OnePlus Hype Train Accelerates Again, New Smartphone Arriving This Year

The OnePlus 2 flagship smartphone was hyped for months ahead of its official unveil last week. OnePlus leaked major details about the device including its processor (a new revision of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810) and even its rare (for a smartphone) reversible USB-C connector. But apparently OnePlus has even more in store for consumers: its fast approaching, third smartphone.

That new smartphone will be out before the end of year, with OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei remarking that he hopes to see the device arrive in time for Christmas. Pei is being rather tightlipped about specifications for the device, but he just couldn’t temper his enthusiasm for the smartphone in a recent interview.

OnePlus 2

“It may or may not be (higher spec'd than the OnePlus 2),” said Pei in an interview with USA Today. “When I saw the prototype for that phone I was like 'holy s--- that's going to be my daily driver' but then when the OnePlus 2 production version came out it's also super nice, so its really hard to decide now what to use.”

“It's going to be amazing, but today I'm not going to talk about it.”

Well, that’s no fair! That just leaves the rest of us to speculate about what could possibly be in store for eager consumers. The OnePlus 2 is already a pretty stacked machine, but comes with a phablet-sized 5.5-inch display, which may be off-putting to some people. Could the upcoming OnePlus be a smaller device, perhaps with a 5- or 5.1-inch display putting it more in line with the Samsung Galaxy S6? A 5.1-inch OnePlus device with specs similar (or even slightly lower than the OnePlus 2) could be a force to be reckoned with.

As for the new OnePlus 2, pre-orders are already being taken for the flagship smartphone which starts at $329 for the 16GB model and costs just $389 for the 64GB model — both prices are for an off-contract, unlocked device. That pricing is quite spectacular when you consider that the phone features 3GB of RAM (or 4GB with the 64GB model), a 13MP rear camera with OIS, 5MP front camera, fingerprint sensor and dual SIM slots.

Join these NYC fans at our Times Square pop-up experience, and see the #OnePlus2 in person #NeverSettle pic.twitter.com/sBojfmhGHp

— OnePlus (@oneplus) July 31, 2015

To date, OnePlus has sold 1.5 million smartphones, which is a drop in the bucket compared to the number of iPhones and Galaxy smartphones that Apple and Samsung sell respectively in a single quarter. But OnePlus’ popularity is still undeniable as witnessed by the long lines at the company’s “Pop-up Experiences” scattered around the globe.