First impressions are good. It comes in a white cardboard box with the inscription “7 Pro” at the top, indicating the model in question and the name on the sides. At the bottom, there are several data of the phone (all of these in Chinese). This version does not include the CE logo (European Conformity), which indicates that it meets the legal and technical minimums in terms of European safety to market. However, it will be included in the Global version.
As we open it, we see a red box. Inside it is an instruction guide, the key to open the SIM card slot, and a transparent TPU case.
Below, we find the terminal wrapped in a small plastic case. When removing it, there is the Chinese Warp Charge 30W 5V and 6A maximum charger and the 1 meter long USB to micro USB type C cable in red. Both are protected by a piece of paper indicating what each thing is.
Design and Screen
This new terminal changes the aesthetics a bit concerning what OnePlus had us used to, taking a risk with a model without a notch (tab for the camera) or holes on the screen. It is an “infinity” or “all-screen” terminal with skinny margins or frames and a curved screen. This makes its useful surface rise to 88%.
But what is most impressive is its enormous size. It is 75.9mm wide, 162.6mm tall, and 8.8mm thick, making its weight 205g. In addition, it is made of aluminum, providing more excellent resistance. It does not have any water resistance certification, so it is not recommended to submerge it.
There are several colours (black, blue and gold) but not for all versions. In this case, there is only the shiny gray model for our 6GB/128GB version (but it is beautiful). The only drawback is that fingerprints are very quickly marked.
As for the quality of the screen, this OnePlus 7 Pro mounts a 6.67″ Fluid Amoled panel manufactured by Samsung with a 90Hz refresh rate so that the screen gestures will be faster. The resolution increases a bit, being 1440 x 3120 pixels WQHD + and a density of pixels per inch of 515 PPI. It is a rounded screen at the corners and has 3D glass with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection. The aspect ratio remains at 19.5: 9.
The 90Hz refresh rate is noticeable in part of the system, on a very smooth display, but we will not have this refresh rate in all games and applications, and it will increase the use of the battery. Oxygen limits the refresh to 90Hz for some applications, leaving the rest at 60Hz, and according to a post by XDA-Developers, it can be forced to work at 90Hz constantly
Perhaps many do not like that the screen is curved because the covers do not protect the edges well, or the tempered glass does not adhere well; for this reason, there is a liquid called Nano Hi-Tech that solidifies on contact with it, and that can give it a little more strength. (I have not personally tested this liquid, but it can be an excellent alternative to tempered glass).
The screen quality is excellent. The colours are intense, including black colours. In addition, it has HDR10 + support for higher image quality. The brightness is maintained at 800 cd/m2. On rare occasions, we will need to strain our eyes since the intuitive intelligence adapts very well to the light conditions (including at night when the minimum brightness is fantastic). As in other devices, it also allows you to calibrate its colour to adapt it to different conditions, such as night mode or reading mode.
Software
This OnePlus 7 Pro comes with Android 9 Pie under the Oxygen OS customization layer (9.5.12), updatable via OTA (automatic update via notification). This update is practically instantaneous on almost all devices. Still, if it doesn’t arrive or we don’t want to wait, we can download the Oxygen Updater application that allows us to update to the latest version of the operating system.
It is a modified version of Android created by a community focused on developing this operating system, bringing the best features and functionalities.
It incorporates Google services and ultimately comes free of annoying apps. It includes the Google Play app store, YouTube, Chrome, Maps, and Gmail… and it also adds some of OnePlus’ own apps such as Community, File Manager, Weather and “Switch to OnePlus,” which can be uninstalled without difficulty.
But in its main settings menu, it brings more things:
- The WiFi and Internet section brings the option to share WiFi, use a VPN or even add a private DNS. Perhaps these options are not oriented for everyone, but they are functions that do not bother and that some users appreciate. In the screen option, we find different modes for its lighting. In addition to the opportunity to calibrate the colour, the resolution changes dynamically, and the possibility that most attracts attention: is the 90Hz screen refresh rate. This last function will look better and give us a feeling of a faster response.
- On the other hand, in the sound and vibration section, we have integrated the Dobly Atmos application and technology that allows a better stereo sound and could be likened to an equalizer.
- We have the option of buttons and gestures to configure Google’s voice assistant in our way, which is deactivated by default.
As for security and lock, it has a fingerprint reader on the screen, which works very well and in which up to 5 fingerprints can be added. It also has high-speed facial recognition (even without light), even if we do not use sunglasses. Facial unlocking is very fast, even though the front camera has to come out of the chassis to detect our faces.
Power and Hardware
This phone is the most powerful device from OnePlus. Still, to get an idea and be able to compare it with other terminals on the market, we have subjected it to the AnTuTu Benchmark v7 performance test, achieving a score of 369,433. This figure is one of the highest, and if we compare it with the official list, we see that it can reach first place.
This phone has the best processor on the market, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 8-core Kryo, with a maximum speed of 2.84GHz. It is a chip with 64-bit architecture and a Qualcomm Adreno 640 GPU graphics card, widely used by high-end phones.
Features for games
This phone is also designed for most gamers. Therefore, it incorporates a liquid temperature sink inside. In addition, this OnePlus 7 Pro features a new vibration system that works well and is very reminiscent of the methods used in console controls. It also has an excellent screen quality with HDR10 + technology and a Dolby Atmos stereo speaker for better playability.
The operation is unbeatable, and there are no delays or signs of “lag” (neither playing nor when changing applications). After playing 40 minutes of PUBG Mobile and Fortnite, the processor has gone from 28.4ºC to 39.5ºC.