OnePlus 13s assessment: The compact iPhone clone you’ve got by no means wished

My spouse summed up the OnePlus 13s completely: “this simply seems to be like a smaller iPhone, however with Android.” That’s principally what it’s to make use of the OnePlus 13s; whereas it’s good to see OnePlus making a compact gadget — the OnePlus X got here out a decade in the past — the 13s finally ends up deviating a bit an excessive amount of from the producer’s design language.

Look, I get that almost all telephones as of late have the same design, and I’m okay with that; switching to a flatter profile permits manufacturers to fit in large batteries, and that is undoubtedly an excellent factor. But with the 13s, it seems like OnePlus deliberately tried to make a tool that is as near the iPhone as attainable, and it is not simply the {hardware} design — the adjustments to OxygenOS carry it nearer to iOS.

I had the OnePlus 13s for over a month, and I used the gadget extensively in that point. This is what that you must learn about OnePlus’ compact flagship, and whether or not you must choose it up.

OnePlus 13s: Specs, worth, and international availability

OnePlus unveiled the 13s in India on June 5, and the telephone is occurring sale within the nation within the coming weeks. The gadget is an identical to the OnePlus 13T that debuted in China again in April, with two variations: the 13s has a smaller 5,850mAh battery (the 13T has 6,260mAh), and the 13s will get a 32MP selfie digicam with autofocus.

The 13s is on the market in two configurations: the bottom mannequin with 12GB/256GB storage is occurring sale in India beginning at ₹54,999 ($640), and there is additionally a 12GB/512GB mannequin that prices ₹59,999 ($699). The gadget principally slots in between the OnePlus 13R and OnePlus 13, and it is not fairly as inexpensive as I believed it will be.

Why the identify change to 13s, you ask? OnePlus says it did so to focus on the truth that this can be a smaller telephone. As to why it did not accomplish that in China, your guess is pretty much as good as mine. Although the OnePlus 13R is on the market globally, OnePlus is not promoting the 13s outdoors India, and the 13T is unique to China.

OnePlus 13s: Design

OnePlus says the 13s has a “gorgeous new design,” however what it truly seems to be like is an iPhone. Even the OnePlus 13 had a design with flat sides, but it surely retained the model’s design ethos and managed to face out. The 13s, in the meantime, has a flatter profile that is unmistakably iPhone, and OnePlus actually ought to have carried out extra to distinguish the design slightly bit.

That stated, I just like the inexperienced coloration variant, and the sizing is excellent. With a peak of 150.8mm (the OnePlus 13 is 162.9mm) and weighing simply 185g, the 13s is an efficient selection if you happen to want a compact gadget. The Galaxy S25 is shorter and lighter, however you do not get anyplace as giant a battery, and the gadget is not fairly pretty much as good to make use of.

Another constructive is that the digicam island does not protrude an excessive amount of from the chassis, so there is not a lot in the best way of wobble when utilizing the telephone on a desk. The rounded sq. design seems to be good, and it highlights the twin cameras on the again. Weight distribution is good too, and I did not see any points on this regard — similar to the usual OnePlus 13.

The again is made out of glass and has a frosted glass end that feels good to carry, and it minimizes smudges. The sides have a matte texture, they usually’re color-matched to the again. There’s additionally a black mannequin with a matte again if that is extra to your liking.

Along with the adjustments to the design, OnePlus ditched the long-standing alert slider; the 13s as an alternative will get a Plus Key that launches AI Plus Mind, a brand new AI utility that is just like what Nothing affords with Essential Space. The design of the Plus Key and the related software program sub-menu is as near a facsimile of the iPhone’s Action Button as I’ve seen on any gadget. The button helps you to undertake varied actions, together with launching the digicam, translate, allow DND, and toggle the flashlight.

Annoyingly, the button has only a single lengthy press, so you’re restricted in what you may truly do with the important thing. I take advantage of the alert slider extensively on OnePlus telephones, and never having the toggle is irritating — significantly when you think about the asinine DND mode on the gadget.

The telephone has an ordinary optical fingerprint module, however it’s situated far too low on the panel, and that makes it awkward to entry. I nonetheless do not get why OnePlus simply does not place this sensor in such a method that it is easy to achieve, however this has been a difficulty on a number of of the model’s gadgets up to now as nicely.

