After its Chinese unveiling last year, OnePlus has finally launched the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R for the rest of the world, giving you two new options if you are on the hunt for a high-end Android phone. Both models have distinctive designs with curved screens and large circular camera modules on the back, run Android 14, have the brand’s unique alert slider switch, and go toe-to-toe with Samsung’s new Galaxy S24 series by mostly undercutting them for price.
The OnePlus 12 costs from £849 for the model with 256GB storage and 12GB RAM, while a 512GB/16GB version costs £999. That cheaper model is £400 less than the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra with the same storage and RAM, meaning the OnePlus 12 could be a great choice if you want top drawer specs from your next Android phone but baulk at spending over a thousand sheets for the privilege.
The phone has the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset and triple rear Hasselblad-branded cameras with a 50MP main sensor flanked by a 64MP 3x optical telephoto and 48MP ultra-wide. On paper that’s very similar to the camera on the recent OnePlus Open foldable, which is good news because we found those cameras to be truly excellent in our review.
There’s a 2K 120Hz OLED screen for all your video and photo viewing needs, plus a large 5,400mAh battery that should keep you going well into a second day. But for when you are running low, you can top up the phone incredibly quickly with the 100W fast charger included in the box – an accessory Samsung, Apple, and Google no longer include with their most expensive phones. OnePlus says you can charge the phone from dead to full in 26 minutes.
With 50W wireless charging, you can even charge the OnePlus 12 faster than its competitors with no wires at all – though you have to buy that charger separately.
The OnePlus 12 comes in matt black or a fetching matt marbled green version, and if you are one of the first one thousand UK customers to pre-order it between 23 and 25 January, you can claim a free pair of B&O headphones worth £459.
At £649, the gaming-focused OnePlus 12R is cheaper but doesn’t cut too many corners by including the still-excellent Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and what OnePlus claims is the world’s first LTPO 4.0 display, “an intelligent dynamic refresh rate system which allows OnePlus 12R to switch anywhere between 1Hz and 120Hz refresh rates quicker and smarter than ever, saving you battery life and giving you a smoother overall experience,” according to OnePlus. It comes in blue and grey.
OnePlus also announced the OnePlus Buds 3, £99 wireless earbuds with noise cancellation, touch sensitive volume controls and 10 hours of continuous playback on a charge.
The OnePlus 12 goes on sale in the UK on 6 February, while the OnePlus 12 and Buds 3 can be bought from 13 February.
