Apple announced its 2015 iPhone 6S Plus a week ago while OnePlus revealed the OnePLus 2 in June, and since both are classified as phablets, it is worth to get them head to head.
The smartphone arena keeps getting filled with a plethora of new entrants once or twice per month. It may get harder and harder to tell which smartphone is at the very top, but at the same time, the process of trying to figure it out, is very exciting, at least for us tech maniacs.
This time, we have two strong competitors that have both shaken the market to its roots thanks to their impressive features.This is the OnePlus 2 vs iPhone 6S Plus takedown.
As always, we’ll compare the two smartphones in various fields such as the technical features, the camera, the display and so on. So, let the games begin.
Display
Both smartphones feature an almost identical 5.5inch screen with a pixel density of 401ppi.
Neither of the two companies has listed the manufacturer of the IPS, but the displays share a 1080 x 1920 pixels resolution.
What differs from one screen to another is the protection type. More specifically, the OnePlus 2 has a Corning Gorilla Glass 4 while Apple’s iPhone 6S Plus is protected by the Ion-strengthened glass, and the oleophobic coating, much like the company’s latest models.
Camera
The iPhone 6S Plus is equipped with a 12MP f/2.2 iSight main camera which has clearly seen some improvements from the previous generation. In fact, the 6S Plus, has for the first time in Apple’s history, 4K and 1080p slow motion video recording at 120fps.
And not to mention the optical image stabilization feature that is now available with video. As for the front camera, it packs 5MP and a few more cool features that get you pretty close to a TrueTone flash.
The OnePlus 2, on the other hand, has a 13MP main shooter also with 4K and 1080p recording at 120fps, so it is not to be underestimated. On the front, the two cameras of the two smartphones are identical, in terms of resolution. All in all, the OnePlus 2’s rear camera has a higher resolution but the iPhone’s more tested photo quality can be tough to beat.
Performance
This is where the good stuff begins. On the one hand, we’ve got the OnePlus 2, which runs with a Qualcomm MSM8994 Snapdragon 810 chipset and a Quad-core 1.56 GHz Cortex-A53 & Quad-core 1.82 GHz Cortex-A57 CPU.
And on the other, there is the iPhone 6S Plus, which is equipped with the Apple A9 Dual-core 2 GHz processor. Now, the numbers may seem to be on the OnePlus 2’s side but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
It has been known for a long time now, that Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 810 chipset shows some serious overheating issues. So while it may have more cores – which would make it better suited for multitasking – you never know when and if it could start getting hot- and not in a sneaky way.
Apple, though, has proven in the past that what its processors lack in GHz and cores, they make up to it with their high-end architecture and design.
Design
The design of a smartphone usually follows the trends of its time, but for the most part, this field is highly subjective. “What one may love, another may hate”.
However, there are some certain guidelines that can give you a pretty good idea of how practical or beautiful a smartphone is, according to the majority of consumers.
With the iPhone 6S Plus, there’s nothing new to expect. Sure, it’s an elegant and classy phone that provides prestige to the owner, but it has the same design with the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 6S.
The only things that change are the size, the materials (the iPhones 6S and 6S Plus have both been built from a new 7000-series aluminium alloy) and a few new available colours that have been added. The customer now can choose between space gray, silver, gold and rose gold.
Turning to the OnePlus 2 though, we see a markedly different device. With a rectangular shape, this smartphone is surrounded by a metal case heavy enough so that it feels like a legit solid rock. It also has a few more buttons here and there than the 6S Plus, that allow the user to perform tasks in less time.
But the biggest difference that makes the OnePlus 2 stand out, is the back cover which is sandstone-like. Rough to the touch and for some less fancy, but besides the extra protection it also adds a bit more personality.
Software
Much like the performance and the technical features, comparing the operating systems of two devices is tough as well. And the reason why, is because two different operating systems can be built for totally different reasons. But we’ll give it a try anyway.
The iPhone 6S Plus runs with Apple’s new iOS 9, which admittedly offers some neat new features which make it a lot better than its predecessor, the iOS 8. And more than that, it is surprisingly easy to use, even for seniors, or inexperienced users.
All the above apply to the exact opposite degree, to the OnePlus 2 running with Google’s OS, the Android Lollipop. This one is an operating system that allows the users to interfere at any degree they wish, hence making things a lot more sophisticated for those who are not that familiar with the fast growing world of technology.
Battery
The battery is your smartphone’s source of life. So you better make sure that it can keep your phone alive at least until the end on the day, according to the tasks you perform with your device. Neither one of the two companies has given all the details on their smartphones’ batteries, but what we know is enough.
The OnePlus 2 has a non-removable Li-Po 3300mAh battery. This could be more than enough to get you through the day. That is of course unless the Snapdragon 810 chipset starts overheating, which means the processor could consume multiple amounts of energy.
As for the 6S Plus, it is equipped with a non-removable Li-Po 2915mAh battery which is not far from its rival’s battery. And given that the Apple A9 processor runs fast and smooth, it could even turn out to be more than enough comparing to the OnePlus 2.
Price
Price is one thing the OnePlus 2 really has going on in its favour. Entrance price is actually $329. That is ridiculously cheap considering that this is a flagship smartphone we’re talking about. Unfortunately, that’s not the end of it. The catch is that the purchase is available via invite only.
The iPhone 6S Plus costs almost double that price ($649) but that’s no surprise with Apple now, is it? At least you won’t need an invite with this one.
The Verdict
To sum things up, those are both notable smartphones with great performance and impressive features.
Combining that with the price and availability here’s what comes out: If you like to stay in fashion and don’t mind to give a little more money in order to get a premium phone, then stop thinking about it and go for the iPhone 6S Plus.
If on the other hand, you’re on the search for a powerful smartphone that is available at a considerable price, then you should probably start searching where you could get an invitation to buy the OnePlus 2.
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