resistant and water resistant (high pressure water jets; submersible up to 2 meters for 30 minutes).
• Display: 6.78″ LTPO AMOLED, 1B color, 165Hz, PWM, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR Vivid, 800 nits (typ), 1800 nits (HBM), 1272x2772px resolution, 19.61:9 aspect ratio, 450ppi; Ultra HDR image support.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8850-AC Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 (3 nm): Octa-core (2×4.6 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix L + 6×3.62 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix M); Adreno 840.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 256GB 16GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM; UFS 4.1.
• OS/Software: Android 16, ColorOS 16.
• rear camera: wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.8, 24mm, 1/1.56″, 1.0µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS; telephoto: 50 MP, f/2.8, 80mm, 1/2.76″, 0.64µm, 3.5x optical zoom, PDAF, OIS; ultra wide angle: 50 MP, f/2.0, 16mm, 116˚, 1/2.88″, 0.61µm, PDAF.
• Front Camera: 32 MP, f/2.4, 21mm (wide), 1/2.74″, 0.8µm, AF.
• video capture: rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60/120fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, Auto HDR, Gyro-EIS, Dolby Vision, LUT; front camera:4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, Gyro-EIS, HDR.
• Battery: 7300mAh; 120W Wired, 120W UFCS, 55W PPS, 36W PD, 36W QC, 50% in 15 mins, 100% in 40 mins, 50W Wireless, 10W Reverse Wireless, 5W Reverse Wired, Bypass Charging.
• Connectivity: 5G; é SIM; Wi-Fi 7; BT 6.0, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, LHDC5; NFC; Infrared port.
• various: Fingerprint reader (under the display, ultrasonic); Stereo speaker.

On the other hand, the camera hardware has been changed, and not necessarily for the better. You still get the wide + telephoto + ultrawide combo on the back, but with a smaller sensor. However, the optical zoom has been upgraded to 3.5x, so there is some silver lining.

OnePlus promises better photography through software tricks. The OnePlus 15 uses its own DetailMax engine, while real-time tone mapping and true-to-live video recording ensure overall accurate color temperature and color reproduction. It remains to be seen whether AI and software optimizations can compensate for the slightly downgraded hardware.

Perhaps the most notable upgrade this year is the battery and charging. The OnePlus 15 has a massive 7,300 mAh battery, which is available in all markets, not just China. Charging rates have also been improved, and the phone now supports 120W fast charging on OnePlus’ proprietary SuperVOOC charger and 50W fast charging on an AirVOOC wireless charging pad. This is a very impressive battery setup and we have high expectations about its battery life.

Now let’s dive deeper and see how the OnePlus 15 stacks up against the competition in various aspects.

Unboxing the OnePlus 15

We received a European OnePlus 15 unit, which means it comes without a charger in the box – just a USB-A to USB-C cable.