OnePlus 8 Series Smartphones Will All Support 5G, CEO Pete Lau Confirms

The OnePlus chief has also made it clear that the prices of its phones will go up now that 5G has arrived.

By Nadeem Sarwar | Updated: 10 March 2020 18:55 IST

OnePlus 8 Series Smartphones Will All Support 5G, CEO Pete Lau Confirms

Photo Credit: Twitter / PeteLau

Lau mentioned the possibility of an all-5G OnePlus 8 series last year

Highlights

No 5G networks are currently live in India
The company aims to exploit the rapid growth of 5G coverage
OnePlus 8 series is rumoured to debut in April

OnePlus CEO Pete Lau had hinted last year that the OnePlus 8 series could be an all-5G lineup, and now he has confirmed that the OnePlus 8 series phones will indeed all be 5G-ready. In an interaction with CNET, the OnePlus chief stated “Going forward, we're all in on 5G.” However, just in case you were wondering whether 5G support will make the prices of these devices shoot up, Lau has also confirmed that the new technology will add something to the cost of each device. Introducing 5G to the OnePlus 8 series will increase the prices of each device compared to their current-generation equivalents.

“I want to restate our commitment to 5G and our long term investment. We've been investing in 5G for several years and we see this as the direction going forward, and one we're very much committed to,” Lau was quoted as saying. The OnePlus co-founder added that the company wants to take advantage of the rapid growth in 5G coverage that is being made at the moment.

Talking about the inevitability of a price hike, the OnePlus chief reasoned that new technology – 5G, in this case – does add costs. OnePlus' commitment to going all-5G for the OnePlus 8 series is perhaps a bit surprising, considering that 5G rollouts are in nascent stages in many regions, particularly in India – one of the company's biggest markets. However, other 5G devices have been launched in India already and OnePlus might not want to be perceived as out of date. The Realme X50 Pro 5G and iQoo 3 were both launched in India in February this year at prices that put them in competition with the OnePlus lineup. Also, the current-generation Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 flagship processor is only sold to smartphone manufacturers as a platform with an accompanying 5G modem.

Lau had given a hint of things to come last year. The OnePlus executive had said back in October that OnePlus 8 series could potentially all be 5G devices. A day later, OnePlus India General Manager Vikas Agarwal told Gadgets 360 that the company was very bullish on launching 5G phones in India. He also noted that that the company was ready with 5G devices at the time, and had actively been testing them with telecom service providers.

OnePlus 8 leaks look exciting but when will the phones launch in India? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.

OnePlus 8

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Very good build quality
Vivid display
Excellent performance and software
Solid battery life
Decent camera performance

Bad
No IP rating or wireless charging
Low-light video could be better
12GB variant isn’t great value

Read detailed OnePlus 8 review

Display 6.55-inch

Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 865

Front Camera 16-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 16-megapixel + 2-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 256GB

Battery Capacity 4300mAh

OS Android 10

Resolution 1080x2400 pixels

More OnePlus mobiles OnePlus mobiles price in India

OnePlus 8 Pro

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Excellent build quality, IP68 rating
Bright, fluid display
Very good rear cameras
Solid overall performance
Great battery life
Fast wireless charging

Bad
Selfie camera could be better
Excessive rear camera bulge

Read detailed OnePlus 8 Pro review

Display 6.78-inch

Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 865

Front Camera 16-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 8-megapixel + 48-megapixel + 5-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB

Battery Capacity 4510mAh

OS Android 10

Resolution 1440x3168 pixels

More OnePlus mobiles OnePlus mobiles price in India

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