OnePlus has just unveiled its next-generation flagship, the OnePlus 12. While the device is only available in China – for now – it gives us a good idea about what we can expect to see from the company in early 2024, when it’s expected to release the global variant across North America, Europe, and several other regions.

The new OnePlus 12 is one of the first devices to come equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, coupled with up to 24GB of memory and 1TB of storage. It has a beefy 5,400 mAh battery, a 6.8-inch LTPO AMOLED display, and a triple camera setup with a periscope telephoto lens for a more versatile experience.

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Price & Availability

The OnePlus 12 launched with four storage configurations in China, 12/256GB, 16/512GB, 16GB/1TB, and 24GB/1TB. The cheapest model starts at CNY 4,299 (~$605), while the highest-end retails for CNY 5,799 or about ~$820. The device is already up for pre-order in China, and open sales will begin on December 11. The Chinese model is available in three colors: Black, Emerald Green, and White.

As for the global model, OnePlus is expected to release it in “early 2024.” The company often releases its devices early to mid-January. Therefore, we can expect a launch in just a few weeks. As for price, the OnePlus 11 launched for $699 with the 8/128GB configuration, and we’re expecting a similar price, albeit, a slightly higher one adjusted for inflation. With that in mind, we could be looking at a phone that could start at $800.

OnePlus 12

The new OnePlus 12 features a 6.8-inch LTPO AMOLED display, a larger 5,400 mAh battery, and the new powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC. It has a new and improved camera setup with periscope telephoto lens, improved durability, and charging. 

OnePlus 12: Specifications

The OnePlus 12 is powered by the most powerful chip to this date, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, coupled with up to 24GB of RAM and 1TB of UFS 4.0 storage. The display houses a 6.82-inch, AMOLED LTPO panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. It supports HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and has a peak brightness of 4500 nits for HDR content, and 1600 nits for general use.

The Chinese model runs ColorOS 14.0, based on Android 14. The international model is expected to boot OxygenOS 14, based on Android 14.

Design

The OnePlus 12 borrows a lot of design elements from its predecessor, the OnePlus 11. It has a similar shape, dimensions, and overall looks. That said, the phone is now slightly wider, thicker, and heavier at 163.3 x 75.8 x 9.2 mm and 220g. For reference, the OnePlus 11 measures 163.1 x 74.1 x 8.5 mm and weighs just 205 grams. That means the OnePlus 12 is wider, thicker, and weighs more.

Despite the slightly tweaked design, some improvements include a larger display and battery. It’s also likely that this form factor has given OnePlus more opportunity to squeeze out even more performance thanks to more space that could be used to cool the device. It’s worth noting that OnePlus managed to up the IP64 certificate from the OnePlus 11 to IP65 on the new OnePlus 12, suggesting the new flagship is slightly more durable against water and dust.

The back of the device reveals a few key changes, most related to the camera module. As you can see in the images above, OnePlus moved the flash. They put it on the camera module itself, instead of having it on the camera island in a circular shape alongside the other sensors.

Display

The OnePlus 12 sports a 6.82-inch LTPO AMOLED display. It features 120Hz variable refresh rates, and it supports Dolby Vision, HDR10+, and has a 120Hz refresh rate. It’s fast, responsive, and bright. For general use, the display will provide 1600 nits of peak brightness. When watching content in HDR, the display will be able to peak at an impressive 4500 nits, providing stunning and bright visuals.

The display has all the usual bells and whistles that we expect from OnePlus, and it also supports 2,160Hz PWM dimming and blue light filtering to protect the user’s eyes from harmful lights. The panel still has a top center cutout that houses the front-facing camera.

Camera

OnePlus isn’t a class-leading camera smartphone brand, but the company is trying to catch new headlines with its new setup. The latest OnePlus 12 features the new Hasselblad-branded camera setup, consisting of three new sensors.

The primary is a 50MP Sony Lightyu LYT-808 sensor that was used in the OnePlus Open. It has 1.12µm pixels, 24mm lens with 1/1.7, and Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). There’s a 48MP Sony IMX581 ultrawide with 14mm lens, as well as a 64MP periscope telephoto with 3x optical zoom and up to 6x lossless magnification. On the front, the phone houses a 32MP f/2.4, 21mm wide camera. This doesn’t have OIS or autofocus.

According to OnePlus, the new camera setup, namely, the new primary sensor, can take in 55% more light, improving the quality of the image in challenging conditions. The ultrawide provides better panoramic sceneries, and the new telephoto can capture objects closer with greater sharpness and detail.

Battery

Given the slightly tweaked and larger design of the new OnePlus 12, the company managed to squeeze in a larger cell, upgrading the 5,000 mAh cell to 5,400 mAh. It’s one of the largest batteries in a OnePlus device to date, and it brings a few additional features.

The OnePlus 12 supports 100W wired charging, 50W wireless, and 10W reverse wireless charging. The company claims it can go from 0% to 100% in 26 minutes while charging via a cable, and 55 minutes while charging wirelessly. It remains to be seen whether the 100W charging option will be available on the international market in regions such as the US.

As always, we’ll have to wait until we get our hands on an official unit to do the battery tests. We’ll also have to wait for the official international model, which will reportedly be announced sometime in January, in a similar fashion to previous-generation OnePlus flagship devices.

OnePlus 12

The new OnePlus 12 features a 6.8-inch LTPO AMOLED display, a larger 5,400 mAh battery, and the new powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC. It has a new and improved camera setup with periscope telephoto lens, improved durability, and charging.