OnePlus 16 is a hit, selling over 70,000 units in 1 hour

OnePlus 16 sold over 70,000 units in its first hour in China, topping this year's Android flagships in comparable launch‑period sales, according to OnePlus China president Li Jie.

OnePlus 16 rendered image

OnePlus 16 key highlights

To recap,the OnePlus 16 comes in Tomorrow Starlight (with LED array), Martian Red, and Dark Forest, measuring just 8.50/8.55mm thin. It boasts quad IP66/68/69/69K ratings for dust and water resistance.

Highlighting its gaming focus, it's the first phone with a global 165Hz refresh rate, peaking at 185Hz in select titles (6 supported now, 17 more coming). The 6.78‑inch LTPO AMOLED offers 1.5K resolution, 1 to 185Hz adaptive refresh, 2,000 nits peak brightness, and an In‑Display fingerprint scanner.

Powering the phone is the new flagship mobile chip of American tech giant Qualcomm, the 2nm Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 with the latest and greatest Adreno GPU yet. It is paired with P4 display, G3 eSports, and T3 touch chips. Configs include 12GB/16GB RAM and 256GB/512GB/1TB storage.

For battery, it has a MASSIVE 9,000mAh battery (one of the biggest in modern flagship smartphones) with USB-C 100W SUPERVOOC wired and 50W wireless charging.

Cameras feature a 200MP OIS main, 50MP ultra‑wide, 50MP 3x periscope, plus a 50MP AF selfie cam with 4K60 video.

Other features include stereo speakers, upgraded gyroscope, WiFi 7, eSIM, and Android 17 OS w/ OPPO ColorOS 17 skin instead of OxygenOS as planned.

What made it an early hit?

Screenshot from Weibo

The reason for its early success hasn't been confirmed, but we suspect it's thanks to bang‑for‑the‑buck specs: a newly announced flagship processor, blazing 185Hz refresh rate, one of the largest batteries on a flagship‑level phone, and an upgraded camera system at an attractive price—exactly what mobile gamers might be looking for.

In China, the OnePlus 16 starts at just CNY 5,999 (around PHP 56.3K) for the 12GB/256GB trim. It can go up to CNY 8,499 (around PHP 79.7K) for the 16GB/1TB top-end variant.

There is no info if it will be launched in the Philippines yet.

Source: Weibo