Review | OnePlus 8 Pro review: best camera app, still the best software – this is the most powerful and polished OnePlus phone yet

Although the OnePlus 8 Pro lacks originality design-wise, the screen is just as stunning as the one found on the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra
While the quad-lens camera doesn’t stand out from the best smartphone shooters, the OnePlus camera app is the best designed of any out there

Smartphones

Ben Sin

Published: 2:15pm, 12 May 2020

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OnePlus phones are known for their speed. For years, the user interface of the brand’s handsets was noticeably faster and smoother than that of its competitors as a result of meticulous software optimisation and extra hardware prowess, such as more RAM or a higher screen refresh rate.

However, much as other phone companies have caught up to Samsung in terms of display brilliance, they have also caught up to OnePlus in speed. So what has OnePlus done with its latest flagship handset? Focus on making the most well-rounded device it’s ever made.

Design and hardware

The OnePlus 8 Pro is a well constructed device with top notch components, but the design lacks originality. The front of the phone looks virtually identical to two other recently launched Chinese smartphones, the Oppo Find X2 Pro and Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro – a curved glass display with a hole-punch cut-out display; and the back of the 8 Pro recycles the design of last year’s OnePlus 7 Pro. The new “glacial green” colour does help the phone stand out, but it is just a fresh coat of paint.

The back of the OnePlus 8 Pro is made of glass and recycles a design from last year’s OnePlus 7 Pro. Photo: Ben Sin

The hardware, though, is premium. The 6.8-inch OLED panel refreshes at 120Hz, has a resolution of up to Quad HD, and is HDR 10+ certified (HDR stands for high dynamic range). It is tied with the Oppo Find X2 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra for best display.

The internals are the best of any Android phone right now – a Snapdragon 865 processor with 8GB or 12GB of RAM – but that’s to be expected with OnePlus phones. What’s new to the 8 Pro is the inclusion of IP68 water resistance and wireless charging. With these two features, the 8 Pro can finally say it is a true flagship without a single feature missing.

The OnePlus 8 Pro has a 6.8-inch OLED display that refreshes at 120Hz. Photo: Ben Sin

Software and features

Other than the speed, the next best thing about OnePlus phones has been the software. OxygenOS is considered by many reviewers (including myself) to be the best Android skin – software overlaid on top of Google’s official stock Android operating system. I like it better than stock Android.

OxygenOS has the most customisable options: the colour scheme of menus and other UI elements can be customised; there are nearly half a dozen short cut gestures to launch apps from a sleeping screen; and the phone supports using more than one icon pack at a time for those who want full control over how their home screen looks.

The OnePlus 8 Pro has highly customisable software.

Performance and battery life

The 8 Pro is not noticeably faster or smoother than other phones, but that’s more of a testament of how good all Androids have become than a knock against OnePlus. This handset is still zippy, with apps launching instantaneously. The brilliant display, plus stereo speakers, make it a very good machine for gaming and movie watching.

The four-lens camera system here performs well, but it’s nothing outstanding by 2020 standards. The main 48-megapixel lens captures sharp images and, thanks to the large 1/1.43-inch image sensor, doesn’t struggle in low light. The ultra-wide- angle lens also has a 48-megapixel sensor and does the job, and there’s an 8-megapixel telephoto zoom lens that offers 3X optical zoom and 30X digital zoom.

It’s the latter that falls a little short, as the Huawei P40 Pro and Oppo Find X2 Pro use the superior “Periscope” zoom lens technology, which can achieve sharper shots.

The 8 Pro has a 48-megapixel main camera with an aperture of f/1.8. Photo: Ben Sin

While the camera don’t stand out, the OnePlus camera app does. In my opinion, it’s the best designed camera app, with an intuitive menu and all the crucial toggles reachable with one hand. This adds to the overall photography experience.

Just like the Oppo Find X2 Pro, running the OnePlus 8 Pro screen at its full potential – 120Hz with Quad HD resolution – will hit the battery hard. I suggest lowering screen resolution to 1080p to go with 120Hz. This way, the phone should last an entire day for all but the heaviest of users.

An image taken with the 8 Pro’s dedicated “night mode”, which stitches multiple images’ worth of light information into one photo. Photo: Ben Sin

Conclusion

The OnePlus 8 Pro is the most powerful and polished OnePlus phone yet but, relative to everything else on the market, lacks the “wow” factor of last year’s OnePlus 7 Pro or the earlier OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 5. This is because the smartphone market – especially in China – is so competitive that Chinese brands are forced to constantly improve and evolve.

The OnePlus 8 Pro is a near flawless device, but I could also say the same of the Oppo Find X2 Pro and Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro.

It does have three advantages over the other two handsets: it has better software, it is the only one of the three to be sold in the United States, and it’s also the cheapest of the three.

The OnePlus 8 Pro comes in three colours.

Dimensions: 165.3 x 74.4 x 8.5mm

Weight: 199g

Display: 6.78-inch 1440 x 3168 120Hz OLED

Battery: 4,510mAh

OS version reviewed: Android 10 with OxygenOS10 on top

The OnePlus Pro 8 screen slopes on both the left and right side. Photo: Ben Sin

Processor: Snapdragon 865

Cameras: 48-megapixel main lens with f/1.8 aperture; 8-megapixel telephoto lens; 12-megapixel 2X portrait telephoto lens; 48-megapixel wide-angle lens; 5-megapixel colour sensor; 16-megapixel front-facing selfie camera

Memory: 8GB/12GB RAM; 128/256GB ROM

Colours: green, blue and black

Price: €909 (Europe); US$899 (US); HK$7,999 (Hong Kong)

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Superior software makes powerful smartphone the best all-rounder

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