Gadgetory

the brand-new 1+2 looks to continue the momentum of the first but does it offer that much more than the original considering the 1+1 is still available for a very good price point now that's what we're about to find out because it is Josh of agar from Android Authority what's going on everybody and this is the oneplus 2 versus the oneplus one with the same size in the screen the oneplus 2 s handling is very similar to its original counterpart though the overall footprint is just that little bit smaller and also that little bit more accessible but what is so noticeable right off the bat is the substantial feel that is a metal frame in the oneplus 2 now which not only adds to the heft but feels really nice even compared to the lighter but plastic clad oneplus one that isn't to say that the oneplus 2 feels heavy or the oneplus one feels cheap but you can really sense the upgraded materials now the elements around the device and the oneplus to show what new features the company is bringing to the table capacitive keys still line the front but now the home button is a carved out area this is to house the fingerprint reader which is flanked by simple lines for back and recent apps keys which can be switched around the button layout has been brought all to the right side with the power button below the volume rocker opposite of these buttons is the new three-stage slider the action slider which will toggle among the different notification modes found in lollipop and of course there is the new USB type-c connector port at the bottom which we will get to a little more later what I can tell you now is that having a reversible plug is already proving to be a small but noticeable positive now the back materials for both of these phones come in the original sandstone black variety but customizations will be possible right off the bat for the oneplus 2 with various covers that include Kevlar and wood what is important to note here over is how the backs are implemented if you can see here you can see that instead of a full shell replacement that was in the oneplus one the back cover of the two is simply a slab of very thin textured plastic which easily pops on and off this also means that the new material will only change the very backing and really not much else when you compare the oneplus 2 to the 1 plus 1 in these replacements the metal frame is of course a very welcome change but it does hinder the customization of the 2 just that little bit really both of these devices look and feel pretty similar but we give the oneplus 2 more points because actually feels a little bit more premium going from one to two actually does feel like the upgrade that it needs to be between these two devices we moved to the display for the so-called flagship killers and find that the experience actually largely remains the same from one to two 1080p resolution is the name of the game for both of these phones which might come as a bit of a bummer to those who wanted a quad HD screen in the oneplus 2 but given the price it isn't that much of a surprise and a higher resolution could have easily been the trump card for the new phone but that simply won't be the case that said 1080p is still the complete standard in all media thankfully the fidelity of the display has been upgraded in the oneplus 2 viewing angles are pretty great viewing in daylight is pretty easy and text remains exactly as sharp as it did in last year's edition so though there may not be much to talk about in ways of enhancements between these two displays we can definitely say that what was once a good 1080p experience in the oneplus one becomes a pretty great 1080p experience in the oneplus 2 but it is definitely in performance where we feel the update as the snapdragon 801 is bumped up to the 810 oneplus really goes for the gold with one of the most powerful processors in existence right now the oneplus 2 thus is simply a beast in the performance Department and I have yet to experience any slowdowns or crashes as a result going from place to place and the oxygen OS is as smooth as ever only made even more fluid with oxygens own transitions and running applications is a breeze when the bugs of this operating system are kept at a minimum and gaming is as good as ever with 3d games like UFC and sprite based games like Angry Birds to proving nice and enjoyable for long periods of time now for those worried about the heat of the processing package under load I can say that after long periods of gaming the phone did get warm but it never got uncomfortable now this is not to say that the oneplus one is far behind in performance on the contrary it is still one of the most reliable devices available today and when considering the current great price point having the tried-and-true Snapdragon 801 can be considered a steal in today's general market you might not really notice the difference in speed opening applications as you can kind of see here and that is also true in actual daily usage the typical user will really have a good time no matter which of these two they pick now keep in mind that the oneplus one is a unit that has been used for over a year already so you can see that it actually hasn't really lost its step so if not the screen or the overall design language it feels that hardware is where oneplus hopes to differentiate itself in the - and we already covered performance but in hardware the simplest of these additions is the action slider which changes the notification mode in lollipop the slides feel really solid and the textured button makes it easy to find when the phone is in the pocket need to quickly silence the phone no problem even then it's time that we saw some new inputs and Android and we do credit oneplus for that move forward speaking of input the new fingerprint reader on the oneplus 2 is working quite well thus far even when the phone screen is