OnePlus 10T 5G smartphone review

REVIEW – A couple of years ago I got the opportunity to test and review the OnePlus 9 Pro smartphone and while I have had a rocky on-again/off-again love affair with Android phones, I really was able to rekindle the flame with that OnePlus. Ever since then, I have been looking for the opportunity to upgrade. And, here is my opportunity as I get to test and review the OnePlus 10T 5G smartphone.

What is it?

The OnePlus 10T 5G Smartphone is a 5G Unlocked Android Smartphone with 8GB RAM+128GB Storage, a 120Hz Fluid AMOLED Display, triple cameras 50+8+2MP, 16MP, and 125W SuperVOOC Charging.

What’s in the box

1 x OnePlus 10T 5G Smartphone
1 x SUPERVOOC Power Adapter
1 x USB-C Cable
1 x USB Dongle (Type-A to Type-C)
1 x SIM Tray Ejector
1 x User Manual

Design and features

Features

• 25W SUPERVOOC Endurance Edition: A day’s power in 10 minutes and double the battery lifespan. An AI algorithm intelligently learns your individual charging schedule to deliver the fastest charging speed.
• Flagship Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 Mobile Platform: The fastest Snapdragon mobile platform delivers ultimate performance at your fingertips through 10% higher CPU and x4 Faster AI Speed.
• 50MP Triple Camera System: Flagship level IMX766 sensor with OIS delivers outstanding clarity and stability + Next-gen Nightscape 2.0 and ultra-fast shutter capture speeds.
• 6.7″ 120Hz FHD+ Fluid Display: With up to 120Hz adaptive frame rate plus always-on HDR10+ and 10-bit color for superior brightness and color accuracy.
• 8GB RAM and the Always Alive feature:  delivers uncompromising multitasking. Plus HyperBoost Gaming Engine with GPA Frame Stabilizer and GLC (GPU Load Control) for the most compelling gaming experience.
• 5G Unlocked: Compatible with 5G networks on AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Visible, MetroPCS, Mint Mobile, Google Fi, and Cricket. Up to 4G on Tracfone.

Nightscape, Ultra HDR, Smart Scene Recognition, Portrait Mode, Pro Mode, Panorama, Tilt-Shift mode, Long Exposure, Dual-View Video, Retouch, Movie Mode, Cat/Dog Face Focus, Raw file, Raw Plus file, Filters, Super Stable, Video Nightscape, Video HDR, Video Portrait, Focus Tracking, Timelapse, Macro mode

Specifications

Dimensions: Height: 163.0 mm, Width: 75.4 mm, Thickness: 8.75 mm
Weight: 203.5 g

Display Parameters –
Size: 6.7″ (measured diagonally from corner to corner)
Resolution: 2412 X 1080 pixels 394 ppi
Aspect Ratio: 20.1:9
Type: 120 Hz Fluid AMOLED
Touch Response Rate: 360Hz (hardware), 720Hz (software)
Cover Glass: Corning® Gorilla® Glass
Support: sRGB, Display P3, 10-bit Color Depth, HDR10+
Operating System: OxygenOS based on Android™ 12
CPU: Snapdragon® 8+ Gen 1 Mobile Platform
GPU: Adreno™ 730
RAM: 8GB/16GB LPDDR5
Storage: 128GB/256GB UFS 3.1 2@LANE
Charge: 125W SUPERVOOC
Battery: 4,800 mAh (2S1P 2,400 mAh, non-removable)

Main Camera –
Sensor: Sony IMX766
Sensor Size: 1/1.56″
Megapixels: 50
Lens Quantity: 6P
Focal Length: 23.6mm equivalent
Autofocus: PDAF
Pixel Size: 1.0 µm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8

Ultra-Wide Camera –
Megapixels: 8
Ultra-wide Angle: 119.9°
Autofocus: Fixed Focus
Pixel Size: 1.12 µm
Aperture: ƒ/2.2

Macro Lens –
Megapixels: 2
Effective Shooting Distance: 2~4cm
Flash: LED Flash
Autofocus: Multi Autofocus (All pixel omni-directional PDAF+LAF+CAF)
Video: 4K@60fps/30fps, 1080p@60fps/30fps, 720p@60fps/30fps
Slow motion: 1080p@240fps, 720p@480fps
Time-Lapse: 1080p@30fps, 4K@30fps
Video zoom: 4K@60fps/30fps, 1080P@60fps/30fps, 720P@60fps/30fps
Steady Video: EIS support

Front Camera –
Megapixels: 16
Focal Length: 24mm equivalent
Autofocus: Fixed Focus
Pixel Size: 1.0 µm
Aperture: ƒ/2.4
Video: 1080P/720P@30fps
Features: Selfie HDR, Face unlock

