Is OnePlus about to make a big mistake with the OnePlus 7 Pro?

This article may contain personal opinions and opinions of the author.

At the present time, anyone who considers himself a smartphone enthusiast has heard of OnePlus – the company is far from having been an obscure mark without any recognition and has pioneered a way forward. 39, away from the general public. It is even proposed by T-Mobile in the United States, which is not an easy task. On the street, is that this year, for the first time in its history, OnePlus will launch two devices at the same time. The "standard" OnePlus 7, which enriches the OnePlus 6 last year and will cost about $ 600, and the "best" OnePlus 7 Pro, which would start at $ 700. A move that comes directly from the pages of Apple, Samsung and Huawei, all of which have launched "regular" and "superpower" versions of their flagship phones in recent months.

But here is the thing. It's not the OnePlus that we all know and love and that may be a mistake.

This is not the OnePlus we know

The OnePlus One was not really pretty, but it was filled with great material at a great price!

Since the launch of its first phones, OnePlus has been targeting "tech-savvy" consumers by offering impressive specifications in an affordable product and using guerrilla / viral marketing strategies to spread the word. The OnePlus One was launched at a price of $ 299, which at the time was twice as cheap as your usual flagship product. Over the years, each new iteration of the OnePlus range has been accompanied by a slight increase in price, and we have reached the point where the OnePlus 6T started at $ 550.

But that's good, I'm not here to say, "Bring it back to $ 300!" It is obvious that keeping prices so low is unsustainable in the long run, OnePlus has waited for its time and taken the losses until it can attract the attention of a wider customer base . And that's what it did.

But it's not all about money

What has made OnePlus special in recent years is not only its lower prices, but also the fact that the company has only launched one phone at a time. In the first semester, you have the regular series – OnePlus 3, OnePlus 5, OnePlus 6; and in the second half, you get the slightly improved versions – OnePlus 3T, OnePlus 5T, OnePlus 6T … When a new device is launched, the old one is abandoned (or sold as old stock at promotional prices), and you If you buy a OnePlus, you will always get the latest and greatest products from the company.

And OnePlus has already talked about it – he tried to get a midranger device with the OnePlus X, but in the end, the company did not like the way the product was made and said: "From now we will focus on one prominent phone at a time, no midranger shenanigans "(not a direct quote). Cue the applause.

So why this sudden change of heart?

To be fair, the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro are not going to be a "midranger" and "flagship" duo, but rather a "lighthouse" and a "lighthouse +". Thus, we can say that OnePlus remains true to his word – it is no longer necessary to strike with midrangers.

But call a cat a cat – we are about to get a lower and higher version of the same phone. The OnePlus 7 Pro will be endowed with a selfie camera with exit mechanism, absolutely no notch on the screen, a triple camera at the back with a Crazy zoom (like the Huawei P30 Pro) and a very wide angle start lens. The OnePlus 7 will have a notch for the selfie camera and "only" two lenses on the back – a telephoto and a regular wide angle (it will likely also have enhanced zoom features but not a very wide angle ). Inside, both phones will be identical or extremely similar.

Who is supposed to buy the OnePlus 7 Pro?

From the $ 700 rumor, it still looks like a bit of a deal. It's still cheaper than the Galaxy S10e and the iPhone XR. It's a little tighter than fans who have been using OnePlus for a few years. And what should we compensate for this sudden rise in prices? A selfie camera mounted on a tray? Not sure of that one, OnePlus.

It's a wise advice, absolutely. This is the one I will give quite often and that's probably what many longtime fans will do anyway.

However, I can not help but think that the regular OnePlus 7 will be a little disappointing for fans – for one, it looks (supposedly) like a "OnePlus 6T + T" and second, there's this " slightly better phone "hanging in front of their noses, for only $ 100 more.

It's a bit of a betrayal of the OnePlus mind: it's still a "star killer", a "flawless device", a "smart choice" in terms of budget and specifications. Now you have "the smart choice" and "the best phone we can give you". The latter is a completely separate product now.

I can not help but think that it would distract a lot of people. Many will choose Normal 7 on the Pro, and I'm sure many will prefer not to upgrade this year. The question is: will the OnePlus 7 Pro be able to attract outside customers to the established fan base and will it manage to sell better than the OnePlus 7? We'll see, but the answer to this question will also dictate if we continue to see OnePlus Pro phones in the future.

Addendum: Google went in the opposite direction in the worst moments

Although it is not a problem strictly related to OnePlus 7 Pro, it is still the wrong time for OnePlus that Google decided to announce the Pixel 3a earlier. A $ 400 Pixel phone with the same camera as the flagship products but a slightly nervous performance – it's obvious! It is certain that this will take a look at OnePlus' works and will likely affect the way the public perceives the products of this company (and others). Google is the good guy by offering the Pixel experience at a super discounted price, while others make "Pro" phones as an excuse to further increase their prices.

Could Google prove to be the "industry hustler" of 2019, while OnePlus is becoming just another smartphone company?