The Hits and Misses of OnePlus X Smartphone [Review & Camera Sample Shots]

Shenzhen-based smartphone maker, OnePlus released its Android powered OnePlus X smartphone in the Indian market, touted as the mini variant of flagship killer Oneplus 2.

OnePlus X got launched in two variants, namely OnePlus X Onyx and OnePlus X Ceramic (limited edition), and it is considered as the most affordable smartphone in the current OnePlus line-up.

Both the OnePlus X Onyx and Ceramic are available on Amazon India, subsidiary retail store at a price of Rs. 16,999 and Rs. 22,999 respectively.

Moving on, OnePlus X comes packed in 5-inc Full HD AMOLED display, 2.5GHz quad core Snapdragon 801 SoC with Adreno 330 GPU, clubbed with 3GB RAM, 16GB if in-built memory, with expandable storage options, 13MP/8MP camera package and powered by a 2525mAh battery.

Today let's have a brief look about the hits and misses of the OnePlus X smartphones.Hits

Design

As per the company, the so-called OnePlus X smartphone is focused towards the design-conscious crowd offering a premium looking smartphone at mid-range price. The OnePlus X carries a similar design language as that of Sony's "Omni-balance".

This device is covered with glass panel on both front and back, which is a fingerprint magnet. The sides are protected with a ridged metal rail running around along with the chamfered edges. But in some cases mainly on the sloppy surface, there are bright chances of the device slipping around.

Coming to the form factor, it measures 6.9mm thickness and weighs around 138grams for Onyx version and 160grams for the Ceramic variants.

Display

The OnePlus X comes with 5-inch Full HD AMOLED display with 1920×1080 pixels, which translates to 441ppi too.

By far, the OnePlus X is the smallest in terms of display when it comes to OnePlus mobile line-up. Talking about the display, it comes with pure black color without any mix of hue.

Moreover, the display is really vivid and not oversaturated producing a stabilized color reproduction. Also, the response time is faster with improved sunlight viewing ability, which is pretty good indeed.

Alert Slider

Following the OnePlus 2, the company has also employed the "Alert slider" in its latest OnePlus X device. It is one of the most helpful features in the device which lets the users to toggle between the notification alerts they want.

Basically, it is a three-staged button with options including 'None', 'Priority' and 'All'. As per the setting, the device acknowledges users choice of notification and vibrates accordingly to give an idea of what it is.

Oxygen OS

After some issue with CyanogenMod, Carl Pei's company developed its own operating system, dubbed as OxygenOS.

Our experience with OxygenOS was indeed sweet. It has some features like control over the app permission along with lots of customizations.

Moreover, you can customize the functions of your devices navigation button with on-screen navigation bar option. Another feature worth mentioning is the "Shelf", which lets you to access all the information and overview of your content in a quick swipe.

Hardware performance

Coming to the hardware front, this device is powered by a powerful yet famous Snapdragon 801 processor clocking at 2.5GHz. The graphic department is taken care by Adreno 330 GPU and it is added with 3GB RAM under the hood.

On the performance factor, it is ahead of any smartphone under Rs. 18,000. The OnePlus X is smooth and offers pretty amazing performances with negligible lag and hanging. We tried playing heavy games like Asphalt 8 and the Snapdragon 801 processor and the 3GB RAM inside, managed to flow the device smooth enough and efficiently.

Camera

The imaging factor is taken care by 13MP camera on the back, which is capable of recording Full HD (1080p) and HD (720p) at 30fps. Sadly, there's no support for capturing 4K footage. On the front, it supported by an 8MP snapper.

Further, the OnePlus X camera comes with Time-lapse, slow motion (slo-mo) and Panorama features. Moving to the performance, camera clicks pretty decent pictures, but flops on the low light conditions. Here are some camera samples:

Day-light shots

The details in the above picture are clear and looks natural without over saturation.

In the above picture in broad day light, there are some parts which are over-exposed.

Low-light shots

This was taken in low light condition. In this image, we can see some noises in parts and when zoomed, it gets pixelated.

Misses

Fingerprint scanner

Even though, the OnePlus X is packed with powerful processor and exquisite design language, it is pretty disappointing to see the absence of fingerprint scanner.

Nowadays, most of the Chinese mid-range smartphones like Coolpad Dazen X7 and othe smartphones packs a high-quality fingerprint sensor.

No USB Type-C Converter

After employing the new USB Type-C standard in OnePlus 2, the company came back to basics with ordinary USB port.

Even though, this method may be cost effective it is the latest trend in the USB standard that we are seeing in the OnePlus 2 and the latest Nexus 5X devices.

Battery

The OnePlus X is juiced with 2,525mAh battery which is low for this set of specifications, which includes Snapdragon 801 chipset and AMOLED display. In order to save battery, the company has added tweaks on the OxygenOS to use the black or dark mode more often to minimize the power consumption on AMOLED.

During our testing, it managed to pull off an entire day with a single charge. However, on the other hand it has no fast charging technology, which might be a drawback when it comes to heavy usage.

Heating Issue

With OnePlus X, we have faced heating issues on multiple instances. One during playing games and the other is when the battery charge is below 10%. Anyhow, this device shows quite a bit of heat due to its glassy body.

This might be due to the Android Lollipop or OxygenOS, which is not being efficient in managing battery life. We hope that, the company will address the problem with an update in upcoming days.

No Infrared sensor and HDMI support

Another drawback, which we found in the OnePlus X was the lack of 'Infrared Sensor' and HDMI cable options, which means there are no wireless control over AC, TV and of course the connection with HD TV.

Verdict

We used this mobile for a week and in our opinion, the OnePlus X is indeed one of the best smartphone available in the mid-range. With ethereal design, powerful hardware and user friendly software, the OnePlus X is ahead of others in the mid-range segment. For those who want a compact yet powerful smartphones we recommend you this, without any second thought.