OnePlus 10T review: the return of the “flagship killer”? VIDEO

The OnePlus 10 Pro, launched earlier this year, came with many top hardware features comparable to other flagships on the market, but also priced to match. Fans of the brand, however, didn’t have an entry-level model available at the time, a true flagship killer like the old days, offering top performance at a more affordable price. With the launch of the new OnePlus 10T, the Chinese company hopes to solve this problem, somehow trying to go back to basics with a low price and even higher performance than its flagship from the spring.

From a distance, the OnePlus 10T is very similar to the 10 Pro in terms of design

In terms of design the OnePlus 10T appears to be only slightly different from the 10 Pro. We’re talking about a phone about the same size, with a 6.7″ screen that ditches the curved edges in favor of a flat screen. I can only praise this decision, as the viewing experience on a screen without curved edges is far superior. Then, on the back, the camera module is similar in design but different in execution. While the 10 Pro had the separate camera island installed on the glass cover, the one on the 10T is part of the rest of the cover, with the glass curved to blend everything together harmoniously. One difference would be that on this model OnePlus used Gorilla Glass 5, and not the newer Victus variant used on the 10 Pro.

OnePlus 10T front handheld

From a distance though, it’s hard to tell if the phone in front of you is the new 10T or the 10 Pro. However, those who look closely will be able to tell them apart immediately. First of all, the new 10T in the green version has a glossy glass cover, not a matte one. That also means, of course, that it’s a fingerprint magnet. Next, the camera module doesn’t have Hasselblad markings, that’s because the OnePlus 10T isn’t included in this partnership between the companies. Lastly, perhaps the biggest, and for some the most important difference, is the lack of the audio profile slider, a defining feature for OnePlus flagships.

However, the company is trying to justify its absence with a few performance news: fast charging at 150W, more powerful 5G and Wi-Fi antennas, and a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor with a new and significantly better cooling system than before. As a result, a 150W power socket adapter is thus included in the phone’s box, along with a USB-C cable on both ends. It’s curious, however, the lack of a silicone cover, as we’ve become accustomed to from the company’s other models. At least the plastic foil on the screen hasn’t been removed.

The screen is not as good as on the Pro model

One of the areas where a slight downgrade from the OnePlus 10 Pro has been made is the screen. The 10T comes with a similarly large screen, but with Full HD resolution at 120Hz. The screen is also OLED but not LTPO. Thus, the power consumption is higher as the refresh rate only varies between 120, 90 and 60 Hz, depending on the application used.

Fortunately, however, we’re dealing with a quality display with high brightness, low response time and very good colour rendering. Of course, OnePlus sets the 10T at the factory to an oversaturated profile, but there’s the option to choose a natural colour profile, which is especially important when taking photos. Given that we’re still dealing with a very good screen, the fact that it doesn’t display QHD resolution or offer variable refresh rate isn’t such a big minus, especially at the price at which the 10T enters the market.

OnePlus 10T front

OnePlus 10T’s performance is the biggest upgrade

Probably the biggest upgrade from the OnePlus 10 Pro to the 10T is obvious when talking about performance, and not just raw performance in tests, but sustained performance. The OnePlus 10 Pro could deliver high performance, but for short periods, as its cooling system wasn’t enough to keep the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset in check. The OnePlus 10T comes with a new advanced cooling system, and the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset promises 10% higher performance, but with 30% improved power efficiency, according to Qualcomm.

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The good news is that these claims are backed up by performance test results. The OnePlus 10T offers some of the highest scores we’ve seen so far on Android smartphones, and in the 3DMark stress test in particular, it retained 88% of its performance after half an hour of intense testing. That means that in complex games, even if the phone does get a bit hot on top, the performance on offer isn’t much affected.

OnePlus 10T back

However, it’s important to note that this performance is only valid in “high performance” mode, which can be enabled from the settings menu. It basically unlocks the processor to reach its full potential, with “standard” performance being significantly poorer. However, power consumption also increases, so it’s best to use this mode only when you need it.

OnePlus ships this model with 8, 12 or 16 GB of RAM, more than enough for any type of user. On the top configuration we had for testing, the OnePlus 10T performed exemplary. The interface was smooth all the time, especially thanks to the 120Hz screen, and the powerful processor ensured that everything loaded almost instantly.

Benchmarks

  • AnTuTu – 1.010.387
  • GeekBench – Single-Core: 1,323 / Multi-Core: 3,846
  • 3DMark Wild Life Extreme – 2.784
  • PCMark – 14.621

Even though it doesn’t offer top-notch battery life, the phone charges extremely fast

And with all the hardware and software optimizations, this performance is still very “expensive” when talking about power consumption. So, despite the large battery, the OnePlus 10T is not a phone that can offer two days of use on a single charge. The company seems to be aware of this and is trying to compensate on other parts. First, OnePlus has implemented something called the Battery Health Engine, which promises to deliver 80% capacity after 1600 charge cycles, or 4 years of daily use.

OnePlus 10T SuperVOOC 150W

Then we have the SuperVOOC charging system at 150W, which can power your phone from 0 to 100% in less than 20 minutes.. Charging at that high power is almost hard to believe, but with 10 minutes on the plug, you should get about a day of “normal” use. What we don’t get on the OnePlus 10T is wireless charging. Given the wired speed, however, this isn’t even necessary. Another plus is that the charger in the box is also compatible with USB Power Delivery, being able to deliver up to 45W to compatible devices such as laptops, tablets and other phones.

