The OnePlus 13 is now official in China. One of the first smartphones to ship with the Snapdragon 8 Elite, this is the one smartphone that most flagship enthusiasts are looking forward to. Despite looking very similar to its predecessor, the OnePlus 13 packs a few surprises, which makes it a compelling upgrade for OnePlus 12 users.
Here are five such features that help distinguish between the latest OnePlus 13 and the OnePlus 12:
Goodbye, curved display
OnePlus 13 features the newly launched Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. (Image Source: Oppo China)
Ever since the launch of the OnePlus 7 Pro back in 2019, the curved display has been a part of OnePlus flagships, and the latest OnePlus 13 marks an end to that tradition. While the OnePlus 13 doesn’t have as flat of a display as the Galaxy S24 Ultra or the iPhone 16 Pro Max, the quad-curved display has very subtle curves on all four sides, which can improve the in-hand feel of the device.
When compared to the OnePlus 12 (review), the display size of the OnePlus 13 remains almost identical at 6.82-inch with 2K resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. This also means, installing a screen protector on the OnePlus 13 will be a lot easier.
New PC-class chip, latest software
The most important upgrade on the OnePlus 13 over its predecessor is the chip that powers it — the Snapdragon 8 Elite, currently touted as the most capable smartphone chip in the world. This includes various aspects such as CPU, GPU, and AI performance. This will result in enhanced performance, better gaming experience, and improved multitasking.
The new chip also enables extended software support and the OnePlus 13 ships with the latest Android 15-based ColorOS 15 in China and OxygenOS 15 in the rest of the world.
Biggest battery on a OnePlus smartphone
OnePlus 13 is available in three colourways. (Image Source: Oppo China)
The OnePlus 12 with its 5,400 mAh battery was already pretty excellent in terms of battery life, and the OnePlus 13 might take it up a notch with its massive 6,000 mAh battery.
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However, the charging speed has remained at 100W for wired and 50W for wireless, hence, the OnePlus 13 might take a few more minutes to fully charge than its predecessor. And of course, just like its predecessor, the OnePlus 13 supports reverse wireless charging and power sharing.
A new set of Hasselblad camera
The OnePlus 13 now has three 50 MP cameras with a dedicated telephoto and an ultra-wide angle lens. The new 50 MP ultra-wide angle lens has a slightly wider 120-degree field-of-view, while the 50 MP telephoto lens still maintains a 3x optical zoom range at 73mm. Whereas, the OnePlus 12 had a 50 MP wide angle, 48 MP ultra-wide angle lens with 114 degrees of field-of-view, and a 64 MP telephoto lens with the same 3x telephoto lens.
First OnePlus with an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor
While it is easy to overlook this feature, it makes a big difference. Compared to the optical fingerprint sensor on the OnePlus 12, the OnePlus 13 with its ultrasonic fingerprint sensor can unlock the device quicker, and it is also more secure and hard to spoof, as it uses ultrasound to capture and authenticate the fingerprint.
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