OnePlus 12 Review in Five Minutes: A Compelling Case for Default Flagship of the Year

The OnePlus 12 5G is set to go on sale in India for the first time today. To recall, OnePlus unveiled its flagship smartphone in India last week, over a month after its debut in China. But before we take a quick look at the OnePlus 12 5G, here's our first impressions of the OnePlus 12R 5G.

The OnePlus 12 5G price in India starts from Rs 64,999 for the base 12GB/256GB model and goes up to Rs 69,999 for the 16GB/512GB variant. At its current price tag, OnePlus appears to be taking aim at the 'Non-Pro/Ultra" flagship. But given its Rs 8,000 price hike over its predecessor, is it still worth considering?

Design & Build

The OnePlus 12 5G arrives in Flowy Emerald and Silky Black color options. Our model arrived in the Silky Black shade, which wasn't too different from the Iron Gray variant of the OnePlus 12R. The Silky Black color option has a smooth, textured matte finish on the back with Gorilla Glass 5 protection.

OnePlus also retains the circular camera module from its predecessor, the OnePlus 11 5G. Our black model featured a gold ring surrounding the circular camera cluster, which is inarguably the most elegant part of the design. Up front, there is a curved OLED screen that is protected by a layer of Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

OnePlus deviates from the flat panel from the Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15, although the curved edges here make the phone more comfortable to grip. The sleek aluminum frame also adds a touch of elegance to the overall design. OnePlus has equipped its latest flagship with an IP65 rating, which will allow the handset to survive splashes of water or heavy rain, although don't expect to dip it in water without consequences.

One of the most noticeable design changes up front is the placement of the Alert Slider, which now sits on the left. The volume and power buttons are positioned to the left, while the speaker grille, SIM tray, and USB Type-C port all sit at the bottom.

OnePlus does offer a bit more protection in the form of a case in the box. The overall design of the OnePlus 12 5G spells comfort and convenience, it isn't too different from its predecessor. But the Flowy Emerald model is the more eye-catching of the two.

Display

OnePlus has made zero concessions with the display of its flagship 12 5G. The handset sports a 6.82-inch 2K Pro-XDR BOE X1 OLED display with a pixel density of 510 PPI. The panel features LTPO 4.0 technology for an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate (1Hz - 120Hz) and a 240Hz touch sampling rate.

The screen features an impressive peak brightness of 4,500 nits, although we can't think of a scenario where that would come in clutch. To improve your viewing experience, the OnePlus 12 5G's panel also supports Dolby Vision and HDR10+. The 2160Hz PWM for dimming also ensures good eye protection.

The OnePlus 12 5G has one of the most impressive screens in the segment. In fact, it has received a DisplayMate A+ rating and broke 18 records in the process. While these stats were impressive, the display's new Aqua Touch feature was something I couldn't get over. It allows you to seamlessly use the display with wet hands, registering touches accurately even when the panel is covered in water.

Performance

For performance, the OnePlus 12 5G uses the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC paired with the Adreno 750 GPU. The phone comes with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and up to 512GB of UFS 4.0 storage. The OnePlus 12 5G also introduces a new Dual Cryo-Velocity VC Cooling System.

The new cooling system offers class-leading heat dissipation, allowing you to run AAA titles and charge the phone simultaneously or edit 4K videos without any overheating. There's also a new proprietary Trinity Engine which aims to provide a smooth experience when undertaking heavy-duty tasks, while multi-tasking, and in long-term usage scenarios.

I will explore the new cooling system and Trinity Engine in greater detail in my full OnePlus 12 5G review. However, I did run Call of Duty: Mobile on the OnePlus 12 5G. The game ran smoothly for an entire hour with both the settings and frame rates maxed out. In our brief experience with the OnePlus 12 5G, it is safe to say that despite its looks, we're dealing with a powerhouse on the inside.

Cameras

When it comes to optics, the OnePlus 12 5G is equipped with a new triple-rear camera system that is headlined by a 50 MP Sony LYT-808 primary sensor with a 1/1.4" size, an f/1.6 aperture, OIS, and EIS. The main camera is paired with a 48 MP Sony IMX581 ultrawide lens with an f/2.2 aperture and a 114-degree FOV.

