OnePlus 11 Review: Flagship Phone

Reviewing the OnePlus 11 a flagship phone from 2023 that boasts upgraded camera technology and excellent battery life. If you’re looking for a versatile smartphone that can compete with the Pixel 7 Pro and costs less than Samsung’s S23 Ultra, the OnePlus 11 is certainly worth your consideration.

Design

The OnePlus 11 has one of the best designs among recent OnePlus smartphones. It features glass on the front and back, with a stainless steel frame blending into the camera bump. Though there’s a small visible seam, it’s not a dealbreaker.

The frosted rear provides a grippy texture and hides smudges and fingerprints well, which is great for those with oily hands. Made with Gorilla Glass 5, the back remains pristine even after a few weeks of use.

The front is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus, which can scratch easily on other phones. To prevent this, I’ve kept OnePlus’s pre-installed screen protector on. However, it’s started developing bubbles near the top, so I might remove it soon.

It has an official IP64 rating, making it splash-resistant and offering good protection against dust and particles. I’ve tested its durability by exposing it to steam in the shower and splashing water on it, and it’s performed perfectly without any issues.

OxygenOS 13 & features

On the software side, the OnePlus 11 runs OxygenOS 13 based on Android 13, offering four years of OS updates and five years of security updates, ensuring its future-proofness. I have already created a comprehensive video discussing all the noteworthy features of OxygenOS 13, so I encourage you to check that out for all the details. In this paragraph, I won’t repeat myself. However, I will mention that OxygenOS 13 has been incredibly smooth and reliable. I have encountered minimal glitches during the two weeks I’ve been using it as my primary device.

The only notable issue I’ve experienced is related to Bluetooth connectivity. Occasionally, when I place my OnePlus buds back in their case and put it in my pocket, the Bluetooth connection still recognizes them as connected, leading to no audio output through the speakers. Furthermore, the Bluetooth audio can become choppy at times. However, a simple solution of turning Bluetooth off and on again resolves the problem. Hopefully this issue will be updated.

Regarding storage you have two options of 128 or 256 gigabytes of UFS 4.0 space. However, similar to most flagship phones, there is no support for microSD cards.

As for the in-display optical fingerprint sensor it has been working flawlessly providing reliable and responsive biometric authentication. It is quick to unlock the device, with only occasional hiccups when my fingers are slightly moist. Nevertheless, it provide fantastic alternative of Face Unlock for those instances.

Display and Audio

It features  6.7-inch AMOLED display LTPO 3.0 technology, which brings the next level of variable refresh rate. It smoothly transitions from one Hertz all the way up to 120 Hertz, depending on your usage, providing a seamless UI experience while conserving power when a higher refresh rate is unnecessary. During the couple of weeks I’ve been testing haven’t noticed any glitches, judder, tearing, or display issues whatsoever. The LTPO technology has been working flawlessly, ensuring a consistently smooth display.

Speaking of power efficiency, it’s hard to determine the exact impact of the energy-saving aspect, but I can reveal a spoiler: the battery life is outstanding. As expected from a flagship smartphone, it delivers excellent picture quality. With a resolution of 3216 by 1440 pixels, the display is sharp and vibrant offers wide viewing angles and reaches impressive brightness levels, making it easy to use outdoors without any visibility concerns. Additionally supports 10-bit color reproduction, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, and other cutting-edge technologies.

The stereo speakers are more than capable for activities like video chatting or watching YouTube videos. I didn’t encounter any issues with Bluetooth 5.3 streaming. As I mentioned before, you can enjoy LHDC support and all major audio codecs. And also offers Dolby Atmos for a top-notch audio experience. Overall display and audio qualities are highly impressive.

Performance

Equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor and also boasts a 16GB of DDR5 RAM making OnePlus 11 incredibly speedy. Everyday app usage is smooth as silk, and even when playing demanding games like Genshin Impact at higher detail settings and running at 60 frames per second, I noticed only a single frame drop throughout my entire gaming experience.

During extended gaming sessions of 15 to 20 minutes, the back does warm up slightly. However, it doesn’t escalate beyond that point. This can be attributed to the general efficiency of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, as well as OnePlus’s Cryo Velocity Vapor Chamber coolant system, which is the largest one yet implemented in a OnePlus phone. Furthermore, incorporates graphene layers for improved heat dissipation and the cooling mechanisms combined with the OxygenOS gaming enhancements, create an optimal gaming experience.

