OnePlus reveals the OnePlus 6

After weeks and weeks of teases, leaks, rumours, the OnePlus 6 was unveiled earlier today. Marques Brownlee is part of the first batch of YouTubers that were able to do a “hands-on” video of the phone. A few notes on the successor of the OnePlus 5T, which is the phone I use every day:

• Why does it have a glass back if wireless charging isn’t available? Maybe it will come with the 6T? Glass is obviously more fragile than metal, ceramic, or plastic. It is heavier, and also more slippery. The only good reason to have a glass back is wireless charging.¹ It may look more shiny, but most people will then use a case or a skin anyway.

• Mandatory and welcome camera and chip upgrades, but nothing really new besides this glass back, water resistance, and yeah, the notch. I don’t mind notches. What I do mind is having a notch while having a “chin” or bottom bezel: It makes them look a bit asymmetrical.² Notches obviously became a marketing feature, for the phone to be part of the iPhone X-class of phones in the eye of the potential buyer. So far, I think only Apple, Xiaomi,³ and Essential Phone really nailed the “bezel-less” design.Vivo’s prototype sure looks interesting, but a prototype if far from becoming a device shipping to millions of customers in just a few months. Pretty sure every company has a prototype like this by now, they just decide not to show it.

• Speaking of marketing, I am not a big fan of the marketing campaign for this phone: I really can’t figure it out. Not a big fan either of the recent venture of OnePlus into the ugly world of cryptocurrencies. I am sensible to what brands do outsides of the products I end up buying, because I am now limiting the numbers of brands I buy from, choosing them more carefully.

• The usual six-month cycle update from OnePlus: improvements here and there, consistent build quality and software polish, fantastic value.