OnePlus 5 Review: The Android Flagship Killer

Despite a few shortcomings, the OnePlus 5 is still a very lovely smartphone, particularly as it has neatly  blended the antenna bands to be avoid detracting from the metal chassis, and the handset feels both smooth and sturdy for a device that may be more expensive than its predecessor but undercuts the premium prices of other top-of-the-line phones.

Dynamic Display

Measuring in at 5,5inches, the OnePlus 5’s display is around the standard dimension for many a 2016 flagship Android handset.

It features an Full HD AMOLED display which offers the standard deep blacks, impressive contrast and vibrant colours expected from the display tech. It’s bright as well, almost too bright at full whack where colours start looking ever so slightly washed out,  but reduce this a little or leave it in adaptive brightness mode and you’ll have a nice punchy display to enjoy.

Some might find the default display offering a little too much saturation in colours, but there is an option to switch to the DCI-P3 cinema standard colour gamut for a wider range of shades and more colour accuracy though less punch, though I rather like the vibrant colours of the default setting.

The lack of a quad-HD resolution found in the likes of the Pixel XL and other Android flagships is potentially a tad disappointing. But with a 401 pixel per inch density the OnePlus 5 still has a display that would require eagle-like vision or your nose pushed against the screen to spot individual pixels.

Other than a slight loss of detail in say background text and features in photos, the lack of a QHD resolution is barely noticeable and the OnePlus 5’s display serves up sharp text and crisp graphics, making it great for firing off emails to watching videos on a dreary commute.

The choice of Full HD over QHD is likely a move by OnePlus to keep its flagship phone competitively priced; but the lower resolution likely helps reduce the power consumption of the screen as well helping eek the most out of the phone’s battery life.

My only real issue with the display is that it feels a little ‘2016’, in that it lacks some of the display wizardry found in 2017’s top crop of Android smartphone; the Galaxy S8 offers an edge-to-edge curved screen, while the LG G6 adopts a 18:9 aspect ratio to fit a sharp 5.7in display into a phone that still fits neatly into an average-sized hand.

But putting that aside, the OnePlus 5 still has a very lovely AMOLED display and the ability to switch between colour profiles is handy for people who like to watch films in ‘correct’ cinema colour or who want to do some quick mobile photo editing.

Dual snappers

Speaking of photography, the OnePlus 5’s main selling point is the dual camera array on the top left of the phone’s rear.

The dual camera array comprises a 16MP Sony IMX 398 sensor for taking care of primary camera work and a 20MP telephoto lens to carry out 2x lossless zoom feature that OnePlus is championing. The cameras feature apertures of f/1.7 and f/2.6 respectively, which on paper should allow for bright photos that are not over exposed.

And the OnePlus 5 achieves that and more. Both daylight and low light photos are nicely detailed and capture vibrant colours, particularly in the HDR (high dynamic range) mode.

Compared to the excellent camera in my Pixel XL, the OnePlus 5 doesn’t quite capture as much detail or depth, particularly in landscape shots and in very bright situations, but it still manages some very impressive results.

The 2x  zoom is a boon as well, allowing for lossless close ups of subjects and objects that would take a lot more effort with other smartphone cameras or require the use of a detail-sapping digital zoom.

However, the lack of optical image stabilisation means you need a steady hand to capture shots as using the camera can get a little shaky.

This is more noticeable when shooting in video, and in low light situations videos can be shaky and disturbed by picture noise. A software fix is likely to go someway to combating this in due course.

The OnePlus 5’s camera software also has a myriad of options, such as being able to capture RAW images, adjust the ISO and select  video quality and frame rate.

A portrait mode is on offer to capture subject in the foreground clearly and blur the background to produce pleasing ‘bokeh’; there’s a risk that some shot can look a little over-processed.

To me this feels a bit like overkill, and I prefer the ability of the my Pixel XL to capture lovely photos through a little careful framing as opposed to tapping away at settings;  for more complex photography I prefer opting for a DSLR but there are some who’ll relish the in-depth options.

Completing the camera set up is a 16MP front facing camera, able to capture detail photos and serve up auto-HDR, as well as record Full HD video. Now I’m no selfie fan, but the front facing camera is good for anyone who likes to carryout video calls with clear footage of themselves.

Find out more about the performance on Page 3…