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Meet OnePlus 8 - High-end specs and 5G connectivity for less

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Infinix
A few months after the international announcement, we finally get to take a closer look at the OnePlus 8. 
OnePlus 8

To recap, the OnePlus 8 has a massive 6.55-inch, 90Hz Fluid AMOLED display with HDR10 support and a resolution of  2400 x 1080 at 402 ppi with a punch hole on the top left. Yes, the Pop-up camera and full-screen display are gone.

The PH variant of the OnePlus 8 sports a 7nm Snapdragon octa-core processor, Adreno 650 GPU, 8GB LPDDR5 RAM, 128GB UFS 3.0, and 4,300mAh battery with 30W Warp Charge 30.

All of that for a starting price of PHP 35,990. 

Note: The model we got to try is the 12GB/256GB model in Glacial Green colorway. 

Let's dive in!

Meet OnePlus 8

OnePlus 8's eye-catching and elegant back

OnePlus has been making eye-catching and unique smartphone designs for the past several years. And this year, the Glacial Green may be their best yet.

The bright and cyan color is beautiful by itself but depending on the angle and how the light hits the surface, the color changes. My favorite is when a lemon-yellow like color appears which perfectly compliments the cyan.
Cyan with a hint of lemon yellow depending on how the light hits it
Cyan with a hint of lemon yellow depending on how the light hits it

The glass back has a matte-like texture that prevents fingerprints from showing while adding a more tactile feel to the back. The phone is still slippery to hold though. Despite this small nitpick, the OnePlus 8 feels and looks like a flagship device. However, unlike the OnePlus 8 Pro, there's no IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.
Top and bottom
Top and bottom
Right and left
Right and left

On top of the OnePlus 8 are the antenna lines and a microphone port while at the bottom is the SIM Tray, antenna lines, microphone port, USB Type-C port, and speaker grills.

The left side has the volume rocker and an antenna line while on the right side is the power button and the silent mode sliding toggle.

All of that fits in a 165.3 x 74.4 x 8.5mm chassis and weighs only 199 grams. The metal frame with the textured back glass feels and looks solid and premium to hold in the hand.

OnePlus has polished their manufacturing to the point that we think it is on par with the flagship smartphones of companies like Huawei and Samsung.
Display with punch hole on the top left
Display with punch hole on the top left

OnePlus has decided to move away from the full-screen display with a pop-up front-facing camera and have given the OnePlus 8 a curved display with a punch hole on the top left side. It is a 6.55-inch curved Gorilla Glass protected Fluid AMOLED 90Hz display with support for HDR10+ with a resolution of 2400 x 1080p at 402 ppi.

The display is surprisingly bright with vibrant colors and superfluid animations. The 10 points of multi-touch are also absolutely accurate and responsive to our touch inputs and gestures.

It also has a DisplayMate A+ rating even if it isn't using a 2K screen like other pricier phones.

AnTuTu and GeekBench Scores
AnTuTu and GeekBench Scores

Inside the phone is the flagship 7nm 2.84GHz Snapdragon 865 octa-core processor, Adreno 650 GPU, 8GB LPDDR5 RAM, 128GB UFS 3.0 storage and 4,300mAh with 30W Warp Charge 30.

Flagship screen and speed!

This combination results in a massive 542,638 in AnTuTu and 918 in GeekBench single-core tests and 3427 in GeekBench multi-core tests.
PCMark battery benchmark and Battery screen on time
PCMark battery benchmark and Battery screen on time

The large and high refresh rate display surprisingly doesn't take a huge toll on the battery as it scored only 13 hours in our PCMark Battery benchmark.

After a long day of heavy use with a constant connection to LTE and WiFi, we were left with 15-20 percent left at the end of the workday on the OnePlus 8.

This remedied by the 30W wired and wireless charging which charges the phone from 0 to 100 in under 70 minutes.