Connectivity: LTE/LTE-A, 4×4 MIMO, 7CA, Support up to DL Cat 20(2000Mbps)/UL Cat 18(200Mbps)
Band: GSM: 850/900/1800/1900; WCDMA: B1/B2/B4/B5/B8/B19; FDD-LTE: B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B30/B32/B66/B71; TDD-LTE: B38/B39/B41/B46/B48
Wi-Fi: 2×2 MIMO, Support 2.4G / 5G, Support WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 5.2, support SBC & aptX HD & LDAC & AAC
NFC: NFC enabled
Positioning: GPS (L1 + L5), GLO (G1), BDS (B1i + B1c + B2a), GAL (E1 + E5a), QZSS (L1 + L5), AGPS
Sensors: In-display Fingerprint Sensor, Accelerometer, Electronic Compass, Gyroscope, Ambient Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Sensor Core, Flick-detect Sensor, Rear color temperature sensor, Barometer, SAR sensor
Ports: USB 2.0; Type-C -Support standard Type-C earphones, Single nano-SIM slot
Buttons: Gestures and on-screen navigation support
Audio: Dual Stereo Speakers, Noise cancellation support

Multimedia –
Audio Supported Formats: Playback: MP3/AAC/APE/AMR/WAV/MID/OGG/FLAC/WMA
Recording: WAV, AAC, AMR
Video Supported Formats: Playback: AVI/3GP/MP4/WMV/MKV/MOV/ASF/FLV
Recording: MP4
Image Supported Formats: Playback: JPEG/PNG/GIF/BMP
Output: JPEG, DNG, HEIF

The back of the OnePlus 10T is smooth but has a grip at the same time. I am not sure what the coating is. The front is slick with the camera being barely noticeable. This phone screen does not have rounded edges like the OnePlus 9 Pro. On the back, there are the outward-facing cameras in the top left corner. When facing the phone from the front, on the right edge there is the power/sleep/wake button and on the left, there is the volume button. The top edge has the top speaker and the bottom edge has the USB-C port, sim tray, and microphone.

Performance

After fully charging the OnePlus 10T, I inserted my SIM card in the SIM tray and then I went through the software setup process including copying over files from my existing Android phone. The process was quick and easy and just as usual. I usually copy the files wirelessly, but this time I used an old USB-C cable that I had lying around:

Now the phone was all set up with all of my files and ready to go. I also enabled the touch and face recognition access along with the PIN code during the setup.

Photos:
Front camera Selfie (Color accuracy is off. My shirt is much deeper in color):

Close up (focus struggles a bit):

Normal, Zoomed in, and Zoomed out photos of buildings and scenes from downtown Brooklyn, NY (color reproduction is off a bit, and the focus struggles when zooming in):

Videos:

 

 

This next video was taken while I was walking with a heavy backpack. The EIS is pretty good:

My OnePlus 10T came with 8GB of RAM and 128GBs of storage. The OnePlus 9 that I reviewed last year came with 12GB Ram and 256GB of storage. I can actually feel the difference when comparing the 2 phones. The OnePlus 9 Pro feels quicker and more responsive. However, this model is approximately $250 cheaper, so it is acceptable

I think that the battery life on this phone is amazing. It seems to last for days with light use and even when I use it as a hotspot for 7 hours a day. What is more incredible is the speed of charging. Using the included 125W SUPERVOOC charger it charges from just about no charge to 100% in less than 20 minutes and it even charges amazingly fast when I tried charging it with my MacBook Pro charger.

This phone works well for making and receiving calls, which is almost an assumption these days for phones at this price point. Besides, I communicate more via text and WhatsApp

In terms of updates, the information on the device indicates that it was last updated on July 5^th, 2022, and as of September 21^st, 2022 they were no new updates. Given the current security climate that we live in, I find it hard to believe that there has been no need to at least provide security updates so far.

Overall, I think the OnePlus 10T is a good Android smartphone given the price point.  The screen is brilliant, the touch access and function are very responsive, and the face recognition works well. The apps all function well and open quickly. The speaker volume is good.

What I like

• The sleek design of the OnePlus phones
• The rock-solid connectivity
• The very fast charging
• The battery life
• The access options
• That 2 cases are included

What I’d change

• Since it is a model 10, it should come with more operating and storage memory.
• A better frequency of OS and security updates
• It would be nice if the phone supports dual sim cards

Final thoughts

The OnePlus 10T 5G is a really nice smartphone. It performs flawlessly and is feature rich. the super fast charging is the fastest that I have seen thus far. I love the build quality and the sleek and sexy look. I love the screen resolution and when using it for video calls it looks great. The keyboard touch feedback when typing is present and the fingerprint sensor and face recognition work flawlessly.

Also, be sure to check out Julie’s OnePlus 10 Pro review.

Price: $649.00
Where to buy: OnePlus website, Amazon
Source: The sample for this review was provided by OnePlus.