OnePlus is becoming "OnePlus 2.0," CEO Pete Lau said in a forum post today, merging more of its operation with Oppo and building a joint Android skin with its sibling brand.
"Since I took up the role as Chief Product Officer of Oppo last June, I have overseen product strategies for both OnePlus and Oppo software and hardware products for almost a year now," Lau says his post. "I have faith that the next step of the OnePlus journey – OnePlus 2.0 – will be a positive change for us as a brand."
The new OS skin, which the company refers to as a "unified global operating system," combines OnePlus's OxygenOS and Oppo's ColorOS. Fortunately for OnePlus fans, Gary Chen, who headed OxygenOS, is in charge of the new system.
"I believe that the unified operating system will keep the DNA of OxygenOS that many of you love so much, while also giving you an upgraded experience overall," Lau says. "We will customize the unified OS specifically for OnePlus devices to make sure it meets your expectations, for example by keeping it as clean and lightweight as before, and continuing to support unlock bootloaders."
Taking time for integration is part of why there will be no OnePlus 9T, Lau says. The next OnePlus flagship will launch in 2022, along with the integrated OS. I think that's only half the missing-9T story, though. I'm sure the global chipset shortage has something to do with it, too.
The company will continue its shift to focusing on camera features, in partnership with Hasselblad. A recent OnePlus 9 Pro software update dramatically improved the quality of its camera, as our Steven Winkelman says in his review.
Other new camera features coming include "advanced zoom," a new color filter array, better image stabilization, and customized sensors and lenses, Lau says.
OnePlus will offer "more competitive pricing" in general, and we should expect to keep seeing lower-cost phones split by region, like we've seen with the Nord line, he adds.
Growing Pains, or Just Growing?
OnePlus is in a very different spot in the US than it was a year ago. Thanks to its affordable Nord-series phones, it's a much bigger deal here. The brand has 6% market share at T-Mobile and is the "top Android alternative to Samsung," according to the latest report from Wave7 Research. The firm says OnePlus is at 10% at Metro this month, and could be higher except for supply shortages. The Nord N200 was out of stock online when Wave7 checked.
I'm nervous, but of course change makes me nervous. The danger here is that a much larger OnePlus—now part of the world's second-largest-selling smartphone brand, according to Counterpoint—will lose some of the nimbleness and intangible vibe that made OnePlus successful. There's nothing Lau can say that will convince me OnePlus is on the right track; we'll just have to see it in the products. The proof will appear next year.