OnePlus One (Unlocked)

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The days of the $600 smartphone aren't over quite yet, but if the OnePlus One is any indication of things to come, the end is nigh. For $299 (16GB) or $349 (64GB), OnePlus delivers a remarkably high-end phablet that in many ways eclipses the quality on offer from big names like Samsung and LG. There are still a handful of bugs here, but none too egregious, and I'm optimistic that OnePlus can issue fixes in short order. From its name-brand processor to its impeccable display, the OnePlus One is every bit the hero device fans have anticipated. Dollar-for-dollar, it's the best unlocked smartphone value around. Our Editors' Choice, however, remains the Google Nexus 6, which redefines the mobile computing experience with a massive display, powerful performance, and stock Android software.

Design, Features, and Call Quality
The OnePlus One doesn't feel like a sub-$400 phone, unless your expectations are informed solely by Nexus 5 experience. Its clean lines and tight build quality evoke a sense of desirability that's sorely lacking in the budget-friendly realm. Yes it's big (6.02 by 2.99 by 0.35 inches) and yes it's all plastic, but size is a given with phablets, and think solid Nokia polycarbonate—not glossy and flexible Samsung plastic.

Our white test unit features a so-called silk finish, which is just a fancy way to say matte, while the black model has a textured sandstone finish. The back cover is actually removable too, and OnePlus promises swappable options in finishes like real wood and carbon fiber. OnePlus's philosophy might be "never settle," but fans of removable batteries and expandable storage will have to settle for the non-removable 3,100mAh battery and built-in storage. In our initial tests, the OnePlus One lasted for 17 hours of continuous talk time, but dropped the call with about 10% battery life remaining. That should be more than enough battery life for a day's worth of moderate use, and anecdotally, I never felt strapped for battery life while testing.

The 5.5-inch, 1080p IPS display is on par with the best I've seen, including the HTC One (M8) and Samsung Galaxy S5. You won't be able to discern any real difference in sharpness at this level (401 ppi), while the viewing angle is nearly 180 degrees and color reproduction is neutral without looking muted. Below the display are capacitive Menu, Home, and Back buttons, but you can disable them in favor of standard software navigation buttons.

There are two speaker grilles flanking the micro USB port on the bottom edge, which get surprisingly loud, but still sound pretty thin. Above the display is a multi-colored notification LED that is far too bright on its default configuration, but can be toned down in the settings menu.

With GSM (850/900/1800/1900MHz), UMTS (Bands 1/2/4/5/8), and LTE (Bands 1/3/4/7/17/38/40), the OnePlus One is well equipped to handle a variety of networks, including AT&T and T-Mobile here in the U.S. I tested the phone with an AT&T SIM, which worked perfectly in New York City.

Call quality, unfortunately, was one of the biggest sore spots for the OnePlus One. Volume in the earpiece is frustratingly weak and made callers on the other end sound muted, distant, and difficult to hear over even the most innocuous of ambient noise. Transmissions through the mic fared better, coming through more clearly, but still on the low side for volume. The headphone jack works fine for music, unlike in our initial hands on, but the OnePlus One couldn't route calls through a wired headset.

I also noticed a bug when it came to the phone's proximity sensor on calls. In most phones, taking the phone away from your face during or after a call will wake the screen from sleep. This almost never worked correctly in my tests, making it near impossible for me to end a call without fiddling with the Power button. Group texting worked fine with a number of iPhone and Android users, but the OnePlus one had some issues downloading pictures sent as MMS.

Also onboard are dual-band 802.11b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, NFC, and Bluetooth 4.0. The OnePlus One had no problem connecting to a multitude of Wi-Fi networks and easily paired with an Era by Jawbone Bluetooth headset.

Performance and CyanogenMod
The OnePlus One is powered by a quad-core 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC and 3GB RAM. It's the fastest silicon around at the moment and the same foundation found in flagship phones like the GS5 and M8. This alone is a triumph for a budget-friendly, unlocked phone, many of which opt for off-the-shelf parts from companies like MediaTek. Performance is everything you'd expect given the specs—there's immediacy to every input and I couldn't find any tasks that taxed the One too heavily.

