The OnePlus 6’s Most Significant Edge Against Its Competitors Might Also Be Its Simplest Feature
Rumors are high that the OnePlus 6 is set to hit shelves soon, making 2018’s smartphone race a bit more exciting. The powerhouse handset, coming from what could only be one of the biggest rising stars in the mobile phone arena, has an impressive amount of rumors backing it up, from monster specs to features that remain practical and simple.
When it all comes down to it, however, the OnePlus 6’s killer feature this year might actually be one of its simplest.
Back when Apple unveiled the iPhone 7, the Cupertino-based tech giant opted to remove the device’s headphone jack in order to free up space inside the smartphone. The result of that for end users was a constant struggle against dongles. Unfortunately, Apple being Apple, the trend actually stuck, and rival smartphone manufacturers began to copy the trend. So far, Sony has done it, and even the best Android handset in the market — the Google-designed Pixel 2 — has opted to remove the headphone jack.
OnePlus, however, knows its customers. Back when the headphone jack-less trend started gaining foot, OnePlus CEO Carl Pei asked the company’s users if the headphone jack was something they’d like to keep. The answer was a resounding yes. In a recent interview with The Verge, Pei stated that the OnePlus 6 would retain its headphone jack. It was a simple statement about a simple feature pertaining to a very old legacy port — but it was proof nonetheless that the upstart smartphone manufacturer is still the same aggressive startup that it was years ago.
Same expert craftsmanship, new materials. #OnePlus6 pic.twitter.com/4ded4eFZMj
— OnePlus (@oneplus) April 20, 2018
In an increasingly competitive smartphone market, device-makers usually have to copy trends from large brands in order to remain competitive. Take Apple’s notch for the iPhone X, for example. It was mocked endlessly in online forums for being a bad design choice until it was not. Once the device was released and smartphone users started forking over $1,000 for the iPhone X, a good number of Android handset manufacturers opted to copy the trend — OnePlus being one of them. If Pei’s interview is any indication, however, the company only intends to copy the good parts from its biggest competitors. Utility-wise, it is still opting for function over form.
As noted in a recent TechRadar report, the OnePlus 6 is rumored to be released sometime this May or June. Pricing of the device is also expected to be higher than the company’s norm, with some rumors pointing to a ceiling of up to $749.
