OnePlus has definitely had an impact in the smartphone market. Their flagship killer, the One, flew onto the scene back in mid-2014, and it was highly successful. The reasoning? It came with flagship specs, but at half the cost. Now that OnePlus has one phone release under their belts, their second device has been highly talked about for sometime.
A good majority of the community, myself included, is very curious as to how they will top the original OnePlus One. Aside from the hardware and low price point, there was another huge selling point. That selling point was the very popular ROM called CyanogenMod. The One was one of the first devices to come with it, and its customizablity was a huge factor in its sales.
CyanogenMod was a big part in why I originally picked up the One in the first place. It added tons of features and abilities that no other phone manufacturer or Google put on their devices. Obviously now, you’ve heard of OnePlus’s and Cyanogen’s rough breakup, which caused OnePlus to start their own custom ROM. This is where my one concern comes from.
I have no doubt that OnePlus will get the Snapdragon 810 v2.1 under wraps. They have a ton riding on the OnePlus 2 and they definitely wouldn’t allow their device to succumb to the overheating issues. The same goes for the rest of the hardware. Since the OnePlus 2 is coming in at a higher price than the OnePlus One it will definitely come with top of the line specs. That includes LPDDR4 RAM, a better camera (16 megapixels?), and a more premium design (metal?). OnePlus definitely knows how to pick their hardware as seen on their first device. To top it all off, it will feature a USB Type C connector for charging.
My main concern when it comes to the OnePlus 2 is the software. Their in-house ROM dubbed ‘OxygenOS’, was thrown together after Cyanogen and OnePlus went separate ways. They claimed it would be a fast, lightweight, and stable ROM. They weren’t kidding.
When I had a OnePlus One, I immediately installed OxygenOS on it to see if it was worth the hype. It was definitely lightweight, more so than anything. Yes it was stable and fast, but it was missing so many features. Features that CyanogenMod made the OnePlus One so enticing to use.
I understand it was their first release, but it was essentially a slightly skinned version of vanilla Android. There wasn’t any theming or aesthetic modifications that could be done. Yes you could re-arrange the quick setting toggles, but that was about it. I must say I was definitely disappointed. That brings me to my main point.
There is no doubt, I will definitely be picking up the OnePlus 2, assuming I can get my hands on an invite. I know it will run great, but how will OxygenOS be? The OnePlus 2 will debut with Android 5.1.1, so maybe the OnePlus team has had enough time to add, what I think are essential features. If it truly lacks any customizations, such status bar/navigation bar mods, theming, or even the classic circular battery icon, it will definitely impact how I feel about the device.
The good news will be that their will definitetly be a great developer community. XDA is a great hub for phone customization, so if the OnePlus One is any indication how many ROMs there will be, we will be in good hands with the OnePlus 2. Not only that, but I would almost guarantee that there will be CyanogenMod nightlies for the device eventually.
OxygenOS won’t determine whether or not I’ll get the device, but it will definitely determine how long I keep it stock. Honestly, I’ll probably leave it on for a full review, but yank it right afterwards. I would love to get proved wrong and be surprised at OxygenOS. Don’t get me wrong, it runs great and is very stable, but it lacks many rudimentary features.
So when the OnePlus 2 rolls around, I won’t be itching to try out the phone, but rather try out OxygenOS and see what the OnePlus team has come up with. What are your thoughts about OxygenOS and the OnePlus 2?
