OnePlus One smartphones have managed to become a global sensation in a relatively short time since it first debuted in June. It owes its current royal status to its hardware which renders the same performance as top-notch smartphones do. Such power is predicted from a top-tier Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC that has four CPU cores clocked at 2.5GHz and an Adreno 330 GPU. In other words, that can compete with either 3GB of RAM and 64GB of storage space.
Software is also key to the phone's appeal. Instead of Android, the One used CyanogenMod, "an open source community version of Android" that extends Android features into something more. Among them include configurable UI elements, performance tweaks, and improved privacy controls, to name a few. Simply put, it allows more control over the device compared to other custom OS and Android-based interfaces.
However, The CM 11S (the version of CyanogenMod that OnePlus One phones are using will no longer be used due to issues with its Indian provider. This, according to OnePlus, shocked them just as everyone else but the Chinese manufacturer moved on. Now they are using the software called Oxygen, the company's own Android fork which will be based around Android 5.0. For OnePlus One users that bought handsets prior the issue, it seems that they will have to wait for further update to modify their OS.
That software issue leads to a minor problem, together with a few others like 4G issues, camera quality, overall polish, and availability. But these are really little inconveniences that OnePlus phone users can't be bothered about.
That said, OnePlus One smartphones make a terrific phone at a bargain price. But whether it can or not rank alongside top-rated phones? It will have to be on another level: Somewhere in-between top-end devices and mid-end handsets.
It pays to take this into consideration, though: The manufacturer is small, young, and inexperienced but capable and driven nonetheless.
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