OnePlus 10 Pro Review: Almost There

If you made me select from the present crop of flagship Android smartphones, the brand new OnePlus 10 Pro would not be my first or second alternative. It’s not my last either. At $899, it sits in an ungainly spot of being fairly good for the cash, however not fairly as nice as a few of its friends. 

Before diving into the small print, it is price noting that the OnePlus 10 Pro is the one flagship providing from OnePlus this yr. Usually, the corporate places out a “non-Pro” variant that is a bit cheaper, however the 10 Pro is flying solo (not less than for now). That makes my job simpler. But whereas the usual possibility has had hassle maintaining with the midrange competitors, it does stink that you’ve got one much less cellphone to select from at a time when the variety of cellphone makers is dwindling. If you are actually craving choices, you may not less than purchase final yr’s OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro at a reduced worth.

Excelling at Basics

It’s arduous to search out a lot fault with the {hardware} on the OnePlus 10 Pro. I’ve the Volcanic Black coloration, an apt identify because it does considerably resemble the glittery shine of lava rocks (it additionally is available in a reasonably Emerald Forest). You form of need it to have that rougher, sandstone-esque really feel whenever you contact it, however as a substitute, this glass again is slippery. Thankfully, it is no fingerprint magnet.

Most cellphone makers appear to have settled on 6.7 inches as the popular dimension for a flagship smartphone, and that is the case with the brand new OnePlus. It’s … giant! Sure, it is no Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, however use it one-handed and you will be shimmying this cellphone up and down your palm as you attempt to attain the highest of the display. It is a tiny bit narrower and shorter than opponents just like the Motorola Edge+ 2022 and the Google Pixel 6 Pro, which makes the scale really feel extra manageable.

The AMOLED display is without doubt one of the highlights right here. It’s sharp, colourful, and will get very vivid in sunny circumstances (although it has been pretty cloudy of late in New York). There’s a 120-Hz screen refresh rate, which makes transferring all through the working system and apps really feel very fluid. OnePlus says the display can shortly modify from 120 Hz to 1 Hz based mostly on the kind of content material on the display, which helps preserve battery life. 

Speaking of which, I have never needed to assume a lot in regards to the battery. That’s all the time a very good factor. I by no means felt just like the 10 Pro’s 5,000-mAh cell was going to die on me, although you should not count on it to final far more than a full day. If you are spending hours filming TikToks or gaming on it, you will probably have to prime up earlier than mattress. The excellent news is that charging is among the many quickest you will discover on a smartphone within the US. If you employ OnePlus’ included 65-watt charger and cable—in contrast to with different telephones, you don’t need to spend extra on a charging adapter—you may juice this cellphone again as much as 100% in roughly half-hour. Yowza. With the (not included) 50-watt wireless charger, you are able to do the identical in round 50 minutes. Speed like that’s useful whenever you’re about to move out however notice the cellphone’s low on energy.