OnePlus 12: what we want to see

OnePlus 12: what we want to see

With the OnePlus 11 now available, we’re already turning our thoughts to the likely successory, the presumed OnePlus 12. Though it likely won’t be launching for quite a while, it’s almost certainly already in development.

That said, there hasn’t been much in the way of leaks yet. Still, we can take some guesses about the phone based on the current model, so you’ll find our predictions below, with leaks and rumors to be added as soon as they emerge.

Then further down you’ll find a wish list of what we want from the OnePlus 12, to make it even better than the OnePlus 11.

Cut to the chase

• What is it? The next OnePlus flagship
• When is it out? Probably early 2024
• How much will it cost? Likely upwards of $699 / £729 / AU$1,199

OnePlus 12 release date and price

We don’t yet know when the OnePlus 12 will launch, but it’s likely to land early in 2024, as OnePlus tends to launch new flagships in the first few months of the year.

The OnePlus 11 landed in January 2023, but that launch was just for China, with its global launch happening in February. The OnePlus 10 Pro landed in January 2022, and the OnePlus 9 series launched in March 2021.

Some earlier models launched closer to the middle of the year, but going by the last three years, sometime between January and March seems most likely. We’d think probably January or February, so that it’s around a year after the OnePlus 11.

There’s no news on the price yet either, but it will hopefully have a similar price to the OnePlus 11, which starts at $699 / £729 / AU$1,199. The latest phone got a price drop over previous editions.

The OnePlus 12 might have a similar price to the OnePlus 11 (Image credit: Future / Philip Berne)

OnePlus 12 news and leaks

There aren’t any OnePlus 12 leaks yet, but one thing we can quite confidently say is that there won’t be a OnePlus 12 Pro. At least, that's the hint OnePlus has given so far.

In early 2023, OnePlus said “Starting with our 2023 lineup, we are streamlining the flagship portfolio in North America (and globally) by removing our Pro lineup. In our opinion, you don’t need to have a ‘Pro’ name for a device that’s already ‘pro’.”

So while it didn’t specifically mention the OnePlus 12, it sounds like this is the plan going forward, meaning that there will probably just be a single model and it will be called the OnePlus 12, but likely with specs that are more in line with what you might expect from a Pro model.

The OnePlus 11 Concept phone (Image credit: Future / Axel Metz)

Beyond that, OnePlus has shown off a OnePlus 11 Concept phone, with PC-grade cooling and a partially transparent back that shows off its cooling pipes.

This phone isn’t expected to commercially launch, but it’s not impossible that we’ll see these features in a future handset – such as the OnePlus 12. At the very least, OnePlus is showing that gaming and performance phones will remain a key focus.

What we want to see

While the OnePlus 11 is a great phone, it’s far from perfect, so the following things could make the next model much better.

1. Better water resistance

The OnePlus 11 might not survive submersion (Image credit: Future / Philip Berne)

Most high-end phones these days have an IP68 rating, meaning that they can survive pretty much any watery incident – as long as it doesn’t last more than 30 minutes or so. But the OnePlus 11 only has an IP64 rating, which means it can survive splashes, but not much more.

That’s a real disappointment in a phone of this price, especially as some previous models did have an IP68 rating. So for the OnePlus 12 we want that rating to make a return.

2. A less slippery finish

The OnePlus 11 is a reasonably attractive phone, but in our OnePlus 11 review we found that it was also quite a slippery device, so it’s something you’re likely to drop, and it could even slide off your desk.

Coupled with the lack of significant water resistance, this makes the OnePlus 11 feel extremely vulnerable, so hopefully this is something the company will address for the OnePlus 12.

3. A proper telephoto camera

The OnePlus 11 only has 2x optical zoom (Image credit: Future / Philip Berne)

The OnePlus 11 only has a 2x optical zoom, which is nice for portraits but not so good for taking photos of distant subjects. It’s also some way short of rivals, which tend to offer at least a 3x zoom and in some cases up to 10x.

So we’d like to see a three – or more – times optical zoom on the OnePlus 12, as that would help make the camera setup much more versatile.

4. Wireless charging

As with water resistance, wireless charging is a fairly standard feature for flagship phones, yet it’s not present on the OnePlus 11.

The phone does at least charge fast, and not everyone will miss wireless charging, but it’s a popular feature, and one we’d expect to see so. So hopefully the OnePlus 12 will include it.

5. Charging speed parity

The OnePlus 11 is a fast-charging phone, but how fast depends on what country you’re in, because while most units charge at 100W, versions sold in the US top out at 80W.

There are reasons for that, as the 110V outlets in the US don’t fully support the company’s fastest charging tech, but hopefully that can be remedied for the OnePlus 12, because while 80W is still very fast, it’s a shame that buyers in the US are getting a slightly lesser version of one of the best OnePlus phones.