OnePlus’s newest flagship arrives as a statement on battery life and raw speed: the OnePlus 15, announced for 2025 and priced from $899, pairs Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 with a 7,300 mAh battery in a 211 g frame. US availability has been pushed back after an FCC delay tied to a recent government shutdown; OnePlus says it will ship once certification clears. In daily use the phone impresses with multi-day runtime, rapid wired charging, and a very fast 1–165 Hz OLED, but software clutter and inconsistent camera processing temper the praise. Overall, the device trades some unique OnePlus hallmarks for broader design choices and a sharper focus on endurance and benchmarks.
- Price and models: base model starts at $899 (12 GB RAM, 256 GB); upgraded Sand Storm SKU is $999 with 16 GB / 512 GB and a unique MAO-finish back.
- Battery and charging: 7,300 mAh cell, 80 W included wired charging (OnePlus offers a 100 W adapter separately) and 50 W wireless; OnePlus claims full charge in a bit over 30 minutes with the included adapter.
- Performance: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 delivers top-tier multicore performance, though the phone pulls back 10–20% under sustained thermal load and reaches surface hotspots around 130°F in stress tests.
- Display: 6.78″ OLED at 1272 × 2772 with adaptive refresh from 1 to 165 Hz; HBM peak typical brightness ~1,800 nits (full-peak quoted up to 3,600 nits).
- Cameras: three 50 MP rear sensors (primary f/1.8 OIS, ultrawide f/2.0, 3.5x telephoto f/2.8 OIS) plus a 32 MP selfie; OnePlus replaced Hasselblad tuning with its DetailMax engine, producing inconsistent results in low light and with zoom.
- Software and AI: OxygenOS 16 (Android 16) with OnePlus Plus Mind AI features; OnePlus guarantees four years of OS updates and six years of security patches.
- Durability and design: IP69K rating, Gorilla Glass Victus 2, and a lighter-than-expected 211 g chassis; Sand Storm model uses a micro-arc oxidation (MAO) fiberglass back.
Background
OnePlus built its reputation by offering high-performance hardware at prices below established flagships, cultivating a passionate enthusiast following with clean software and distinctive hardware touches like the alert slider. In recent years the company has shifted toward a more mainstream aesthetic and feature set, aligning OxygenOS more closely with Oppo’s ColorOS and adding cloud-based AI services. That transition reflects broader industry trends: manufacturers are integrating generative-AI features and large on-device batteries while consolidating hardware design language across brands.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 is the newest mobile SoC in 2025 and a key reason OEMs hurry new models to market; OnePlus intentionally released two flagship products in the same year to be among the earliest to ship the chip. At the same time, handset makers face trade-offs between packing larger batteries and managing heat from high-performance silicon. Regulatory pacing also matters: the OnePlus 15’s US rollout was affected by an FCC backlog caused by a temporary government shutdown, delaying certification and sale despite phones being ready elsewhere.
Main event
Design-wise the OnePlus 15 abandons some of the company’s recent visual trademarks and instead adopts a shape and finish that look familiar next to Samsung, Apple, and Google flagships. The phone measures 161.4 × 76.7 × 8.1 mm and weighs 211 g, yet houses a 7,300 mAh battery — nearly 50% larger than many contemporary flagships. OnePlus achieves that capacity without a dramatic size penalty, and it backs the build with IP69K ingress protection and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the display.
The physical alert slider is gone, replaced by a configurable Plus Key that defaults to launching Plus Mind AI features such as voice-note capture and screenshot indexing. The change has practical consequences: users lose a fast hardware switch for silent/ring modes in exchange for an action button tied to services many users may not want. The Sand Storm colorway uses a micro-arc oxidation (MAO) process and a fiberglass back; OnePlus markets the finish as highly durable but restricts it to the higher-priced configuration.
Internally the OnePlus 15 pairs the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 with up to 16 GB of RAM and up to 512 GB of storage. In short workloads and UI navigation it’s immediately responsive; in synthetic benchmarks it posts leading multicore numbers. Under prolonged load, however, thermal management causes the system to reduce frequency by roughly 10–20%, and stress testing produced external hotspots near 130°F — hot enough to feel painful after prolonged contact.