OnePlus 10T’s software is unchanged from the 10 Pro

The OnePlus 10T’s “misfortune” is the timing of the launch, just weeks before the release of Android 13. Thus, it still uses OxygenOS 12, based on Android 12. The interface thus remains unchanged from the one on the 10 Pro, with good and bad. There’s still that accessible “drawer” in the top-left corner, where you can put widgets and quickly see some information. Fortunately, it can be turned off. And next, OnePlus puts a Spotify ad in there.

The phone’s software remains pretty clean otherwise. Aside from Netflix, Google and OnePlus apps, the OnePlus 10T is free of bloatware.

OnePlus 10T front

I also appreciated that OnePlus makes you choose your preferred navigation style at the start, either with buttons at the bottom of the screen or with gestures. Many companies still force users to use buttons by default, despite the fact that gestures were adopted almost five years ago already.

We also ran a few games on the OnePlus 10T and tested the gaming interface this way and that, providing quick access to multiple performance modes, customising the touch surface or even displaying stats like framerate, or the load put on the CPU or GPU. As we’ve seen on other phones, from here you can even launch apps that hover over the game or limit notifications so you don’t get annoyed while playing. I was pleasantly impressed with these features.

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OnePlus 10T oxygenOS 12

I was saying though that the OnePlus 10T is “unlucky” to be launching now because it will only get 3 system updates, one of them being to OxygenOS 13, which is coming this year itself. A release a few months later would have ensured it updates up to Android 16. So, Android 15 will be the last it will get. Security updates will come for 4 years though. Stranger still, though, is the fact that while it’s the newest and best performing OnePlus phone, it won’t be the first to get an update to OxygenOS 13. The 10 Pro will still get priority.

Secondary components complement the quality user experience

OnePlus continues to offer one of the best vibration systems in Android, and OxygenOS integrates haptic response into many common actions, like when using navigation gestures, or even in the camera app when you have the tilt indicator oriented perfectly.

The in-screen fingerprint sensor seems to have received some improvements, at least on the software side. It recognizes the wrapped fingers very quickly, but if you also have facial recognition unlock turned on, you probably won’t end up unlocking the screen with your fingerprint, as the process is almost instantaneous.

OnePlus 10T side power button

The stereo speakers don’t seem to have received much improvement over the 10 Pro. In the previous review I criticized this aspect of the phone, because in the premium area there are competing phones with better performance. In the 10T’s price zone, already these speakers are above average. The combo between the main and call speaker is effective and delivers powerful sound, but with a somewhat anemic bass and frequency separation that doesn’t compare to what we see on flagships in the market.

Even though it doesn’t look like it on “paper,” the OnePlus 10T’s camera is a very well put together one

If there’s one area where there’s been some pretty big compromises on the hardware side, it’s the camera on the OnePlus 10T. In addition to the fact that this model doesn’t benefit from Hasselblad’s image processing technologies, it also gets two other low-performance cameras. We’re talking about an 8-megapixel ultra-wide mode, and a macro camera of just 2 megapixels.

OnePlus 10T camera

Truth be told, in terms of the main camera, there’s not much difference from the 10 Pro. We still have a 50-megapixel SONY IMX766 sensor with optical stabilization, which offers good dynamic range in daytime and decent nighttime performance with night mode. Portraits come out well on this camera and overall you won’t be disappointed with the performance on offer. Especially since the powerful processor ensures very short times for night capture. What’s more, images are already processed as soon as they are taken, with no extra waiting times in the gallery.

Photo day

The ultra-wide camera is however limited in performance, mainly due to low resolution. It simply can’t capture enough detail, day or night. Images are very… “soft”, and at night you immediately feel the lack of detail and focus. As we’ve become accustomed to on mid-range ultra-wide cameras, this is a fixed-focus one too. Finally, the macro camera needs a lot of light and can only shoot from 4cm away for best results. Probably this camera will be most rarely accessed in everyday use.

Photo night

And in the shooting department we have a slight downgrade, having max 4K shooting at 60 FPS, no 4K at 120 or 8K. Advanced electronic stabilisation only works in 1080p at 60 FPS, but the standard optical stabilisation available in 4K resolution is also pretty good as long as you’re not going too fast while shooting.

Even though on paper the camera on the OnePlus 10T doesn’t look like much, in reality it’s a more than decent camera for a phone in its class.

Conclusions

The OnePlus 10T is something of a throwback to the brand’s glory days, when it was mainly producing high-performance, well-built devices at lower prices than the flagships of the moment. Of course, the 10T isn’t exactly a flagship, precisely because it comes without a next-generation screen, a top-notch camera, wireless charging and an IP68 rating.

OnePlus 10T top detail

What it does offer, however, could be quite important to most users, who see these features as frills, too expensive to justify. The screen is bright, large and fluid, the camera is decent in most scenarios, and the charging at 150W is truly impressive. Considering the OnePlus 10T is a phone that starts at €699 in the base variant with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage, it becomes a truly competitive model in this price range, something that couldn’t be said for the OnePlus 10 Pro a few months ago.

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