The affordable new OnePlus 12 phones could make you reconsider options from Samsung, Google, or even Apple. Here's a hands-on look and how to preorder.

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OnePlus announced the launch of its latest OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R phones in the US on Tuesday after launching the devices in China in December 2023. 

The OnePlus 12 is the company's flagship model with all the bells and whistles and a price tag you'd expect on a premium Android phone in 2024. Meanwhile, the OnePlus 12R is more affordable with more moderate specs and features, but it still includes several high-end attributes that make it incredibly tempting.

Considering their specifications, features, and price tags, the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R are clear signs the company is returning to its original roots of offering premium devices for hundreds less than equivalent phones from competitors like Google, Samsung, and Apple.

OnePlus 12: Price and release date

The OnePlus 12 is available to preorder now from the OnePlus website, Amazon, and Best Buy. It will be fully released and available to buy on February 6, also from the OnePlus website, Amazon, and Best Buy.

The OnePlus 12 starts at $799.99 for the model with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage. The price goes up to $899.99 for the model with 16GB RAM and 512GB.

The OnePlus 12R is also available for preorder from the OnePlus website, Amazon, and Best Buy. It will be released and available to buy on February 13 from the same three retailers. 

The OnePlus 12R starts at $499.99 for the model with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage and goes to $599.99 for the model with 16GB and 256GB storage.

OnePlus 12: Features and hands-on impressions

I've been impressed with the OnePlus 12 in the few days I've had the device before launch. OnePlus is one of the few companies taking any kind of risk with design, and the new Flowy Emerald color option is gorgeous. 

The only thing I'm not pleased to see is the curved screen edges. I've been firmly against curved screen edges for years, as they make phone displays look and feel too narrow, and they offer no functionality whatsoever. They feel like an outdated tactic to make a phone look better, but I think it has the opposite effect. 

While I haven't fully tested the OnePlus 12's battery life with our usual test, one thing, in particular, has stuck out about the phone's battery behavior so far — its standby battery drain when you're not using the phone is stunningly slow. For example, the battery drops only a couple of percentage points overnight, while most phones drop between eight to 10%. 

While I'm talking about battery life, it's worth mentioning that the OnePlus 12's 80W charging speeds still surprise me, even after testing every OnePlus phone since the company introduced these wild charging speeds. It's so noticeably fast compared to mainstream devices from Samsung, Google, and Apple. With that said, these charging speeds are only possible with OnePlus' proprietary chargers, which thankfully come included with the phone. Still, if you want more than one charger for 80W charging, your non-OnePlus chargers won't come near those speeds. 

It's also worth noting that OnePlus re-introduced wireless charging after omitting the feature in the OnePlus 11 and the OnePlus Open foldable phone. In typical OnePlus fashion, the OnePlus 12 supports absurdly fast 50W wireless charging with its proprietary wireless charger. 

Overall, the OnePlus 12's performance and display deliver a fairly typical experience for a premium Android phone. The phone is lightning-fast for opening apps and running the Android operating system, and the display is bright, sharp, and beautifully smooth, running at a 120Hz refresh rate. 

Out of context, the experience might be rather unexciting and fully expected on a premium device. However, when you consider its $800 starting price, it becomes clear that the OnePlus 12 offers incredible value among the best Android phones — I'm unaware of any other phone in the US that runs on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for such fast performance while being paired with a huge 6.8-inch, 120Hz display and a price tag under $1,000. 

I've been loving the cameras on the OnePlus 12, too, and I'm excited when opportunities to take photos with the phone arise to see how they come out. Colors are natural and vibrant without appearing oversaturated. Contrast and lighting are incredibly dynamic and full of depth without over-brightening or over-darkening bright and darker parts of a photo. I'll be taking more pictures alongside other top phones, like the Galaxy S24 Ultra and Pixel 8 Pro, over the next few days during the testing period, but so far, I'm impressed.

OnePlus introduced a new feature called Aqua Touch for both the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R that's designed to help with display touch inputs when your hands are wet. This is particularly interesting to me, as I often touch phone screens to play podcasts (and fast-forward the ads) when doing dishes or in the shower. On every phone I test, I usually need to dry my hands and wipe the screen midway through the dishes to skip past ads. It'll be interesting to see how well this works, as it promises to solve a recurring problem I have with current phone displays. 

One thing that's noticeably absent is AI and AI-based features, which Samsung recently doubled down with on its new Galaxy S24 lineup and has been a core differentiator in Google's Pixel phones for the last few years. I can't say I've been missing AI features, whether for photo enhancements or productivity, and I don't think the lack of AI-based features is a dealbreaker. If you're looking for Google's Pixel AI smarts or Samsung's new AI features, you'll be better off getting one of those phones.

OnePlus 12: Specs