OnePlus 13 release date predictions and its pricing, features, and specs
The OnePlus 13 is the expected next flagship from indie darling OnePlus. It's going to be the followup of the current OnePlus 12, which was released in December of 2023. Therefore, we expect the 13 to be announced and launch towards the end of this year.
While nothing is official, leaks, together with industry insider and analyst speculation, can point us in the right direction — we can begin pondering what we should expect from the next OnePlus flagship. As time goes on and more tidbits of information become available, we will be adding them here.
We already have some faint murmurs about an upcoming redesign — the previous OnePlus 11 and OnePlus 12 were very similar externally, and the company may be looking to refresh the look. We also expect it to be powered by a new Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 — due to be unveiled in October, 2024. What else? Let's go deep!
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OnePlus 13 release date
OnePlus' flagship release schedule is set for the early months of each year. The OnePlus 12 launched in China in December, but was released globally in January. The more affordable sibling — the OnePlus 12R — is pretty recent, with a February release date. Since the whole industry sticks to that 12-ish-month release cycle, we have every reason to believe that the OnePlus 13 will be available globally some time in January or February of 2025.
| Device | Announcement | Global release |
|---|---|---|
| OnePlus 10 Pro | January 4, 2022 | April 14, 2022 |
| OnePlus 11 | January 4, 2023 | February 7, 2023 |
| OnePlus 12 | December 4, 2023 | February 6, 2024 |
| OnePlus 13 | December, 2024* | January, 2025* |
We are unsure about that February prediction, but it kind of looks like OnePlus is trying to pull a Samsung on us and release its next phone ever so slightly before the 12 month cycle is up. We'll have to wait and see.
OnePlus 13 price
The price of OnePlus phones has been fluctuating quite a bit recently. The company tried to shoot for the stars with the OnePlus 10 Pro priced at $900, but it seems the market didn't respond well to that, and the OnePlus 11 quickly dropped in price by a whopping $200. Then, with the OnePlus 12, the company kind of increased the base price again. Only kind of — OnePlus simply removed the cheapest, 128 GB memory entry level. So, even though they are now a bit more expensive, you still get actual value for the "increased" price.
So, since judging by these moves, it seems that OnePlus still wants to keep its phones as value-oriented as possible. So, we don't believe we will see another jump this year. Of course, we'd hate to be proven wrong on that.
So, since judging by these moves, it seems that OnePlus still wants to keep its phones as value-oriented as possible. So, we don't believe we will see another jump this year. Of course, we'd hate to be proven wrong on that.
| Base variant | Starting price |
|---|---|
| OnePlus 10 Pro 8 GB / 128 GB | $899 |
| OnePlus 11 8 GB / 128 GB | $699 |
| OnePlus 12 12 GB / 256 GB | $799 |
| OnePlus 13 12 GB / 256 GB | $799 |
OnePlus 13 camera
OnePlus flagships have had the standard triple-camera setup on the back for some years now. A main snapper, which you will be using most of the time, a telephoto camera for some zoom boost and nice portraits, and an ultra-wide for action or landscape shots.
OnePlus was first to experiment with the 3x zoom camera — back in 2020, when it was typical to have a 2x telephoto, and some brands had just started to experiment with 5x, the OnePlus 7 Pro had a nice 3x magnification, which made portraits a bit more personal, but you didn't have to back away from your subject to an impractical degree.
We haven't heard any news about OnePlus planning to join the Space Zoom race or anything — even though a rumor says that the company will be changing the design on the camera hump, nobody has said anything about the sensors or the lenses.
So, for the time being, we expect the OnePlus 13 cameras to not surprise us with the following setup:
- Main wide-angle camera - 50 MP?
- Ultra-wide camera - 48 MP?
- 3x telephoto camera - 64 MP?
It is very possible that OnePlus might jump on the megapixel trend and increase the resolution of its main sensor. But we don't believe it will upgrade all three sensors at one time — if the main camera goes up to 100 MP or even 200 MP, the ultra-wide and telephoto will very probably borrow the same sensors from the OnePlus 12, sticking to their previous resolution (which are pretty high for the type cameras as is).
OnePlus 13 storage
So, as we mentioned in the pricing section, the current flagship OnePlus 12 starts at 256 GB and has a 512 GB variant. We fully expect the same options for the OnePlus 13:
OnePlus 13 storage capacity:
- 256 GB UFS 4.0
- 512 GB UFS 4.0
OnePlus 13 design
As we already touched upon, faint murmurs are suggesting that OnePlus is thinking about changing the design up a bit. Mainly, the circular camera module that became a recognizable element of the OnePlus 11 and OnePlus 12 might become something else, but we don't have word on what that might be.