Part of that speed is thanks to the clean and lite CyanogenMod 11S software, based on Android 4.4.2. For the uninitiated, CyanogenMod is one of the most prominent names in the Android development world. CyanogenMod's vision combines stock Android sensibilities with the utility of aftermarket features that you won't find in skins like TouchWiz or Sense. And unlike those two, CyanogenMod is completely customizable, meaning if you don't like something, you don't ever have to deal with it. Though better suited for tinkerers, it's also easy enough to use for mainstream audiences. There's a laundry list of tweaks and features available, but I'll focus on some of the more important ones here.

Gesture and voice commands are available out of the box, allowing for double-tap to wake and touchless controls a la Moto X. CM takes things a step further, letting you draw a V when the screen is off to launch straight into the flashlight, or draw a circle to launch straight into the camera, both of which worked reliably in my tests. The same cannot be said for voice commands, though, especially with the screen off. Instead of "OK Google Now," the OnePlus One trains itself to recognize "Hey Snapdragon" to launch Google Now's voice recognition. This worked for me about 30 percent of the time, and I'd typically have to yell it or enunciate unnaturally to get it to work. When it does work, it functions more or less on the same level as the Moto X. You can ask for weather forecasts, send texts, set reminders, or any other function available via Google Now.

Easily swappable UI elements and themes are a trademark of CyanogenMod, allowing users to change icons, fonts, wallpapers, and lock screens. There's a built-in theme store, but a quick search in Google Play will turn up hundreds of compatible themes to choose from. Themed or stock, the OnePlus One never showed signs of slowing down. You can toggle whether you use the on-screen or capacitive navigation buttons, but I noticed a small bug using the on-screen option. Launching straight into Google Now caused the navigation bar to lose its transparency effect and show up as a thick black bar along the bottom. Locking and unlocking the phone returned the bar to its transparent state, so it's only a minor quibble.

OnePlus puts an emphasis on security, offering encrypted text messaging between devices running CyanogenMod and granular control over individual app permissions with Privacy Guard. Instead of being locked into the all-or-nothing permissions model of standard Android builds, OnePlus One users can control exactly what your app has access to, blocking some permissions while keeping others. Digging into Privacy Guard also lets you see when each app made use of individual permissions, which can be helpful in determining which permissions it really needs to function. Keep in mind that disabling some permissions can cause apps to work erratically or break all together.

Cameras and Conclusions
The OnePlus One comes equipped with a 13-megapixel, rear-facing camera with dual-LED flash and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. OnePlus says it uses a Sony Exmor IMX 214 sensor with an f/2.0 aperture for gathering more light and a six-element lens to cut down on distortion. CEO Peter Lau claims that the camera was optimized for "real-life conditions," and in my tests I found that to be mostly true. In good lighting, images look alive with detail and true-to-life colors. Autofocus was nearly instantaneous, but exposure was hit or miss and dynamic range was only average. Unfortunately, that low-distortion claim doesn't hold up—towards the edges of the frame you can see straight lines becoming awkwardly warped and unnatural. In low light and indoors, the camera did an admirable job balancing grain with detail, but images still ended up looking soft, especially if subjects weren't completely still. I prefer them to the results I saw with the GS5 in low-light, but the HTC One (M8) still takes better low-light images.

The OnePlus One is capable of 4K video recording, but it's not very practical—video quality takes a big hit compared with its 1080p footage, especially indoors, while frame rates can dip below 15 frames per second and autofocus becomes painfully slow. Standard 1080p footage looks vivid and lifelike in good lighting, but graininess creeps in even under modestly lit scenarios.

There's a sea change underway in the mobile world, and consumers are going to be the big winners here. Carriers like T-Mobile are moving towards unsubsidized and contract-free models, while companies like Google, Motorola, and now OnePlus are redefining expectations for affordable smartphones. The OnePlus One is hopefully a harbinger of things to come; a no-compromise device that challenges the current hegemony of subsidized smartphones and contract-bound service plans. If the untested company can maintain quality control and meet demand, the One will be the smartphone to beat. Though it's not as great of a value as the One, Google's Nexus 6 continues to impress with its beautiful display and stock Android software. Otherwise, the OnePlus One is the most phone for the least money. 

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