Note: We weren't able to test its 5G capabilities as our networks are not ready yet. But soon, 5G will be available for both Globe (July 2020) and Smart subscribers.
rear cameras
Rear cameras

At the back of the OnePlus 8 is a triple rear camera set-up made up of a 48MP f/1.75 main camera, 16MP f/2.2 with a 116-degree ultra-wide-angle camera, 2MP f/2.4 macro camera and dual-tone LED flash.
Rear camera UI
Rear camera UI

Camera modes include Photo, Portrait, Video, Slow Motion, Nightscape, and more with the ability to control the timer, flash, resolution, macro, and filters upfront on the rear camera UI.

Rear Camera Samples

Rear camera 1x
Rear camera 1x
Rear camera telephoto
Rear camera telephoto
Rear-camera ultra-wide
Rear-camera ultra-wide
Rear-camera macro mode
Rear-camera macro mode

Out of the box, the three rear cameras of the OnePlus 8 performed well. The images have decently sharp and detailed images with vibrant color. The white balance did tend to skew to the warmer side. The Macro mode is not just as sharp as we would like.

For videos, the OnePlus 8 can record up to 4K at 60fps with the rear-facing cameras.
front-facing cameras
front-facing cameras

In front of the OnePlus 8 is a punch hole on the top left that houses the 16MP f/2.0 selfie camera with EIS.
Selfie camera UI
Selfie camera UI

The selfie camera in the punch-hole is a 32MP f/2.4 Sony IMX616 camera with a new-generation AI face beauty algorithm to enhance selfies and Ultra Night Mode for clearer selfies in the dark.

Selfie Camera Samples

Auto selfie
Auto selfie
Portrait mode
Portrait mode

Out of the box, the front-facing camera is noticeably sharp with a lot of detail, especially in daylight. The portrait mode's bokeh and edge detection are on par with other flagships where it only struggled with few fine hair fibers.

The rest of the features

OnePlus 8 connects via WiFi 6, 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, and USB Type-C. It supports OTG, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, dual SIM, and Dolby Atmos.
OxygenOS based on Android 10
OxygenOS based on Android 10

Running the show is the latest version of OxygenOS that after all these years maintains its signature lightweight and snappy feel while adding features to Android 10. The look and fast feel are uniquely OxygenOS.

OnePlus 8 Specs

Display: 6.55-inch 3D curved Gorilla Glass protected Fluid AMOLED screen w/ 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, FHD+ 2400 x 1080 resolution at 402 ppi
CPU: 2.84GHz 7nm Snapdragon 865 octa-core processor
GPU: Adreno 650
RAM: 8GB LPDDR4X
ROM: 128GB UFS 3.0
Back Camera: 48MP f/1.75 Sony IMX586 w/ OIS, EIS + 16MP f/2.2 w/ 116-degree ultra-wide-angle + 2MP f/2.4 macro + dual-tone LED flash
Selfie Camera: 16MP f/2.0 Sony IMX471 w/ EIS
Battery: 4,300mAh w/ 30W Warp Charge 30
OS: Android 10 w/ OxygenOS 10
Connectivity: WiFi 6, 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.1 (aptX, aptX HD, LDAC, AAC support), OTG, NFC, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, dual SIM
Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic
Others: In-Display fingerprint sensor, face unlock, stereo speakers, Dolby Atmos, USB-C, Colors: Onyx Black, Glacial Green, Interstellar Glow
Dimensions: 160.2 x 72.9 x 8.0 mm
Weight: 180 g
Price: PHP 35,990

Quick thoughts

Like the competition, OnePlus has been steadily increasing its price. The OnePlus 8 is priced at PHP 35,990 but offers around 80 to 90 percent of smartphones at nearly double the price.

If you can live with just 90Hz (besides, 90Hz is still super smooth) and are amenable to the lack of wireless charging and the lack of superzooms, then we think the OnePlus 8 deserves your consideration because it can do a lot of the competing smartphones can do at a fraction of the price.

Since it has flagship SD865 SoC, 5G connectivity, and OxygenOS skin with timely updates, it is a future-ready handset as well.

See also: OnePlus 8 Interstellar Glow with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage arrives in PH shores
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