OnePlus 6 Review: Premium High Performance Android For Less

Shenzhen China-based smartphone manufacturer OnePlus has been on the rise as of late, cultivating a strong following of mobile users that subscribe to the company's "Never Settle" moniker. Its Never Settle mantra refers to an effort the company has made to bring lower cost, unlocked phones to market that do not compromise on quality or performance. If there's one device that perhaps underscores that mantra best, it may be the OnePlus 6. 

Codenamed "Enchilada", the OnePlus 6 really has it all (almost, more later). On board is a gorgeous 6.28-inch OLED display, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform, up to 8GB of RAM, dual rear cameras, up to 256GB of storage, USB-C, and a dedicated headphone jack, all backed up by a stout 3300 mAh battery. 

However, perhaps the best feature is that the OnePlus 6 drops in at just $529 for a 6GB/64GB version and $579 for the 8GB/128GB model we're taking a look at here today. When you consider the going rate for premium flagship phones is pushing north of $700 to $1K these days, the OnePlus 6 represents a relatively strong value for its price tag.

So, can you really have "the whole enchilada" and not have to forfeit a kidney in the process? Stick with us for a guided video tour below, and then we'll dive in deep on the pages ahead and find out...

OnePlus 6 Specifications & Features

Display	6.28” Full Optic AMOLED Display with 19:9 Aspect Ratio, 2280x1080
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
Storage	64/128/256GB
Expandability	None - Dual nano-SIM Slot
RAM	6/8GB
Primary Rear Camera	16MP DCAF, OIS, f1.7
Secondary Rear Camera	20MP, PDAF, f1.7
Front Camera	16MP, f2.0, fixed focus
Connectivity	2x2 MIMO Wi-Fi 802.11ac, DL CAT16/ UL CAT13 (1Gbps/150 Mbps), Bluetooth 5.0, aptX HD
Audio	Single bottom facing speaker, Dirac HD Sound
Battery	3300mAh (Non-removable)
Charging	Fast Charging (5V 4A)
Water/Dust Resistance	Not rated but built in resistance
Security	One-touch fingerprint sensor, face detection/unlock
Operating System	Android 8.1 Oreo, OxygenOS
Dimensions	155.7x75.4x7.75 mm
Weight	6.2 ounces (177g)
Colors	Mirror Black, Midnight Black, Silk White, Limited Edition Red

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If you were looking for a notch in that display above, it's there if you want it, or it hides away nicely as shown, if you don't. The good news is that OnePlus implemented absolute "notch control," as we like to call it, on the OnePlus 6. If you have it set sans notch, it stays that way, no matter what app you're in. So you can have this spicy little enchillada both ways too, notched or notchless. 

In addition to its laundry list of top mobile component-level technology in the spec table above, OnePlus offers a well-appointed bundle with the OnePlus 6, which includes a sharp, red-white color coded assemble of an AC adapter and synch/charge cable, an associated lit pack and SIM key tool, as well a smoked translucent case for the device to protect it. Since reasonable quality earbuds can be expensive, and it's often hard to please a wide swath of ears and listener types, we'd take this bundled case over ear buds any day, in conjunction with keeping price points down.

As you'll also note in the table above, there are four colors to choose from, Mirror Black, Midnight Black, Silk White, and Red. We have the Midnight Black variant on hand and it's a swank, fingerprint resistant setup, as you'll see next...