OnePlus India has launched the brand new OnePlus 3 at a launch event in Bangalore, Karnataka. I attended the launch event to see if “Is it still the flagship killer as it claims to be?” I experienced the phone, and accessories and also did complete unboxing of the phone. So this is a preliminary overview or hands-on impression of the OnePlus 3. After this launch, official sales have begun in the market. OnePlus 3 price in India is Rs 27,999 which is about $480 in USD price. If we look at the price and hardware, the company has maintained its stand according to the market.
I attended the launch event with a few friends and saw a large community of tech-loving people in Bangalore. People lined up for the event at first and after the official announcement, we all got to use the latest OnePlus 3, dash charger, back covers, accessories, and the latest OnePlus Loop VR headset. In the first look, I found that the company has kept design changes to a minimum and has given maximum effort in the power. In this age of metallic phones, the company is also taking on this trend. So after the OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X, we have a metal body phone for the first time.
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OnePlus 3 Specifications
- Dimension: 152.7 x 74.7 x 7.4 mm
- Weight: 158g
- Display: 5.5 Inches Optic AMOLED Screen
- Resolution: 1080×1920
- SoC: Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 (Quad-Core)
- CPU Details: 2.15 GHz Kryo and 1.6 GHz Kryo Dual-Core sets
- GPU: Adreno 530
- Protection: Corning Gorilla Glass 4
- Memory: 6 GB RAM
- Storage: 64 GB Inbuilt, No SD card support
- Battery: 3000 mAh Lithium-Ion
- Charging Rate: 20W Fast Charging, Dash Charge
- Back Camera: 16 Megapixels with f/2.0 aperture (PDAF, OIS)
- Video: 4K at 30 fps, 1080p at 30,60 fps and 720p at 120 fps
- Front Camera: 8 Megapixels with f/2.0 aperture
- Video: 1080p at 30 fps
- OS: Android 6.0 Marshmallow (Oxygen OS)
- Connectivity and Sensors: USB Type-C, Front-mounted fingerprint scanner, Accelerometer, Compass, Gyrosensor, Proximity
- Price: INR 27,999
Design and Build
The Oneplus 3 has a beautiful metal body design that houses a very powerful system. It comes in two color options which are graphite and soft gold. The graphite model looks like bare metal and it gives a premium feel due to its solid metallic construction. The whole body feels very thin, solid, and easy to use due to the curved back.
Also Read: OnePlus X Price in Nepal, Specs, Features
On the front side, there is the screen, a home button with a fingerprint scanner, a front camera, earpiece, Similarly, at the back, there is the OnePlus logo, camera, and LED flash. On the left side of the phone, there is an alert slider and volume rocker. Then on the right side, there is the power button. At the bottom side, there is a USB port, headphone jack, and speaker.
Internal Hardware
OnePlus 3 comes with the Snapdragon 820 quad-core chip which consists of dual Core Kyro sets and Adreno 530 GPU. The new GPU performs very well for gaming and multimedia content consumption according to early reviews of other users. Even though the processor is strong, the company could have gone with an octa-core processor instead because almost all new phones at this price now have 8 core CPUs.
For storage, we are getting a 64 GB storage option which is enough for many people but there is no SD card support. It is disappointing for people who want more storage and external memory card support. OnePlus 3 also has very powerful and special hardware inside its core and that is 6 GB RAM. It is plenty of RAM and the new software update makes memory management fantastic and improves multitasking.
OP3 is filled with new features such as support for 4G and sensors such as NFC, Gyro-sensor, Barometer, etc. There is a fingerprint scanner at the front which was fast in our test. On the inside, there is also a 3000 mAh battery that powers the device. It supports 20W fast charging and the retail box ships with a ‘Dash Charger’. OnePlus 3 is currently running Android Marshmallow with Oxygen OS on top and it will surely get an Android Nougat update. The Oxygen OS is clean and fast as stock Android. So it is really refined in a sense. The company is also rolling out maintenance, security, and performance update in the upcoming days.
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Display and Cameras
The OnePlus 3 comes with a 5.5 inches AMOLED screen with 403 PPI pixel density and 1080×1920 resolution. It is a Samsung panel and it is protected by Gorilla Glass 4. The screen looks gorgeous and it is pretty big as well. For the front camera, there is an 8 MP camera that can take 1080p videos and provide excellent selfies or photos. For the back camera, there is a powerful 16 MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture and optical image stabilization (OIS). The sensor has support for 4K video recording, FHD 60 fps video recording, and 720p slow-motion support as well. As OP3 is a flagship phone, it definitely has a flagship quality camera.
Impressions, Purchase, and Availability in India
OnePlus 3 has a lot to offer at the under 30K INR price bracket. It has a solid design, massive screen, fast processor, and great camera. The battery is big and has Dash Charge support for faster charging. By the way Dash Charge is only possible via its own original accessory which means the charger and cable.
In our first view, the device is priced competitively because it is providing all the top quality specs at a mid-range price. It has very close competition with flagship phones of other companies. It’s actually a clear winner with the flagship because the price difference is huge and the OnePlus 3 is surely cheaper.
This phone has a solid profile but it would have been perfect with an octa-core processor and external SD card support. Otherwise, there is no compromise in performance or build quality, so One Plus 3 is recommended device if you are looking for a mid-range priced phone. The OnePlus 3 will be available for purchase in the retail market and online stores across India. So you can buy them at your own comfort.