off just resting the registered finger on the area wakes and unlocks the phone in short order and all the connections remain largely the same but there is actually a difference here on the oneplus 2 as it supports dual SIM out of the box which can be a big deal for those in the West who have never experienced it but that's not to say that will be completely useful for everyone in the States unless the user travels a lot but in those cases it can actually be quite handy and of course there is the glaring omission of NFC in the oneplus 2 which is a big deal not only because the oneplus 2 will then not be able to take advantage of all the different pay services that the phones are supposed to be doing soon but also for anyone that uses audio peripherals like I do with Sony headphones or any other audio devices that take advantage of NFC capabilities just simply not going to be the case while the oneplus one never really made us worry about shutdowns far before bedtime and the same case is true for the two we can't actually feel a bit more life in the new iteration both phones will definitely get through the day's worth of moderate to heavy usage but the oneplus 2 will likely have a little bit more in the tank before it takes its night recharge now we're taking a general look at the oneplus 2 camera mostly because we have been told that updates will be coming very soon and we want to make sure we have those for our full review nonetheless 13 megapixels remain the size for both of these cameras with F 2.0 aperture which should prove pretty decent in low-light situations but what the oneplus 2 brings to the table is optical image stabilization with laser autofocus both of which should help in plenty of key situations but that said the app has been given a bit of a facelift if you are used to the oneplus one in CyanogenMod camera app oxygen OS actually strips the camera app down to its main essentials at least for now including HDR clear image panorama and even a time-lapse mode with not many options found deeper within it's still a pretty responsive experience but it's certainly not the fastest out there but again OTA should be able to improve this what really is a pet peeve of mine however is spot metering which is what it uses in order to get the exposure as was the case with the oneplus one it is kind of easy to get brighter elements blown out in the - but this has been toned down to some degree in the update but what hinders the oneplus 2 despite it so is is what held the one back with AF 2.0 aperture low-light shots require a balance of high ISO and slower shutter speed but in the oneplus 2 it seems slower shutter speed is prioritized making OSS job that much tougher unfortunately that means that both phones require really steady hands for low-light shots despite both basically performing really well in bright situations so both cameras manage to be good companions on the daily though oxygen OS does stifle them to a fair degree at least for now but as flagship killers there's still quite a bit of ground for oneplus to cover and that goes true for this year as it did with last year's offering now software for oneplus has been a pretty eventful affair with the one originally coming with cyanogen but when that relationship went south oneplus had to make it themselves and now it is called oxygen OS now for anyone with a oneplus one updates to the included original signage and software can be updated to 12s now that's the version that I do have on my unit but installing oxygen OS does require some work on the recovery and if you wanted to change we will talk about Sandwich in for a little bit image and how much it did bring to the table aside from the usual gestures somewhat different take on the core elements of material design and some security features CyanogenMod did allow for a lot of customization in the Android build of the oneplus one all of that has been basically stripped in oxygen so there are some places where customization can be had like in the notification drop-down other features like the screen op gestures and one addition of the dark mode don't do too much to make this feel any different from let's say a nexus of course you can factor in the Shelf which is a place that has two widgets for your frequent apps and frequent contacts and it is basically a replacement for Google now but even Google now is still accessible by holding down the home but though it is still easy to root and rum the 1+1 and I imagine the same will go for the to the built-in oxygen OS manages to be functional and simple which we always like but if oneplus is looking to really differentiate itself it has to do more in its operating system insight as it has been doing on their outside and so there you have it for this look at the oneplus 2 and the oneplus one the full review is gradually on its way but it felt right to see where the updates and the upgrades were made from 1 to 2 in some places more than others there is real progress that really makes the follow-up to the oneplus one a worthy contender while we will further see if the oneplus 2 actually kills current flagships we will make the case that the oneplus one is still a very viable offering especially with its lower price point that said the oneplus 2 still comes in at a pretty good price on its own so it really only matters if you want to spend the extra money for extra features like the fingerprint sensor the alert slider a new USB standard and of course the very powerful processor underneath that being said however keep it tuned to Android Authority for all of the best coverage of the oneplus 2 and don't forget to check out more content from my brothers and sister in Android and remember to head on over to Android or d.com for even more listen to the Android or a podcast every single week and discuss Android in our forums because we are your source for all things Android