OnePlus X Review

Weight: 138g  | OS: Oxygen OS 2.1.2 on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop | Screen size: 5-inch | Resolution: 1,080 x 1,920 | CPU: Quad-core, 32-bit Snapdragon 801 | RAM: 3GB | Storage: 16GB | Battery: 2,525mAh | Rear camera: 13MP | Front camera: 8MP

PROS

• Cheap
• Super bright AMOLED screen
• Above average battery
• Alluring design
• Good performance

CONS

• Camera isn’t great in low light
• Onyx version is a fingerprint magnet
• The OnePlus 2 is better value

KEY FEATURES

• Premium Ceramic or regular Onyx options
• Snapdragon 801 CPU
• Android 5.1.1 Lollipop
• 5.0-inch, 1080p, AMOLED display
• Manufacturer: OnePlus
• Review Price: £250.00/2500MAD

OnePlus X design and build quality

• The OnePlus X is a pretty remarkable looking phone for $250/2500MAD. The cheap OnePlus X actually looks premium. With its black onyx or baked ceramic finishes, it's very easy on the eye.
• It's also very easy in the hand, thanks to its diminutive proportions. It's nice to see a smaller, 5-inch device in these days of 5.5-6-inch monsters, but size is always subjective. The OnePlus X will be too small for some but perfectly right for others. The Onyx version weighs 138 g and the Ceramic weighs 160 g. It has to be admitted though that both materials are huge fingerprint magnets.

There is a dual nano-SIM card tray that doubles as a microSD card slot if you're only using one SIM. The OnePlus X only comes in a 16 GB version, but can be expanded up to 128 GB with a microSD card.

• The OnePlus X reverts back to a USB 2.0 port on the bottom, in order to keep the OnePlus X as thin as possible. The charging port is flanked by dual speaker grills, although, as we seem to be seeing more often, only one of them emits any sound. The left grill hides a mono speaker and the one on the right is for the in-call microphone.

• There's also no fingerprint scanner or NFC on the OnePlus X. There is however, both on-screen and capacitive buttons for navigation, which you can customize in the settings.

OnePlus X display

The OnePlus X returns to the days of more reserved display specs, with a Full HD 5-inch AMOLED screen (with 441 ppi), the first AMOLED display on any OnePlus device. With that in mind, the OnePlus X comes with a dark theme to make use of the deep blacks and saturated colors that AMOLED screens deliver, as well as a range of suitably dark background wallpapers.

OnePlus X performance

This phone was built to appeal to different sensibilities than those that simply seek raw power. The OnePlus X isn’t exactly a weak-specced or stuttery phone either. Packing a quad-core, 32-bit Snapdragon 801, the OnePlus X uses the last widely acclaimed processor before the era of problematic 64-bit chips and overheating issues.

Paired with an Adreno 330 GPU and 3GB of RAM, these are flagship smartphone-level specifications – if the phone had been released last year. The specs aren’t quite as impressive in today’s 810 and 808 dominated world,  with the X, the 801 proved more than powerful enough.

OnePlus X camera

The OnePlus X features a 13 MP main camera with f/2.2 aperture and an 8 MP front-facing camera with f/2.4 aperture. The OnePlus X uses a Samsung ISOCELL sensor and Phase Detection Auto-Focus , capable of focus speeds as short as 0.2 seconds.

In terms of settings, the OnePlus X shoots at 12.4 MP at a 4:3 aspect ratio. You’ll have to drop to 7.9 MP to get 16:9 but there’s also a 9.3 MP Instagram mode for square shots. 

OnePlus X battery

The OnePlus X has a decent sized battery for a phone of this size and thickness: 2,525 mAh. It's non-removable, of course, but considering the energy saving properties of AMOLED screens, it manages acceptably. 

In regular use the OnePlus X’s battery life is solid. Using the phone, the OnePlus X usually survived at least one to two days on a single charge.

OVERALL SCORE

SCORES IN DETAIL

• Battery Life8
• Calls & Sound8
• Camera7
• Design9
• Performance8
• Screen Quality8
• Software8
• Value9