What’s wrong with OnePlus 6 ? – 6 Reasons I can think of ..

Oneplus 6 is undoubtedly the best smartphone ever from OnePlus. But I felt there’s some spark missing from this year’s OnePlus Variant. Which made me start thinking, “What’s really Iconic with OnePlus 6 ? “. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any. It’s one of the best in class, with great user experience & design. But since it doesn’t have anything unique, Eventually it made me think of ” What’s wrong with OnePlus 6 ? “, Is there any?

After thinking for a moment, I came up with a couple of reasons for why to skip One plus 6, But it would be best to write it as a separate article. In this article, I want to write only on what’s really wrong with Oneplus 6. It’s been just a couple of hours since the phone has been officially launched & we can already see fans expressing their disappointment over various social media sites.

If you are someone who is considering to buy Oneplus 6, then along with all the great features & positive reviews it got, you must also know what’s wrong with Oneplus 6 – A brand that promises to deliver a “Flagship Killer”.

PS: Clearly I don’t want to talk about the benchmarks & Antutu scores. We all know that the real world performance will be different compared with benchmark scores. Keeping in mind of Oneplus history, it’s also proven they can be manipulated.

What is the X factor of Oneplus 6 ?

Before I say anything. I want you to think of the below question for a moment. What makes it stand out from the crowd? Seriously Anything ?

• Dual Cameras ?  They are already in the market from past 1 year & more.
• Bezeless Design ?   It’s not new
• Notch ?  Seriously?
• Dash Charging ?  It’s been there before Oneplus 6
• Performance ?   Is it a breakthrough performance – Absolutely No
• Design ?   The OP6 is similar to iPhone X from the front with a slim notch & similar to Samsung S9 from the rear view.
• Face id?   Its apple’s invention :-P

What’s wrong with OnePlus 6 ?

Being a flagship, A premium phone from Oneplus, Lets see what went wrong with OP6.

Notch Design

Yes, The notch design. Oneplus Fans expressed their outrage on twitter before launch of OP6, when CEO of Oneplus announced that OP6 is coming with a notch. So Oneplus has to come up with a software design option in Oxygen OS to hide the Notch.

Since the notch is the iconic factor of iPhone X, Any phone that comes with a notch resembles iPhone X design.  Oneplus team deciding to come up with a notch design is really a disappointment to fans. After all, Oneplus is supposed to be the flagship killer, But not a flagship copier.

No Wireless charging

Most of the flagships released in 2018 came with wireless charging. Iphone X is the last to join that party. But fans are still waiting for Oneplus to make a move.

Though it’s not a mandatory requirement, But It does come handy when it is there. Since Oneplus has already decided to release Oneplus 6 with a glass back, They could have provided the wireless charging option.

Whats stopping them? What could go wrong with wireless charging ?

One reason I can think of is – May be they are saving it for 6T.

No IP certification – Not Water Resistant & Not Dust Resistant

Oneplus 6 is not completely water resistant – it’s just splash resistant

Is it atleast Dust resistant? – As per the official site –  There’s absolutely NO INFORMATION on it.

Oneplus 6 is not an IP certified. Though they announced the phone is Water resistant, they brilliantly expressed it’s not completely water resistant. Check out the below image from the official website.

• The Phone is equipped to survive a drop in the sink.
• A spilled glass of water.
• Just don’t take it for a swim.

I’m not expecting to take a 500$ smartphone for swimming. But I do expect a product from Oneplus to at least stand on the same grounds as it’s flagship competitors.

Apple’s iPhone X –  Can be Fully Submerged in water as deep as 1 meter for 30 minutes, Where as Samsung S9 can be submerged for up to 30 minutes as deep as 1.5 meters. Now, where does Oneplus 6 stand in terms of water resistance?

Simply OP6 is just splash resistant & the company didn’t admit it in open.

In IP certification number, The first digit represents the dust resistance & the later represents water resistance level. Though the certification is not a must, But It gives peace of mind for the customer/user. As it provides a clear indication to users where we can use, Whether it can be used in the rain, Under water & it’s resistance limit.

After all, If the OP6 is really water resistant & meets the IP standards, then why won’t it be IP certified. Wouldn’t it be a additional qualification for the product to showcase ?

So What’s wrong with Oneplus 6 here ? My guess, Nothing. They are just testing the feature, probably OP6 is missing something when it comes to meeting the standards & they’re saving it for 6T.

No In-Display Finger Print

This has been one of the most rumoured & expected feature by fans. There has been quite a lot of expectations for this feature to be true because of Vivo, The parent company of oneplus.

Vivo showed off it’s APEX concept phone in CES this year, that comes with “Half-Screen In-display finger print scanning”. Almost bezeless design. Hidden Front Facing Camera that works using a motor, like a periscope.

This gave the oneplus enthusiasts a hope of seeing the in display fingerprint scanner in OP 6. However, now I believe Oneplus might be saving it for it’s T version of OP6.

Super Slo-Mo Videos: Not Up to Expectations

Personally, I feel this is not a failure. But it’s just lack of effort by Oneplus towards it’s fans.

Oneplus 6 offers to record of super slow motion videos at 480 frames per second. That’s a great improvement over 5T. But when compared with flagships of competitors – Like Google, Apple & Samsung – OP 6 surpassed Google & Apple but lags in the race behind Samsung.

In another way, Maybe we can say, OP6 lacks in this particular sector too.

• Google’s Pixel 2 XL – can record 240 fps, But it was released 8 months before.
• iPhone X can record slo-mo videos with 240 frames per second. which was released 6 months ago.
• Samsung S9 can record at 960 frames per second, Released 2 months ago.
• Oneplus can record 480 fps – Released today.

With being the most recent & updated smartphone, It’s no wonder we expect it to beat Google, Apple & to compete with S9. Being a flagship killer, It should at least be equal in specs & performance. Right ?

If they wanted it. They could have done it. They’re saving it.

There’s Nothing Iconic with OnePlus 6

A couple of hours before writing this article, I posted a question asking “what’s so iconic/ X-factor of OP6” in the Oneplus Facebook community. Join the discussion here: Oneplus 6 – whats the X Factor of Oneplus 6 ?

I wanted to know what the fans are really thinking about OnePlus 6 & If they feel there is anything iconic to OP6.

Seems like the fans are willing to settle down with their Oneplus 5T Or willing to wait for the Oneplus 6T, but not ready to settle down with OP6.

It’s a point to consider – They’re customers & fans of ONEPLUS – Just like you & Me. They’re not happy.

Oneplus 6 is a suggested upgrade for users who are switching from Oneplus 3T or before. But not for the Oneplus 5 series users. It’s a suggested thing for them to wait for 6T.

Maybe the OnePlus team knows this all the time, 
That Oneplus 6 can't be a flagship killer.
So they termed it as "The Speed You Need".

If we have to consider it as a phone that delivers more speed, Then there’s nothing wrong with Oneplus 6, But if it is to be considered as a flagship of Oneplus & as a  flagship killer. Then dear Oneplus – you have failed this city.

Am I expecting more from this so-called flagship killer? Please leave you thoughts in the comment section  & let me know