Another limitation is water resistance; the 13s will get IP65 ingress safety, and misses out on IP68 and IP69. It ought to nonetheless stand up to the occasional splash of water, but it surely is not designed to be submerged within the pool or a tub.

OnePlus 13s: Display

The key differentiator of the OnePlus 13s is the compact chassis; the telephone will get a 6.32-inch AMOLED panel, and to place issues into context, the common OnePlus 13 has a 6.82-inch show. You nonetheless get 120Hz refresh alongside Dolby Vision and good colours, but it surely does not fairly get as vivid because the common mannequin.

That stated, I did not have any points utilizing the panel outside; it might not win any awards, but it surely holds up nicely in every day use. What I like is that the bezels are razor-thin, so that you get a decent-sized panel in a telephone that is significantly smaller than its rivals. The telephone will get a 1.5K decision (2640 x 1216), and has 2,160Hz dimming, Aqua Touch mode that permits you to use it even with moist fingers, and it goes all the way down to as little as 1.1 nits at night time.

You get the identical degree of customizability as different OnePlus telephones, and the 13s does an excellent job in gaming; the smaller measurement is not fairly as immersive, but it surely does not have any outward limitations as such — past the 60fps throttling that is on all OxygenOS gadgets. Thankfully, BGMI goes as much as 120fps, however that is the one recreation that does.

OnePlus 13s: Hardware

The OnePlus 13s will get the identical Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite because the common OnePlus 13, and it comes with 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 512GB UFS 4.0 storage. Overheating is a matter in smaller telephones as there’s simply not sufficient room to accommodate a sizeable liquid cooling unit, however the 13s does an excellent job on this regard, managing efficient warmth dissipation because of a vapor chamber and graphite layer that is connected to the again.

However, the gadget tends to get scorching throughout gaming, and even in a number of mundane situations, I noticed the again get heat. The telephone acquired as much as 53 levels Celsius after a 30-minute gaming session, six levels hotter than the OnePlus 13R and 11 levels greater than the iQOO 13, which has the identical Qualcomm platform.

There is noticeable throttling as nicely, and once more, that is to handle thermals and stop overheating. The telephone does an amazing job in gaming because of the highly effective {hardware}, but it surely does not fairly have the identical overhead because the OnePlus 13 on the subject of prolonged gaming.

The vibration motor is respectable sufficient, and whereas it is not pretty much as good as a flagship, you continue to get good suggestions. I had a number of points with connectivity; the telephone wasn’t in a position to keep linked to my dwelling community constantly, and calls weren’t fairly as clear. This might be a case of positioning of the RF front-end modules to accommodate for the smaller chassis, and even with mobile knowledge, I did not get the identical bandwidth because the OnePlus 13.

OnePlus 13s: Battery life

Even although this can be a compact gadget, the OnePlus 13s will get a 5,850mAh battery that lasts all day with ease. I managed to recover from a day with medium use, and even with heavy use, I acquired to the top of the day with out having to cost the battery. It makes use of the usual 80W charging tech, and it takes just below 50 minutes to cost.

Annoyingly, the 13s has an everyday battery and misses out on silicon-carbon tech — not like the 13T. OnePlus says it invested within the selfie digicam as an alternative, delivering a module with autofocus, whereas the Chinese mannequin will get a 6,260mAh battery. Given the selection, I might have wished a much bigger battery (I do not use the selfie digicam a lot), but it surely’s clear that OnePlus wished to distinguish the digicam as an alternative.

OnePlus 13s: Cameras

The OnePlus 13s has a 50MP Sony LYT-700 sensor — identical because the OnePlus 13R. That’s joined by a 50MP Samsung JN5 telephoto lens with 2x optical zoom, but it surely misses out on OIS. You simply get the 2 cameras, and there is not a wide-angle lens. The selfie digicam is a 32MP GalaxyCore GC32 with autofocus and 4K video.

The digicam interface is unchanged, and also you get the same old toggles and filters. The telephone shoots 4K60 video with the primary and tele lenses, and also you get Dolby Vision video as nicely. There’s a handbook mode and customized filters, and similar to the 13R, it misses out on all of the Hasselblad extras.

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The important digicam does an amazing job in daylight conditions, delivering photographs with excessive distinction and vibrant colours. There’s an oversaturated look to the pictures that appears good when shared on social media, and the sensor does simply as nicely in difficult situations, producing pictures with minimal noise.

