Tomorrow, 20th June, sees the global launch of the OnePlus 5, a hotly anticipated smartphone because of the flagship level specifications offered at approximately half the price of a top end phone from Samsung, Apple, or LG. The launch will be broadcast live at 10:30pm IST preceding the India launch by two days, when the device will be released to the tech media and fans in Mumbai.

By now there is little that has not leaked regarding the OnePlus 5. The earliest feature to be revealed was the phone’s camera placement which is now to one side on the left rather than in the centre as on the OnePlus 3T. Also known is that there is a dual camera set up and that the primary camera is a 16MP shooter.

Sample images teased by co-founder of OnePlus, Carl Pei, have fans wondering whether the dual camera will mean that one can take monochrome images with one of the lenses. Also evident is the depth effect that phone cameras have been striving for in their attempt to replace actual cameras. It’s almost certain that the camera on the OnePlus 5 is to be one of its highlights, the slogan “Dual camera clearer photos” on the box having been teased as well.

Also obvious is that the Oneplus 5 will be based on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835. Several devices with this platform are already in the market. In keeping with previous formats, the new phone is expected to be available in 64GB and 128GB internal storage variants. A little less certain is whether there will actually be an 8GB RAM model as well as a 6GB one.

Images posted by OnePlus have also partially shown the design of the OnePlus 5 to be different from the previous two generations of OnePLus phones and too close to the iPhone (from the back panel) for comfort. This has caused fans to express disappointment already with Pei actually taking to Twitter to remind people that as with previous designs, all that is forgotten once users have the phone in their hands.

Another point of criticism is that the battery, now rumoured to be 3,300mAh, is less than the 3,400mAh of the OnePlus 3T. However, the charging time for the 5 is said to be faster with better Dash Charging, OnePlus’ fast charging method. From the front of the phone, it is also evident that OnePlus has not gone in for the bezel-less form factor that companies like Samsung, LG and Xiaomi have been coming up with. The fingerprint sensor is, as it was, merged with the Home button on the front.

Whatever the OnePlus 5 looks like, there is little doubt that it will be a fast-performing and powerful device running on the recent version of Android Nougat and an update of OnePlus’ Oxygen OS.

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