The circular cameras of OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 11 (Image credit - PhoneArena)
We'd also like to discuss the curved screen on the front. Currently, OnePlus is one of very few companies that still has a curved edge glass on its phone displays. Even Samsung, who kind of started the trend, has moved back to completely flat. Interestingly, we think OnePlus is very comfortable being among the few that offer this high-tech look and may continue to do so with OnePlus 13.
Of course, the signature mute slider will also probably be there. OnePlus did try removing it with the OnePlus 10T, but that didn't go over well with its fans, so it has made it a point to continue having the physical mute switch.
Mute slider on OnePlus 12 (Image credit - PhoneArena)
Lastly, we may see an improvement in protection rating. The current OnePlus 12 is rated IP65 — fully protected against dust, but only resistant to jets of water instead of full submersion. Most flagships currently have IP67, which guarantees the phone will survive under water for about 30 minutes (at least). While it's not really a core feature, but is quite niche and even overkill, OnePlus may look to catch up just for bragging rights.
OnePlus 13 display
OnePlus has been using excellent OLED panels from Samsung for years now, and it shows. The flagships have had great colors, brightness, and density. We don't foresee any change there, and the leaksters and analysts haven't dropped any valuable info on the matter. Even the screen will probably stay at the comfortably large 6.8-inch size.
What we have heard about concerns what's under the display — supposedly, the OnePlus 13 will switch to an ultrasonic fingerprint reader. The company, as well as many others, has been using optical scanners thus long. Samsung is the only major smartphone maker to offer ultrasonic scanners. Supposedly, the OnePlus 13 will have one as well.
Are ultrasonic fingerprint readers better than optical ones? Kind of, yes. Since the technology involves sending sonic waves through the grooves of your finger, it is more accurate, more secure, and should even be able to read your print through some dirt or wetness. We'll be honest — we haven't found the Samsung scanners to work through a bit of dirt, but we do find them to be extremely snappy, while most optical scanners still take a few milliseconds more to perform a read and unlock. We'll see how the OnePlus 13 pans out.
OnePlus 13 battery
OnePlus has been giving us super-fast charging phones for multiple years now, thanks to technology developed by sister company Oppo. 80 W SuperVOOC wired charging and a whopping 50 W AirVOOC wireless charging were topping up the OnePlus 12 in a matter of minutes. We may see a slight upgrade here — the recent Xiaomi 14 Ultra has a 60 W wireless charger, and OnePlus may want to catch up just to stay ahead in that particular race.
SuperVOOC charger usually comes in the box (Image credit - PhoneArena)
As for actual battery capacity, the OnePlus 12 actually broke through the 5,000 threshold, which most modern flagships currently sit on. It went up to 5,400 mAh — and we can't foresee the OnePlus 13 topping that number. It's already a lot of battery for a thin and tapered phone!
OnePlus 13 features and software
OnePlus equips its phones with Oxygen OS — a light reskin of Android, which adds some quality of life features and some customization options, but not much. Very practical one-hand use gestures that allow you to reach all the icons on your homescreen with a single swipe, custom Always On Display animations, a Zen Mode that lets you take a break or turn your screen black and white.
Otherwise, the interface looks and feels very much "vanilla", which also allows it to be super light and snappy. We've enjoyed the OnePlus software for years now — we expect to keep doing so with the OnePlus 13.
OnePlus 13 hardware and specs
The main OnePlus phones are flagships through and through — even if their prices are quite competitive. The OnePlus 13 is expected to have the yet-unannounced Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 4. We'd love to see some upgrades to thermal management — the OnePlus 12 wasn't throttling for us per se, but it did get battered by the 3DMark stress test. Moreso than (more expensive) flagships from Asus and Xiaomi. It'd be cool of the OnePlus 13 runs cooler for longer!
12 GB of RAM seems like a minimum for OnePlus currently, and since the company has switched to UFS 4.0 modules — a 256 GB storage is guaranteed (UFS 4.0 does not come in less than 256 GB).
Should I wait for OnePlus 13?
Considering the information we have on hand right now, the OnePlus 13 may not be a huge upgrade over the current OnePlus 12, save for a possible facelift in the design. Besides, we are still early into 2024, so the OnePlus 12 is still very much a current, contemporary phone — you can go ahead and grab that one with confidence.
- You should wait for OnePlus 13 if you have a OnePlus 11 or even a OnePlus 10 Pro that's still serving you well. The OnePlus 12 is nice, but you will feel the hump of the upgrade if you hold out a few months and jump straight to the OnePlus 13 now.
- You should not wait for OnePlus 13 if you have a OnePlus 9, an old flagship or more current midranger from other brands. If you grab the OnePlus 12 today, you can enjoy a snappy performance, pretty screen, and dizzyingly fast performance today.
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