On the software side OxygenOS 16 (Android 16) packs a long list of customization and AI features but has migrated closer to Oppo’s ColorOS, bringing more elaborate animations and deeper menus. Plus Mind processes some data locally but routes much of its workload to OnePlus’ Private Computing Cloud for features such as AI Writer and AI Recorder. OnePlus says these cloud services use encryption and company-controlled servers, though cloud-dependent features add latency and require a reliable connection.
Analysis & implications
For buyers prioritizing battery life and charging speed, the OnePlus 15 changes the calculus: a 7,300 mAh battery plus fast wired charging effectively ends nightly charging for many users and reduces battery-anxiety for heavy or travel-focused customers. That advantage could reshape mid-year upgrade decisions, particularly for users dissatisfied with conventional 5,000 mAh devices that need daily charging. Fast charging in-box—80 W included—also lowers friction for mainstream buyers who would otherwise need to purchase expensive accessories.
Performance leadership on paper does not translate to an unambiguous user advantage. While the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 enables record multicore scores and very high frame rates for games (up to 165 fps where supported), thermal realities limit sustained peak performance and raise comfort concerns during long gaming sessions. OEMs chasing benchmark supremacy risk producing devices that are blisteringly fast for bursts but uncomfortable — or even thermally constrained — under extended load.
Camera strategy is a weak link in this product cycle. OnePlus’ switch from Hasselblad to the in-house DetailMax pipeline plus slightly smaller sensors has produced inconsistent results: strong outdoor shots but variable color, oversharpening, and poorer low-light/zoom performance compared with top competitors. For users who value computational photography as highly as raw speed or battery life, the OnePlus 15 may be a relative downgrade versus rival flagships or even the OnePlus 13.
Comparison & data
| Spec | OnePlus 15 | Typical rivals |
|---|---|---|
| Battery | 7,300 mAh | ~5,000 mAh (S25 Ultra, Pixel 10 Pro XL) |
| SoC | Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 | Apple/Qualcomm equivalents |
| Display | 6.78″ OLED, 1272×2772, 1–165 Hz | Up to 1440p, 1–120/165 Hz |
| Charging | 80 W included, 100 W sold separately, 50 W wireless | Typically 30–70 W wired, varying wireless |
| Weight | 211 g | ~190–240 g depending on battery & materials |
The table highlights the OnePlus 15’s outlier battery capacity and competitive refresh-rate ceiling; competitors often match or exceed display resolution or camera tuning, even if they trade battery size. These trade-offs reflect different engineering priorities: thermal performance, camera optics, and software processing can be balanced in different ways to suit target user bases.
Reactions & quotes
OnePlus framed the device as a performance and endurance flagship in launch materials, emphasizing battery and the opportunity to ship early with the new Qualcomm chip. Industry reviewers praised the battery life but flagged camera and software choices.
The phone “runs for days on a charge” in real-world use, making battery anxiety largely a thing of the past for heavy users.
Independent reviewer testing
Developers and privacy advocates noted the cloud-first AI model as convenient but raising questions about latency and data flow.
Some AI features “process data in OnePlus’ Private Computing Cloud,” requiring connectivity for full function and adding latency compared with on-device processing.
OnePlus technical materials / product brief
Among enthusiasts the removal of the alert slider drew criticism as a loss of a defining hardware convenience.
Long-time fans observed that replacing the alert slider with the Plus Key removes a simple, tactile control many users valued.
Community feedback and forum posts
Unconfirmed
- OnePlus’ claim that this is the first MAO-finished phone is inconsistent with past devices (e.g., 2012 HTC One S) and should not be treated as an industry-first fact without independent verification.
- OnePlus’ statement that encryption prevents any access (including by the company) to cloud-processed content is a technical assertion that requires third-party audit or whitepaper verification to be fully substantiated.
Bottom line
The OnePlus 15 is a deliberate engineering play: it prioritizes battery capacity and peak performance while accepting compromises in camera processing and software cohesion. If your primary needs are multi-day battery life, fast wired charging included in-box, and top-tier burst performance, this phone is an excellent pragmatic choice that undercuts some rivals on price. The phone’s practical strengths—long runtime and quick top-up charging—are tangible benefits for travelers and heavy users.
However, buyers who prize camera consistency, polished UI simplicity, or the convenience of the alert slider might prefer recent flagships from Google, Samsung, or even last year’s OnePlus 13. The OnePlus 15 is compelling in specific use cases but not a universal upgrade: evaluate whether endurance and benchmark leadership outweigh the camera and software trade-offs for your priorities.