Here’s everything you need to know about the OnePlus 12, including all the latest leaks, updates, and its recently-leaked periscope camera…
OnePlus 12: KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The OnePlus 12 is rumored to launch in December 2023, with a release date in January 2024. The phone is expected to be available in China, the UK, Europe, and the USA. Pricing is yet to be confirmed, but it could be similar to the OnePlus 11’s $699 base model price.
- The OnePlus 12 design is expected to be similar to its predecessors, with a few key changes. These include an upgraded rear camera module with a periscope zoom lens and a relocated hole punch for the selfie camera.
- The periscope zoom lens is a significant upgrade, allowing for high-quality, lossless zoom photos. The exact optical zoom level is unknown, but a 64MP sensor is rumored.
- The OnePlus 12 will compete with Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series and Apple’s iPhone 15. The main battleground will be camera tech and overall performance, which is why OnePlus has upgraded the camera on the OnePlus 12.
- If OnePlus can maintain similar pricing to the OnePlus 11 while improving performance and camera tech, the OnePlus 12 could be a popular choice in 2024 and beyond.
The OnePlus 11 was one of our favorite Android phones of the last 12 months. The pricing was great and it comes with five years’ worth of Android updates, currently the best support you can get in the Android market. Not even Google can match that.
Moving forwards, work is now well underway on the OnePlus 12. The phone itself is likely being tested by OnePlus engineers ahead of its release in January 2024. Of course, it won’t be the only new phone coming from OnePlus; there’s also the prospect of the OnePlus Fold too.
For most users, though, it will be the OnePlus 12 that most gravitate towards. Foldable phones, for the most part, are just too costly and despite the best attempts of brands like OPPO and Samsung the user experience just isn’t quite there yet; most apps – like 90% of them inside the Play Store – are not optimized for foldable screens.
So what’s the deal with the OnePlus 12? Here’s everything you need to know about the OnePlus 12, including its specs, its camera module, and its pricing and availability.
OnePlus 12 Release Date and Pricing – What To Expect
Nothing concrete is known about the OnePlus 12’s release date just yet but there has been plenty of talk on Chinese social networking sites about a potential December 2023 launch with a release date following in January 2024. As of right now, this is the best indication we have about OnePlus’ release plans.
As for availability, the phone will presumably follow a similar route to market as the OnePlus 11, targeting OnePlus’ native China, the UK, Europe, and the USA. With pricing, nothing is known right now but should OnePlus keep the price similar to its OnePlus 11, you’ll be looking at $699 for the base model although, given the improvements mentioned below, a price increase could well be on the cards.
Fingers crossed OnePlus keeps the pricing nice and aggressive.
OnePlus 12 Design
It seems, when it comes to design language, the OnePlus 12 will not be straying too far from the design blueprint of its predecessors, the OnePlus 10 Pro and OnePlus 11. However, a couple of tweaks have been spotted that could make all the difference.
The leak, courtesy of @OnLeaks and SmartPrix, gives us a sneak peek at the OnePlus 12 through a series of CAD-based renders. The device, which is expected to hit the market either early next year or at the tail end of 2023, seems to be sticking to the tried-and-true OnePlus design language.
Echoing the aesthetic of the OnePlus 10 Pro, 10T, and OnePlus 11, the OnePlus 12 sports an offset, large round camera module. This module is connected to the frame via a small metal section on the left side. The alert slider and power and volume buttons are all present and accounted for in their usual spots.
At first glance, the phone might seem like a carbon copy of its predecessors, but a closer look reveals two key changes.
Firstly, the rear camera module has been upgraded with a periscope zoom lens. While this was previously speculated, it’s great to see further confirmation. The exact optical zoom level remains a mystery, but rumors suggest a 64MP sensor will be tucked inside.
The second change is a welcome one for selfie enthusiasts. The hole punch for the selfie camera has been relocated from the left corner to the center.
This centered look has been a favorite among other Android manufacturers for some time, but OnePlus and Oppo have consistently chosen the corner position. It’s all a matter of personal preference, but many find the centered location less obtrusive.
OnePlus 12 Specs
| Specification | Details |
|---|---|
| Display | 6.7″ 120 Hz QHD+ OLED, slightly curved screen, centrally located hole-punch cutout |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC |
| Battery | 5,000 mAh with 100W or 150W fast wired charging support |
| Main and Ultrawide Camera | 50 MP |
| Periscope Zoom Camera | 64 MP OmniVision sensor |
| Selfie Camera | 32 MP |
OnePlus 12 Camera
Firstly, the rear camera module of the OnePlus 12 is rumored to be upgraded with a periscope zoom lens. This is a significant development in the smartphone’s camera technology. This is a big upgrade to the camera, so you can expect OnePlus to focus heavily on it at launch.
How Does A Periscope Lens Work?
A periscope lens, as the name suggests, works similarly to a submarine’s periscope. It uses a prism or mirror system to refract light through a horizontal sensor arrangement, allowing for a longer focal length without increasing the thickness of the phone. This design enables a much higher optical zoom level compared to traditional smartphone camera setups.
The inclusion of a periscope zoom lens is a game-changer because it allows for high-quality, lossless zoom photos. Traditional digital zoom often results in a loss of image quality as you zoom in, but a periscope lens can maintain the quality even at high zoom levels.
This means you can capture distant subjects with impressive clarity and detail, which was previously only possible with dedicated cameras or DSLRs.
While the exact optical zoom level of the OnePlus 12’s periscope lens remains unknown, rumors suggest it will be equipped with a 64MP sensor. This high-resolution sensor, combined with the periscope lens, could significantly enhance the phone’s zoom capabilities and overall photo quality.
The second change is a welcome one for selfie enthusiasts. The hole punch for the selfie camera has been relocated from the left corner to the center. This might seem like a minor aesthetic change, but it can actually impact the user experience.
A centrally located camera aligns better with the natural gaze of the user during video calls or selfies, providing a more intuitive and comfortable experience. It’s a design choice that has been adopted by many other Android manufacturers, and it’s great to see OnePlus following suit.
Versus The Competition…
Of course, the OnePlus 12 will be going head-to-head with the likes of Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series and Apple’s iPhone 15 which, by the time the OnePlus 12 launches, will have been on the market for a few solid months.
There will be some parity between the OnePlus 12 and Galaxy S24, as well as the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, only with the latter running Google’s Tensor G3 CPU, and Samsung and OnePlus’ phones running Qualcomm’s incoming Snapdragon 8 GEN 3 CPU which is poised to be extremely potent.
Once again, the main battleground for phone makers will relate to their respective camera tech and overall performance. This is the main reason why OnePlus has incorporated the periscope lens on the OnePlus 12. It is also why it has beefed up the phone’s other cameras and sensors.
Personally, if OnePlus can keep the pricing similar to what it did with the OnePlus 11 and add in some improvements to its overall performance and camera tech, then I’d be more than happy with the update – the OnePlus 11 was a brilliant phone that only really fell short of being spectacular on account of its camera.
Fix the camera, keep the five years’ worth of Android updates, and get Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 GEN 3 inside it and I think the OnePlus 12 will make itself quite a few new friends in 2024 and beyond…
