Editorials · Reviewer Insight
OnePlus is gone, but its true successor is already in my pocket
That's a weird way to "never settle", but here we are.
This article may contain personal views and opinion from the author.
Me and my favorite phone right now won't really miss OnePlus. | Image by PhoneArena
OnePlus is dead, and I'm in mourning. One of my favorite phone brands of all time is stepping down from the global markets and getting restricted to merely existing on the local Chinese and Indian markets. Despite the outcry and the relative "sadness" of the situation, it's a storm in a glass of water judging by OnePlus' feeble market share in the US.
I'd rather wait for the Oppo Find X10 Pro, thank you very much.
Even at its peak in 2021, the market share of OnePlus never surpassed 3%, and it only went downhill from there.
Don't get me wrong, OnePlus leaving global markets, especially the US one, is bad for everyone. In America, this weakens the Android side and basically leaves you with three choices if you want to get a new Android phone through your carrier: Samsung, Google, or Motorola. You can, of course, import a phone internationally, but you're inviting a whole slew of problems into your life, like spotty cell coverage, warranty and repairs, and more.
Despite the exit, I've already settled on an alternative that I've been happily using for the past couple of months, and I am genuinely having a hard time picking a replacement.
OnePlus was aiming for the stars but lost itself in the lower stratosphere
I've been following and simultaneously an active fan of OnePlus ever since the brand's inception; actually, I liked their witty marketing tricks even before their first product was released. This generally positive sentiment continued up until 2018 for me, with many of the released OnePlus phones up to that point easily ranking as favorites of mine. I loved the OnePlus 3T, 5T, 6T, and was deeply impressed with the OnePlus 7 Pro at the time.
However, right around the OnePlus 8, the company changed for the worse around the turn of the decade. It was gradually moving away from the enthusiast status it held and was raising prices with each release, but it was in the 2020-2021 period that OnePlus completely broke with its enthusiast brand origins and became just another Android phone maker. Granted, it still released excellent phones, but the reason behind that was actually another, and it was called Oppo.
Find X
In mid-2021, OnePlus officially became a sister company of Oppo, with both operating under parent company BBK Electronics' umbrella. Both companies were tightly integrated, sharing hardware research and development between themselves. Most OnePlus and Oppo flagships ever since then have been nearly identical, with only a few major differences aside from the logo at the back.
Likely to avoid regulatory headaches, BBK Electronics was delisted in 2023, leaving Oppo and Vivo as the two major players surviving it. OnePlus and Realme were quickly integrated under Oppo, while Vivo got the IQOO brand.
And as most of you might be aware, it all culminated in early 2026, when we started hearing lots and lots of rumors that OnePlus might withdraw from major markets and become just another product line of Oppo, which turned out to be precisely the case as officially confirmed in July 2026.
And you know what? Ten years ago I would have been livid if a beloved brand of mine essentially gave up on the global market, but I find it challenging to feel anything about OnePlus' exit. That's because the company has been a shadow of its former self for the past few years, making me totally indifferent to its demise. I said my goodbyes years ago.
The best OnePlus phone is not a OnePlus one
Another reason why I won't miss OnePlus is because I've settled on an alternative that carries the same DNA as OnePlus devices. Ironically, that's parent company Oppo.
I know, I know, OnePlus lost its identity when it went under the Oppo umbrella and started merely rebadging Oppo flagships. I understand the inherent contradiction here, but to me, Oppo phones scratch the same itch as OnePlus devices. They've done this for years as my go-to preferred daily drivers of choice, which is why I won't miss OnePlus.
Oppo phones usually come with much better camera hardware and other minute differences, but it's the camera that's the bigger differentiator and the real selling point of Oppo phones. While OnePlus flagships typically had a good, but not great camera, it was Oppo flagships that packed the much better camera hardware and software, achieving better image quality. In some instances, like with the Oppo Find X8 Pro and the OnePlus 13, the difference was a dedicated periscope camera that the OnePlus lacked.
Right now, the best OnePlus phone is not a OnePlus one, it's actually the Oppo Find X9 Pro I'm using presently. It has a much better camera, a larger battery, and the same software as the OnePlus 15. The only aggravating shortcoming is the audio quality of the loudspeakers on board, which is lacking in comparison with the OnePlus 15 or any other modern flagship phone.
As an added bonus, it was a fairly affordable phone that didn't cost an arm and a leg like the latest Oppo Find X9 Ultra.
At the same time, the rumor mill keeps reiterating exciting rumors about a potential OnePlus 16 that sounds like something too good to be true, and it probably is.
I'd rather wait for the Oppo Find X10 Pro, thank you very much.
Here are my favorite Oppo phones right now:
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