Lastly, there's a 64 MP OmniVision OV64B telephoto-periscope lens with 3x optical zoom, an f/2.6 aperture, OIS, Autofocus, and EIS. Up front, the OnePlus 12 5G opts for a 32 MP Sony IMX615 camera sensor for selfies. The rear camera system can record 8K videos at 30fps or 4K videos up to 60fps. It also supports Dolby Vision HDR video recording and a new Hasselblad Portrait mode.

I spent a very brief period with the OnePlus 12 5G. However, during that brief period, I did manage to snap a few shots. The main camera performed admirably in daylight, capturing a ton of detail and wide dynamic range. The white balance was quite reliable, while colors looked vibrant.

In dim light, the auto night mode kicked in to brighten up the scene by reducing noise, upping the detail, and perfectly maintaining saturation levels. However, I will have to test Night mode out in a few more scenarios before making any judgements.

The ultrawide camera maintains good color consistency between the main and telephoto shooters. It reproduces detailed shots with minimal distortion on the edges. The periscope lens can do 3x optical zoom but 6x lossless zoom. While you do realize the difference going from 3x magnification to 6x magnification, the results are still quite good.

The OnePlus 12 does offer 120x digital zoom but that isn't very reliable. I will dive deeper into the camera system of the OnePlus 12 5G during our full review. My early impressions of the camera system were generally positive, with OnePlus offering a nice balance of versatility and quality.

Battery

The OnePlus 12 5G also makes considerable improvements in the battery department, now equipped with a 5,4000 mAh cell that easily passes the all-day test, even under heavy usage. Additionally, OnePlus also offers a 100W adapter in the box that can take the phone that is touted to give you a full charge in 26 minutes.

Moreover, the OnePlus 12 5G now supports 50W AIRVOOC wireless charging, which delivers a 100% charge in just under an hour, which is faster than the wired charging support offered on the latest Galaxy S24 series. Lastly, the Battery Health Engine helps maintain battery integrity with the OnePlus 12 5G boasting a TÜV SÜD 48-Month Fluency Rating A, guaranteeing 36 months of fluid battery performance.

Software

For software, the OnePlus 12 5G runs on Android 14 out of the box with OxygenOS 14. OxygenOS 14 comes with features like the new Trinity Engine to help improve performance and game visuals. OxygenOS 14 is clean for the most part with a generally bloat-free experience.

The OnePlus 12 5G offers four years of Android OS updates and five years of regular security updates. Software support is not quite at the level of Samsung, Google, and Apple but is still good, nonetheless. The OnePlus 12 also lacks the AI prowess of the Pixel 8 series or Samsung Galaxy S24 series.

And There's More!

The entertainment experience can't be complete without good sound and OnePlus doesn't disappoint with its dual-stereo speaker system and 3D Spatial Audio. With the aid of Dolby Atmos, the OnePlus 12 5G creates a surround sound experience, getting quite loud with decent bass and no distortion.

The OnePlus 12 also features a snappy in-display optical fingerprint sensor that is quick and responsive. The phone is all tanked up with the latest connectivity options including 4G LTE, 5G, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, a USB 3.2 Gen 1 port, and more. So should you buy the OnePlus 12 5G?

OnePlus 12 5G First Impressions

Well, the answer to that question isn't all that simple. My initial impressions of the OnePlus 12 5G were generally positive, despite the price hike. I believe it is a worthy successor and nails the fundamentals of a good flagship. OnePlus relies more on its hardware prowess than AI to deliver a very compelling premium smartphone.

But beyond just the flagship hardware, there are several software and design tweaks to improve the user experience that simply go unnoticed. This is ever so prominent in the display, battery, and performance aspects of the device.

I am yet to fully test out the camera system, performance, battery, and software of the OnePlus 12, but given my brief experience with the handset, I wouldn't be against it. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the OnePlus 12 5G as it feels like a near-perfect default flagship. However, I'll withhold final judgment until the full OnePlus 12 review.