OnePlus began life with a "flagship killer" that was priced at just $299, which was aggressive compared to many other flagship phones at the time. The prices of OnePlus phones have been creeping up over the years, though, with the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro starting at $699 and $899. This week OnePlus has said that it wants to get back to its cheap phone roots.
OnePlus CEO Pete Lau has revealed that his company wants to make lower-cost phones again while also getting into new product categories. Lau didn't say exactly what cheap phones OnePlus has in the works in his interview with Fast Company, but he did tease that we'll get a peek at this strategy soon with an announcement in India followed by launches of lower-priced devices in North America and Europe later this year.
“We can look at it as having a more affordable product offering," Lau explained, "but all products that still remain up to the OnePlus standard...and through this enabling, more people to have access to OnePlus products."
It's likely that Lau is teasing the OnePlus Z, a device that's been rumored for months now to be a more affordable phone and a follow-up to 2015's mid-range OnePlus X. Reports have suggested that the OnePlus Z could be announced in July with a Snapdragon 765 processor, 5G support, and a price tag of around $500.
With the launch of the OnePlus One, OnePlus got a lot of hype and attention for offering a phone that looked good, had solid specs, and cost hundreds less than other flagship phones. Fast-forward to today and while the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro are good-looking phones with solid specs, but they're priced more like traditional flagship phones and that could turn off a lot of OnePlus fans.
The OnePlus Z may not win over every OnePlus fan who's frustrated by the pricing of the company's recent phones if it is more of a mid-range device compared to the OnePlus 8. Still, we're looking forward to seeing what kind of features OnePlus can pack into the Z while also trimming its price down.
Based on what we've heard of it so far, are you interested in the OnePlus Z?