The 2x tele lens is kind of respectable as nicely, and also you get usable pictures at as much as 4x with none artifacting. I acquired good portrait pictures out of the primary digicam, and whereas you do not get as a lot versatility because the OnePlus 13, this can be a dependable shooter.

OnePlus 13s: Software

Like the OnePlus 13, the 13s runs OxygenOS 15 based mostly on Android 15. OnePlus made a number of adjustments to the software program this 12 months, and the design brings it nearer to iOS. A brand new addition is AI Plus Mind, a function that collates photographs, notes, and different knowledge in a single location. If you’ve gotten any data you want to save lots of — payments, occasion QR codes, and so forth — simply press and maintain the Plus Key, and it will get saved to Mind Space.

The utility makes use of machine studying to extract related data. If that sounds acquainted, it is as a result of Nothing’s Essential Space principally does the identical factor, and if something, Google’s Pixel Screenshots has the same utility. I’ll admit that it’s helpful in sure situations, however as of now, it does not do a lot apart from summarizing data.

You cannot take your knowledge out both, so it’s tied to the gadget. As it stands, there is not a lot to justify the function, but it surely’s clear that the producer sees AI as some extent of differentiation (like each different telephone model), so it ought to get higher options within the coming months.

Most of the time, utilizing the software program on the 13s was an train in frustration. I migrated knowledge from the Vivo X200 Pro, but it surely did not set up every thing — fundamental apps like Amazon and Swiggy did not present up, and I needed to go to the Play Store and obtain these once more. This isn’t a difficulty on different gadgets, however I bumped into the identical downside on the OnePlus 13 earlier this 12 months, so I’m highlighting it.

Background reminiscence administration continues to be very aggressive, so in case you have an app within the background, will probably be shut down after a number of hours. There is intermittent lag when shopping in Chrome, and it might simply be a case of the gadget not being optimized forward of launch, as I did not see this concern on the common mannequin.

And then there’s the same old AI-backed options. You get AI Search and AI transcribing together with translation, they usually do a good sufficient job. There’s a brand new AI Call Assistant, and it’s meant to supply real-time translation. I examined it with Hindi to English, and it simply did not do a adequate job translating the decision on the fly; the resultant textual content was improper in lots of areas, and it wasn’t in a position to deal with whole sentences.

Coming to updates, the 13s will get the usual 4 years of Android updates alongside six years of safety patches.

OnePlus 13s: The options

I just like the OnePlus 13R, and though it is not as quick because the 13s, you will not discover any distinction in every day use, and it has a much bigger AMOLED panel and bigger battery. It is on the market within the U.S. and different international markets as nicely, and is a greater worth all issues thought-about.

If you want the identical Qualcomm {hardware}, I’d recommend getting the iQOO 13 as an alternative. It prices the identical in India, and it has a much bigger battery, brighter AMOLED panel, and the cameras are significantly better than earlier generations. It is better-suited as a gaming gadget.

OnePlus 13s: Should you purchase it?

You can purchase this if:

• You want a robust compact telephone
• You need dependable battery life
• You need a good digicam on the again

You should not purchase this if:

• You need bug-free software program
• You’re used to the alert slider
• You want significant AI options

On the entire, the OnePlus 13s does not do sufficient to benefit a advice; the compact design and high-end {hardware} is a transparent differentiator, and there is a distinct dearth of such gadgets right this moment. You get standout battery life, and the primary digicam takes good photographs and movies.

That stated, I’m not a fan of the design or the software program. OxygenOS 15 is now veering so near iOS that it simply does not have any originality left, and there are sufficient annoyances with bugs that it wasn’t pleasing to make use of the telephone. I’m positive these shall be resolved a number of weeks after the telephone goes on sale — that is at all times been the case within the final three years — however I do not see why these could not be addressed beforehand, like each different telephone producer is ready to do.

Most of the time, I felt like I used to be beta testing the 13s. The OnePlus 13 continues to be an outlier in that it did not have any of those points out of the field, and with the 13s, OnePlus is again to its ordinary shenanigans of launching a telephone earlier than it is prepared. If you are keen to attend a number of weeks (and even months), then the 13s has the potential to be a good sufficient selection on this class. But because it stands, it simply does not measure up.