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Battery life
- Dash charge is as awesome as always (60% in 30 minutes)
- 3,300mAh battery easily lasts a day
As mentioned above, the OnePlus 5T comes with a 3,300mAh battery, which the company claims can last a full day on single charge.
Initially, we were a little concerned that the 5T might not be as efficient as the OnePlus 5 as both the phones pack same-size power pack while the former has a bigger display, but 5T is still a solid performer to match up the claims made by the company.
I am using it as my daily driver with typical daily usage which includes an hour of gaming, 2 hours of streaming on Netflix, thick dose of emails and social media with a number of phone calls on Airtel 4G cellular network.
We ran our 90-minute Full HD video test on the OnePlus 5T, with screen brightness at max and accounts syncing over Wi-Fi in the background. From 100% of charge, the 5T lost 12% during the test, which puts it in the middle of its flagship rivals.
It’s a better performance than the LG V30 (lost 13%), iPhone 8 Plus (23%) and Razer Phone (18%), but not quite as good as the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus (11%) or Huawei Mate 10 Pro (9%). In short, battery life isn't a major concern as the 5T performs well.
Now when the battery life is sorted, let's talk about the world's fastest charging tech in smartphone - Dash Charge - which is claimed to give 'a day's of power in half an hour', which translates to 60% of battery in 30 minutes in real life usage.
It was first introduced in the OnePlus 3 and since then, this tech has been one of the most useful features of the OnePlus phones. The problem is, you need to charge it with the Dash Charge plug block to achieve those numbers. Charging it with any other standard Quick Charge plug will not be able to charge it that quick.
Camera
- Dual rear cameras: 16MP + 20MP Sony sensors
- Revamped camera app for easier one-handed use
Similar to the OnePlus 5, the 5T also features a dual camera setup on the rear, but it comes with few changes. It comes with a pair of 16-megapixel Sony sensor and a 20-megapixel Sony sensor, both of which have an increased aperture of f/1.7 for enhanced low-light shots and the same 27.22mm focal length.
If you still haven't noticed, OnePlus has got rid of the telephoto lens to improve low-light results from the camera. This also eliminates the option of optical 2x zoom feature, however though, the 2x function still shows up in the camera UI using digital zoom, that results in noticeable quality loss.
OnePlus says the 5T switches to the second sensor when lighting drops below 10 lux. OnePlus' Intelligent Pixel Technology is also new this time, which merges four pixels into one to improve clarity and reduce noise and blurring.
When compared to the OnePlus 5, there was visible improvement in the low-light shots which proves that the work on camera is not just a marketing gimmick. Although the night shots are not as great as the likes of Google Pixel 2 but the lower price tag justifies what you get for it.
The 5T performs pretty well in clear nights but indoor shots end up looking a little muddy in some cases.
The camera app on 5T is an overhaul with a much cleaner layout and easy-to-use gesture controls. You can swipe up to select mode, swipe down to enter quick settings. This change in the UI is makes it great for one handed camera control.
Sliding from left to right takes you to video mode, while you can enter Portrait mode by swiping right to left.
Portrait mode has got an update where it offers better background defocusing and the subject looks much sharper. It also has a Pro mode for those who like to get into the nitty-gritty of camera settings. You can fine tune individual settings like ISO, shutter speed, focus, and more using this mode.
You can even long-press the fingerprint scanner on the rear to take a photo, which we found to be surprisingly intuitive.
On the front you get the same 16MP selfie snapper as the OnePlus 5, which uses screen flash to illuminate your low-light selfies.
The OnePlus 5T impressed us with its snappy shutter speed, detailed and natural looking colours in good light. The overall camera experience on this one is a notch higher than the OnePlus 5, and that brings it closer to the flagship club, but still not close enough to the likes of Samsung Galaxy S8, Google Pixel 2 or iPhone X.
OnePlus 5T camera samples gallery
