Has OnePlus, in October 2024, just announced one of the best smartphones of 2025? It is finta possible that this is the case, because OnePlus has officially launched the OnePlus 13.
Well, more or less. The OnePlus 13 is now available in China, although it will be a while before it arrives in the US and other parts of the world. Although it will probably be December or January before you and I get our hands on the OnePlus 13, it should be worth the wait. The OnePlus 13 already looks like one of the best phones of next year, and at the same time, it may have caused the untimely death of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely.
The OnePlus 13 looks fantastic
Okay, so the OnePlus 13 is official, but what's so special about it? I'll start with the {hardware}, which in my opinion is fantastic. I've been a fan of OnePlus' design for the past few years and the OnePlus 13 looks like a great evolution of the same. The round camera housing is cleaner and a little simpler than on the last two OnePlus flagships, the decorative line on the right is a nice touch and I'm happy to see the introduction of a flat frame.
The colors are equally fantastic. Secret Realm (aka the black option) has a gorgeous texture/pattern all over the back, Dew Daybreak (the white version) looks like a better version of the white OnePlus 12, and Blues Hour (the blue one, surprise) has a beautiful Navy blue color that contrasts beautifully with the silver circle on the camera. Even better, it has a leather finish instead of glass. Take my money right now.
Then there is the screen. As much as I like the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R, I'm not the biggest fan of their curved displays. Good news: the OnePlus 13 doesn't have one. Technically it has 2.5D curved glass on all four edges, but the curves appear to be far Less dramatic than the various curved sides of the OnePlus 12 series. The 6.82-inch size is a little larger than I'd like, but I prefer a flat screen. It also has all the specs you could ask for: an AMOLED panel, a 3168 x 1440 resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, and up to 4,500 nits of brightness.
Another thing that caught my attention is a small but important detail: the vibration motor. Good haptic feedback is, in my opinion, a critical, but often overlooked, aspect of many Android phones. OnePlus says the OnePlus 13 has the largest vibration motor ever used in an Android phone. Whether this is a high-quality engine remains to be seen, but it is nothing but encouraging.
And, of course, there are the specifications. The Snapdragon 8 Elite, which has already proven to be an incredibly fast chip, is here. There's also a massive 6,000mAh battery, 100W wired and 50W wireless charging, and 50MP triple cameras for the main/telephoto/ultrawide cameras. there is a batch you like it here.
What this means for the Galaxy S25 Extremista
Of course, we also expect the Galaxy S25 Extremista to meet many of these specifications. Samsung's flagship should also have the Snapdragon 8 Elite, a powerful camera setup and a large battery. But based on the S25 Extremista leaks we've seen so far, nothing surprises me.
Samsung seems to be sticking with the same design it has used since the Galaxy S22 Extremista, which is disappointing. Yes, OnePlus has also done more or less the same thing, but at least it has found interesting ways to change the camera design and constantly uses fun colors and materials. OnePlus 11, OnePlus 12, and OnePlus 13 look like they're part of the same family, but they still look like different phones. Samsung, not so much. The S25 Extremista looks like the exact same phone we've had since 2022, just with a flatter frame.
There is also no indication that Samsung will update its battery or charging technology next year. Rumors suggest that the Galaxy S25 Extremista will have a 5,000mAh battery and 45W charging, just like the Galaxy S24 Extremista. If true, that would leave the S25 Extremista with a 20% smaller battery and considerably slower charging speeds than the OnePlus 13. For some context, Samsung has offered 45W charging since the Galaxy S20 Extremista launched in 2020 .
Then there is the question of software. Neither OnePlus' OxygenOS nor Samsung's One UI are my preferred Android interfaces, but if I had to choose one, I'd choose OxygenOS. While it's certainly not perfect, I find OnePlus' software much easier to use and much less bloated than Samsung's. Both companies have big plans for their next major software updates, and while we haven't officially seen One UI 7 yet, our first look at OxygenOS 15 is promising.
Finally, there is the question of price. We don't know what the US prices will be for the OnePlus 13 or the Galaxy S25 Extremista, but based on their predecessors, OnePlus should have a pretty big lead. The OnePlus 12 costs $800, while the Galaxy S24 Extremista costs $1,300. Even if the OnePlus 13 gets a price increase, it should be considerably cheaper than the S25 Extremista and still match or beat it in almost every way.
The fight is already heating up
To be clear, don't take this as me completely ruling out Samsung in 2025. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremista is one of our best-reviewed phones this year; Of course, I'm interested to see how Samsung continues. I have yet to use the OnePlus 13 and need to wait and see how it performs in the positivo world.
However, based on the launch of the OnePlus 13 in China and the latest reports on the Galaxy S25 Extremista, I know which phone I'm most looking forward to using. Both should be among the most capable smartphones of next year, but OnePlus has my attention right now. Based on the design, screen, battery, charging, and more, I'm almost sold.
I hope Samsung surprises me and the S25 Extremista ends up being a phone that is impossible to ignore. But from where I stand now, it's the OnePlus 13 that I can't wait to get my hands on.
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