The OnePlus 15 launched today in China. However, I’ve been testing the phone for a while now, and whilst you’ll still have to wait for a full review, there’s something I can share with you right now: the photos I captured on this device. Think of this as your sneak peek before the deep dive.
In September, OnePlus co-founder Pete Lau officially announced their departure from Hasselblad branding for the OnePlus 15, bringing their own DetailMax Engine into the picture instead. According to official OnePlus announcements, the camera setup features a triple 50-megapixel configuration, a telephoto delivering 3.5x optical zoom, and an ultrawide sensor. These are the cameras that captured everything you’re about to see.
Photos we took on the OnePlus 15 cameras
What you’re looking at below is unedited – no filters, no editing. Just raw output from those sensors. Please note that I will save my analyses, impressions, and thoughts for the full review, so stay tuned for that. This article only aims to showcase the images that were Shot on the OnePlus 15.
Taking a dekko at what I captured over several days of testing. The device went through various scenarios and lighting conditions, from bright daylight to trickier indoor situations and evening shots. The camera details main Sony LYT-700 sensor opens up to f/1.6. The telephoto sits at 85mm equivalent with 3.5x optical zoom. The ultra wide spans that 120-degree field of view.
The main camera handled most of what I shot. Telephoto came into play for tighter compositions. Ultrawide when I needed that broader perspective. Some shots came from auto mode, others saw the camera kick in computational processing on its own depending on what the lighting demanded.
What you’re looking at is output from OnePlus’ DetailMax Engine on the OnePlus 15, their computational photography system making its debut with this device. Since I am still in my initial stage of testing the cameras, I cannot share my thoughts on them yet. I am curious to know what you folks think about the photos above?
What’s under the hood
The OnePlus 15 made its debut in China, and the specs below reflect that launch. It’s worth noting that global variants typically see some differences once they arrive stateside.
Running the show is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, built on a 3nm process with Oryon CPU cores reaching 4.6GHz. Memory options span from 12GB/256GB up to 16GB/1TB with UFS 4.1 storage, though that top-tier 1TB configuration will likely stay exclusive to China, but we don’t know yet.
OnePlus 15’s attery life gets a serious boost with OnePlus’ confirmed 7,300mAh cell; their largest ever, jumping up from the OnePlus 13‘s 6,000mAh. Charging comes via 120W wired and 50W wireless. As confirmed by OnePlus, the 6.78-inch display pushes 165Hz, with OnePlus claiming 13% brighter and 11.8% more accurate colors versus the OnePlus 13. The BOE-manufactured LTPO panel features 1.15mm bezels all around, an Oppo P3 chip handling response times, and hardware-level 1 nit minimum brightness certified by TÜV Rheinland. The panel also promises 10% lower power consumption and 30% longer lifespan compared to last generation.
On the design front, OnePlus abandoned the circular camera island for a rectangular module instead. The beloved alert slider’s gone as well, making way for a customizable “Plus Key” that can trigger different functions – launching apps, firing the camera shutter, whatever you program it to do. ColorOS 15 based on Android 16 powers the device in China, coming in Misty Purple, Original Sand Dune, and Absolute Black. The Sand Storm edition brings aerospace-grade micro-arc oxidation to the frame.
Other bits worth mentioning: IP69K dust and water resistance, ultrasonic under-screen fingerprint reader, and USB 3.2 Gen1 connectivity are all parts of the package, as demoed in the China launch.
Coming to North America & the world
OnePlus 15 global launch appears imminent based on usual OnePlus trends. Global units will likely swap ColorOS 15 for OxygenOS 16, and there might be some spec variations from what launched in China based on regional needs. There of course are plenty of rumours and leaks, but only time will tell what’s real.
Stay tuned as we will share more coverage, and our review once the device touches down globally.
