Skip to main content

If you’re after a smartphone bargain, OnePlus has taken out its price-cutting scissors

oneplus price drop news x review 9289
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
On the look out for a new phone, and want to make your budget stretch as far as it can possibly go? OnePlus has always been a good bet in that situation, but it’s now worth your consideration even more, having dropped the price of the OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X. Why has it taken out the price-cutting scissors? There’s a little rumor the OnePlus 3 may be right around the corner.

OnePlus X and OnePlus 2
OnePlus X and OnePlus 2 Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Don’t let this put you off though, as the new phone will be full price when it eventually arrives, and these end-of-line models represent strong purchases for anyone wanting a combination of style, performance, and specs. Your wallet will need to contain $300 for the 64GB OnePlus 2, which is $50 less than before, and the OnePlus X is also down $50 to just $200.

Recommended Videos

In the U.K., the prices have also been reduced. The OnePlus X is yours for £190, but we’d say spend a little more and pick up the limited edition Ceramic model for £210. The rear panel has a different look to the Onyx glass model, and the material is notoriously difficult to work with, making this a special smartphone. The OnePlus 2 with 64GB of memory is £250.

Which of the two should you buy? The OnePlus 2 is the more technically capable of the pair, with a Snapdragon 810 processor, 4GB of RAM on the 64GB model, a fingerprint sensor that’s incredibly speedy, and a decent 13-megapixel camera with optical image stabilisation and laser autofocus on the back. The OnePlus X is more mid-range with a Snapdragon 801 processor, 3GB of RAM, and a 13-megapixel rear camera; but it looks beautiful, and feels great in the hand. However, U.S. buyers should be aware that the phone isn’t compatible with all 4G bands, so connectivity at the fastest speeds may not be possible.

It’s not a secret the OnePlus 3 is coming very soon, and the reduction in price of these older models will help make way for the new smartphone. For anyone not that bothered about owning the latest-and-greatest, it’s an ideal opportunity to pick up a great phone at a good price.

Andy Boxall
Senior Mobile Writer
Andy is a Senior Writer at Digital Trends, where he concentrates on mobile technology, a subject he has written about for…
The OnePlus 11 Concept has PC-like liquid cooling, and it looks incredible
Product render of the OnePlus 11 Concept.

OnePlus is no stranger to pushing the envelope for innovation in the smartphone industry, and its latest concept device — the OnePlus 11 Concept — is aiming to do just that once more.

Announced at Mobile World Congress, the OnePlus 11 Concept sports the same internal specs as the OnePlus 11, which launched earlier this year, but includes a new active cooling technology dubbed Active CryoFlux. More important than that, it's also just stunning to look at.

Read more
Can the OnePlus 11 beat the Pixel 7 in a tough camera test? I found out
The OnePlus 11 and Pixel 7's camera modules.

The OnePlus 11 is the latest phone to feature camera maker Hasselblad’s color tuning and other software tweaks, and we were impressed with the photos the phone takes in our review.

But that’s when it’s viewed mostly in isolation -- how does it perform when it’s put up against the industry’s best? To find out, we gave the OnePlus 11 a seriously tough challenge by pitting it against the Google Pixel 7, one of our favorite camera phones.
OnePlus 11 vs. Pixel 7: camera specs
Google Pixel 7 (left) and OnePlus 11 Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Read more
This is the cheaper (and cooler) OnePlus 11 you wish you could buy
OnePlus 11R, a cheaper OnePlus 11, at the Cloud 11 event in India.

The OnePlus 11, in many ways, attempts to do over the shortcomings of the previous OnePlus flagships. While the OnePlus 11 feels closer to OnePlus's once-revered form, the company's strategy to launch flagship killers in niche markets such as India and China still keeps older OnePlus users attracted to the brand, despite its evolution in recent years. The OnePlus 11R — a $200 cheaper OnePlus 11 — is the latest phone that fits the picture that OnePlus purists long for.

OnePlus has spent the last few years facing the odds. By pivoting into the budget segment with its Nord series, OnePlus has been able to sell more units but at the cost of losing its grip on the "never settle" identity. OnePlus, which once enjoyed a cultdom for its clean software and hardware portraying parsimony, has attempted to keep fans in price-conscious markets (especially in Asia) with its R suffix series.

Read more