SCORE ✪✪✪✪
PRICE 16GB/256GB, £666 (£799 inc VAT) from oneplus.com
OnePlus' latest phone represents a return to the brand's defining formula: competitive specs at a competitive price. It's £70 cheaper than the OnePlus 10 was at launch, and there's only one model, with no upsell to a "Pro" version. Pricing starts at a reasonable £729 with 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, or you can buy a 512GB/16GB model for £799.
What you get for the money is a very nice-looking phone. I like the flat edges on the top and bottom, and the curved bump on the rear shines like a sports car. Fans of previous OnePlus phones will be pleased to note that the physical alert slider remains on the side. You can flick this up to mute the phone or down to turn the sound back on. It's wonderfully tactile, with a knurled face that makes it easy to find without taking the phone out of your pocket.
On the bottom edge, there's a USB-C port (the headphone jack is gone for good, it seems), as well as a SIM card slot - although the phone can alternatively handle an eSIM, or switch between the two.
The handset doesn't feel as polished as an iPhone or a Samsung Galaxy. Flip it over in your hand and you'll catch on the edges and seams, and the bezel isn't uniform around the display. Those with smaller hands may also find the 6.7in format unwieldy: it's as big as the Google Pixel 7 Pro, and there's no smaller model to match the standard Pixel 7.
A bigger problem is the glossy finish. It looks sharp, but it's so slick it slipped off my desk a few times, and I even managed to drop it on occasion. That's not great, especially since the phone is only IP64-rated, which means it's not guaranteed to survive an accidental dunk in the toilet. This is a phone that needs handling with care.
Shining example
This story is from the May 2023 edition of PC Pro.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 2023 edition of PC Pro.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Robobutlers may never happen, but robot care workers are on their way
Do you hate loading the dishwasher enough to pay someone to do it remotely? Nicole Kobie wonders about the weird future of home robots
Technical debt
Cutting corners now means more work down the road - but Steve Cassidy asks whether that's always a bad thing
Zyxel ZyWALL ATP500
Zyxel delivers tough gateway security and advanced threat protection at a very appealing price
CREATIVE WORKSTATIONS
Intel and AMD both offer compelling CPU choices for workstations, giving us ten machines with the widest variety of specifications we've seen for years
ANDROID PHONES FROM £219
As this roundup of four affordable contenders shows, there's no need to spend a fortune on a phone
Amazon Echo Pop
If you want a compact Alexa smart speaker, the Pop is now the cheapest choice - but what does it really add?
Getac X600
A powerful alternative to the Panasonic Toughbook 40, with the bonus of optional Nvidia graphics
Amazon Fire Max 11
With its 2K screen and sleek design, this is Amazon's best tablet yet-but FireOS remains a hindrance
Google Pixel Fold
The Pixel Fold delivers with a thin and durable design, a wide front display, smart software and great cameras
Welcome to the Fediverse
Have commercial social networks had their day? Darien Graham-Smith looks at the free, community-run apps that could usurp Twitter, Reddit and the Meta empire