What's good
- Fast and fluid performance
- Clear and bright display
- Customizable back covers
- Long battery life
- Good daylight and night time picture quality
What's bad
- No NFC
- Limited editing and settings for camera
- No Quick Charge
Called the "flagship killer" by reviewers and the public alike, the OnePlus 2 offers top of line hardware at a fraction of the cost of other flagship Android devices. While the specs might look great on paper, does the OnePlus 2 live up to the hype?
The first thing experts noticed was the premium design and build of the OnePlus 2.The back cover is removable and you can swap it out for four different finishes – Bamboo, Black Apricot, Rosewood and Kevlar. A slightly curved design combined with the gritty texture of the sandstone finish gave critics an excellent grip on the phone. Its frame is made out of an aluminum-magnesium alloy with stainless steel accents. Due in part to the metal frame, the phone is quite hefty at 175 grams. It is also a fairly large phone measuring in at 6 x 3 x 0.4 inches. Still, most critics had no issue using it one-handed thanks to the narrow bezel space between the edge of the phone and screen.
Making up the majority of the phones size is the 5.5-inch full HD (1080 x 1920p) LCD display. While there are QHD and 2K resolution phones available on the market, critics could barely see any difference in sharpness when they compared the OnePlus 2 alongside 2K displays. They credit this to the fairly neutral color balance with Androidpit adding, "It's less 'showy' than many screens…but the realistic shades were to its credit." One of the biggest marketing points of the OnePlus 2 is its brightness. When put to the test experts did find it bright with excellent sunlight legibility and wide viewing angles.
As with other flagship phones, the OnePlus 2 sports top-of-the-line hardware: 1.8GHz octo-core processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. As with other processors running on an octo-core, the OnePlus 2 puts some processors to sleep during basic tasks to prevent overheating and save battery life. Luckily, critics did not notice any issues with performance whether they were launching apps, editing photos or watching HD videos. They were also able to play a wide range of games from casual to more graphics-intensive ones without stutters or crashes. Thanks to the 3,300mAh battery, they were able to get over a full day's worth of use under normal circumstances and around ten hours when playing games and using 4G. Unfortunately, the OnePlus 2 does miss the mark on a couple parts including lack of Quick Charge and NFC (allows you to establish communication with other devices with NFC like registers that take Apple Pay).
Another big improvement from its predecessor is the camera. While the OnePlus 2 main camera still has 13MP the phone now has optical image stabilization, dual-LED flash and laser auto focus. With these new features, critics were able to take clear, detailed images in daylight though they noticed pictures were over processed in HDR mode. Where most camera phones struggle is under low light situations. Thanks to the OIS and auto focus, experts could capture crystal clear shots even in poor lighting. Still, the camera itself has fairly limited functions offering only a few editing options such as "beautify" and panorama.
For the price, reviewers consider the OnePlus 2 a quality phone with few drawbacks. Times of India states, "…it's certainly the most power-packed and feature rich phone that money can buy at the moment." First Post adds, "…we would definitely recommend this phone…Although you also need to be aware of its shortcomings."
What the Critics Are Saying...
- Kunal Dua, Gadgets 360If you are looking for a dual-SIM Android smartphone with decent battery life and near-stock Android at around the Rs. 25,000 mark, we say go ahead, but be prepared to live with a few quirks. If you liked the One - which had more rough edges than the 2 - you will surely love OnePlus' newest flagship...
- Faryaab Sheikh, AboutSo, here’s the thing with the OnePlus 2: hardware is rock solid, software needs a bit of work, and some major corners were cut to bring the cost down. The 16GB variant costs $329, while the 64GB version is priced at $389. If you don’t use NFC, don’t care about wireless and fast Cha...
- Jason Million, G Style MagazineThe OnePlus Two for its price isn’t a bad smartphone in terms of what you get. But it just doesn’t feel as impressive when its OnePlus One sibling dropped last year. The OnePlus Two does have USB Type-C but doesn’t really help with anything. Also no NFC, wireless charging or even t...
- Marie Brewis, Tech AdvisorThe lack of NFC, a microSD card slot, a removable battery, and quick- and wireless charging means the OnePlus 2 is not a flagship killer. It does have some killer new features though, including USB Type-C, 4G dual-SIM support and some powerful hardware. At £289 (we don't recommend the 16GB OP2...
- Jamie Frier, Android MagazineThe OnePlus One was a great phone at any price. The OnePlus 2 is a very good phone, but at this price. Unfortunately, it’s not worthy of a top score. The lack of NFC we can probably overlook, but the current doubt and problems around the sensitivity of the fingerprint reader/home button togeth...
Prices (Where to Buy)
Common Questions
We've got you covered! Download a free PDF copy of the OnePlus 2 user manual here.
OnePlus backs up the 2 with a 1 Year parts & labour warranty.
If your 2 has problems and is still within its warranty period, you could contact OnePlus support or the retailer you purchased the phone from. You'll find OnePlus's contact information here. If your phone is off warranty and needs repair for a physical problem such as a broken screen or bad battery, you should visit an authorized service centre or a local phone repair shop. You can also connect with others in The Informr Community Forum to find and share answers to questions.
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Resources
Manuals / User Guides
- OnePlus 2 Manual (PDF)
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