The OnePlus 2 is a great phone, with a beautiful screen and a brilliantly low price, but there are plenty of things that could have been done better, or at all.
With that in mind we've got a wish list of things that we'd like to see next time around in the OnePlus Three. But before we get to that there are already rumors about what we might (and might not) see in the OnePlus 3, so read on for all the juicy details.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? The next affordable flagship from OnePlus
- When is it out? Probably mid-2016
- What will it cost? Likely around £239/$329
News and rumors
Information on the OnePlus 3 is thin on the ground, but we have already caught sight of some leaked renders. They show a device which looks broadly similar to the OnePlus 2, but with no fingerprint scanner, a possibly metal back and a potentially mirrored screen.
That's all pretty suspect and if OnePlus is ditching the fingerprint scanner we hope it's got an iris scanner or something similarly impressive planned to go in its place.
Early spec rumors suggest it will have a powerful Snapdragon 820 chip and a 1080p screen. Those two details are more believable, given that many 2016 phones are likely to use Snapdragon's 820 processor and that OnePlus has stubbornly stuck to using 1080p displays so far.
- Read our OnePlus X review
What we want to see
1. NFC
NFC is perhaps the single biggest omission from the OnePlus 2. It apparently wasn't included because it's not a popular feature, but that doesn't change the fact that almost every other flagship and plenty of lower end phones offer it, not to mention the OnePlus One.
It may also soon get a lot more popular, with Android Pay now launching, so it's a feature that we really hope is reinstated for the OnePlus 3.
2. Fast charging
Quick charging is another thing the OnePlus 2 lacks. It's a little more forgivable than the absence of NFC, since it's a feature that's only quite recently been implemented into phones, but it's also a very useful feature, allowing you to juice up your handset in no time flat.
The OnePlus 2 has a pretty big battery but once it runs down you could be out of action for a while, so hopefully the OnePlus 3 won't lack it.
3. A better fingerprint scanner
When it works the OnePlus 2's fingerprint scanner is pretty good, but we found it inconsistent. Sometimes it would be less responsive or fail altogether and you can't currently use it to pay for things or log into apps.
Some of those things may be fixed with a software update, but we hope the scanner on the OnePlus Three works well from day one. Though early renders suggest we may not even get a fingerprint scanner on the OnePlus 3.
4. Cool running
The Snapdragon 810 at the heart of the OnePlus 2 has had its share of problems in other devices, with various reports of overheating. Supposedly the OnePlus 2 uses an improved version yet it doesn't seem immune to heating up.
If the OnePlus 3 can avoid even getting a little toasty that would certainly be appreciated.
5. A QHD screen
The OnePlus 2 has a 5.5-inch 1080 x 1920 display and while it's fairly sharp it could definitely benefit from the extra pixels of a QHD screen, especially as it's on the large side.
Hopefully the OnePlus 3 won't get any bigger, it makes more sense as a smartphone than a phablet, but it could certainly afford to pack in a few more pixels. Current rumors suggest it will be sticking at 1080p though.
6. Long battery life
There's a 3,300mAh juice pack in the OnePlus 2. That's pretty sizeable, but then it's also a pretty sizeable phone. In practice you should get through a day on a single charge even if you push it pretty hard, but you're going to want to plug it in at night.
Whether through a bigger battery, a more efficient screen and processor or full-featured power saving modes there's a lot that can be improved here and we hope the OnePlus Three implements those improvements.
7. A microSD card slot
There's no microSD card slot in the OnePlus 2, which instantly renders the 16GB model near redundant for any serious smartphone user. The 64GB one is a better bet, but then you're also spending more money and we have almost 100GB of cat pictures we want instant access to, so a microSD card slot would be a huge help.
Hopefully OnePlus is listening. Its motto is 'Never Settle' after all and with the OnePlus 2 we have to settle for just 64GB of cat pictures. It's not okay.
8. Wireless charging
Not only does the OnePlus 2 lack fast charging, but also wireless charging. This is a technology which is still finding its feet, but for a self-proclaimed '2016 flagship killer' it's a feature we'd expect.
We wouldn't be surprised if a wireless charging case is launched for it, but we don't want a case, we want the tech baked right into the phone. The OnePlus 3 has to have it or OnePlus might need to rethink its marketing, as by 2017 we half expect our phones to fly, while wireless charging should be as common as Bluetooth.
9. No lag
With a Snapdragon 810 processor and up to 4GB of RAM the OnePlus 2 really shouldn't lag, yet while it's mostly lightning fast we have noticed some lag with the home button, which didn't always return us to the home screen immediately.
Hopefully this will be sorted with a software update, but we want the OnePlus Three to be as smooth as silk from day one.
10. A similarly low price
Any issues with the OnePlus 2 will be largely negated by its astoundingly low price tag. Sure, it's not quite entry range, but with a starting price of £239 ($329, around AU$452) it's roughly half the price of phones like the Samsung Galaxy S6, despite packing similar specs.
That's a massive win and for the OnePlus 3 to keep the momentum up it will need to be similarly affordable.
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