OnePlus 8 series to come with 5G and heftier price tags

Since all Snapdragon 865 chips do not have a integrated modem, and they also do not have the option to be equipped with a 4G one, this should come as no surprise. OnePlus’ CEO Pete Lau has announced that the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro will come with 5G connectivity. Since there isn’t even a choice to offer a Snapdragon 865 smartphone without 5G, such an announcement is actually rather pointless, no?

The man also goes on to reveal that they are going “all in on 5G” in their interview with CNET. With their track record of only releasing flagship devices, it does go without saying that all their smartphones will be using the latest and greatest chips from Qualcomm, which is currently only available with 5G.

The OnePlus 7 series charted an unprecedented price point for the OnePlus brand too.

Also, he revealed that the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro are going to be more expensive than their previous offerings as “the new technology add costs so costs have risen in comparison to 4G products.” OnePlus has been increasing the prices on their devices with every generation, so this, once again is no surprise. He then assures OnePlus fans that the price won’t be anywhere near the $1000 (~RM4235) mark, and that you would still get “5G products with a reasonable price.”

It is worth noting that the OnePlus 7T Pro was priced at £699 (~RM3360), with an even more premium McLaren Edition offered at an eye-watering £799 (~RM3841). This is a far cry from their initial ambitions of being flagship killers with the OnePlus One launched at a price point well below what the competition priced their flagships at.

However the price increase this time around may actually be more justifiable, since the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 and its accompanying Snapdragon X55 5G are rather costly compared to last year’s Snapdragon 855 chipset, which came with a built-in 4G modem.

The OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro are expected to be launched sometime in April, so stay tuned to check them out, if you are still interested.

Pokdepinion: I am really quite unsure of what OnePlus is going for with their whole “Never Settle” tagline now.