The OxygenOS gaming mode offers a plethora of excellent features. You can adjust the screen sensitivity according to your preference, and there are various performance and distraction-free modes available.

Battery life

With a 5000 milliamp-hour battery, which is the same size as last year’s model and just slightly larger than the 10T 5G, the OnePlus 11 manages to deliver significantly improved battery life. Even with my typical usage of five to six hours of screen-on time in a single day, I consistently found still had around 40% charge remaining by the end of an exceptionally long day. This usage included extensive camera use, approximately an hour of Skype or Zoom calls, and plenty of podcast or music streaming, all while the screen was hibernating. Remarkably, the device still had 30 to 40% battery life when I finally collapsed into bed, face down and completely exhausted.

The energy efficiency of the Snapdragon platform plays a role, as well as the LTPO 3.0 screen technology and various software optimizations working behind the scenes.

When it’s time to recharge, the OnePlus 11 supports 100-watt SuperVOOC wired charging. Although it’s not as fast as the 150-watt charging on last year’s OnePlus 10T, it still charges the device from empty to full in about half an hour. So you can simply plug it in for 20 minutes while you freshen up in the morning and by the time it’ll be fully charged.

However, it’s worth noting that the OnePlus 11 lacks wireless charging which may disappoint some users. Nevertheless, for most people, the absence of wireless charging likely won’t be a deal-breaker considering the other exceptional features and performance offers.

Camera

OnePlus 11 has Sony’s 50-megapixel IMX766 sensor as the main camera accompanied by optical image stabilization to ensure clean and steady photos. I was particularly impressed by the accurate color reproduction even in challenging lighting conditions. Only in very low light does the camera produce slightly warmer tones, but overall, the focus remains sharp, as long as you give it a moment. it captures intricate details in scenes resulting in impressive photos that still hold up well even when zoomed in.

Supporting the main camera is a 32-megapixel portrait shooter with a two-times optical zoom, utilizing Sony’s IMX709 sensor. This lens allows you to capture portraits without being too close to your subject and the adjustable bokeh effect adds to the overall appeal. However, it’s worth noting that subjects need to stay relatively still to avoid a softer, slightly blurred outcome, even in well-lit conditions.

Also it includes a 48-megapixel ultra-wide-angle shooter capable of capturing more expansive scenes. While the colors may appear slightly less realistic, the results are still sharp and appealing. Additionally a range of filters including those from Hasselblad which can be enjoyable to experiment. the Hasselblad partnership brings the iconic orange shutter button to the OnePlus 11 and includes the Hasselblad Pro Mode allowing you to adjust various camera settings and capture RAW or RAW+ video.

When it comes to video, holds its ground against many flagship rivals. It offers impressively smooth and stable 8K resolution video, although for storage-saving reasons, you may prefer to stick with 4K, which still produces excellent footage. While it may not match the low-light capabilities of the Oppo Find X5 Pro, the OnePlus 11 performs competently in reasonably lit environments. Audio capture is also noteworthy, with no issues even in windy conditions.

As for the 16-megapixel selfie camera, it captures respectable shots suitable for sharing. The portrait mode generally works well, but it’s advisable to remove earbuds, as they may cause part of your ear to disappear in the photo. In low-light situations the screen flash proves useful to avoid grainy results. The front-facing camera record videos at Full HD or 4K resolution providing flexibility for your needs. However, it’s best to avoid aiming it directly at your nose for more flattering results. Audio pickup is excellent, and I encountered no issues during video calls on platforms like Skype.

Conclusion

So I must say after using OnePlus 11 as my primary smartphone for a couple of weeks, I have very few complaints. It was a delightful flagship smartphone to use particularly due to its improved battery life and excellent performance. While it doesn’t introduce anything groundbreaking certainly excels in all the essential aspects. There were just a couple of minor glitches that I’m confident will be addressed through post-launch updates.

87%

87%

OnePlus's Flagship Phone

After using the OnePlus 11 as the primary smartphone for a couple of weeks, it stands out as a delightful flagship option.​Though there are minor glitches, these are expected to be addressed through post-launch updates.

• Design

  9
• Display

  9
• Software

  8
• Audio

  8
• Performance

  9
• Battery Life

  9
• Camera

  9