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OnePlus launched the OnePlus 12 in China on December 5 , 2023 . On January 23 , OnePlus will plunge the OnePlus 12 and the lower - priced OnePlus 12R globally , include in the U.S. And it ’s time to bug out pay back excited about that .

OnePlus has establish itself as one of the bigger names in the smartphone humans , and 2023 was an especially promising class for the company . Last year’sOnePlus 11was a solid selection , and theOnePlus Open — the mark ’s first foldaway — was one of the best folding earphone I ’ve ever try .

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald held in hand in sunlight.

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I recently got my paw on the OnePlus 12 , and while I ca n’t review the phone or show you the softwarequiteyet , I can sing about the hardware . And that ’s perfectly fine , because there ’s a lot to talk about .

Solid and premium build

The frame of the OnePlus 12 is made with Al alloy and glass . Despite using aluminium , the OnePlus 12 feels quite respectable and has a solid , insurance premium feel when combined with the Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 that add together enduringness .

I was air the Flowy Emerald people of color , which is a beautiful shade of green with a silver play when easy reach it . The back glass has a frosted , mat finish that does n’t really attract too many fingerprint and smudges , which is endearing . The OnePlus logo is engrave properly into the middle of the rearward glass . In the Flowy Emerald gloss , there are glum unripe “ marbling ” lines that make it take care reminiscent of rude stone or quartz . I love how the green see , and it ’s decidedly a fun color compare to what most other competitors offer .

Though I love how the back glass attend on the Flowy Emerald unit , I must admit that it can finger a petty slippery to hold , at least for me . It ’s plausibly due to the frosty finish on the glass . If you ’re paranoid about dropping it , I ’d recommend getting a caseful , though the market for OnePlus cases is significantly smaller than it is for , say , iPhone cases .

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald camera module showing subtle shimmer.

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The treble - genus Lens camera array is in the same place as before on the OnePlus 11 . However , it has better lenses , and the mental faculty is now color - match to the residue of the torso . Rather than have the full “ Hasselblad ” branding in the center of the module , it just shows Hasselblad ’s “ H ” logo on the left side . unsubdivided and unclouded .

I really love that OnePlus decided to make the photographic camera module match the consistence coloring of the earphone rather than go with black again , which stuck out like a sore pollex on the OnePlus 11 . There ’s also a hunky-dory little contingent I love about the Flowy Emerald color in particular : there are shimmery flatware jot in the camera raiment . It ’s a subtle piffling particular that you ’ll only notice in the right light and and at the proper angle , but it ’s one I appreciate . Can more phones have shimmer in them , please ?

The anatomy is aluminum , but it does n’t seem the part . Instead , it has a polished face that would make you remember it was stainless steel . But this also means that the frame itself is prone to fingerprints and smudge , but they ’re easy to pass over away . Most of the frame is curved and rounded , but there are flat edge on the top and bottom .

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald showing rear glass and camera module.

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The display has arc edges that extend a fleck into the chassis . This leave to thin bezels on the side edges , but the top and bottom bezels are slightly thicker since those do n’t unfold into the frame . Regardless , the curving bound of the presentation help offer a more immersive experience .

All hail the alert slider

One of the most unique things about OnePlus devices is thealert slider . This little toggle has a textured pattern on it for tactility and leave substance abuser to easy switch between ring , vibrate , and understood modality .

Though theOnePlus 10Tlacked the rattling skidder , OnePlus brought it back on the OnePlus 11 . However , to differentiate the OnePlus 12 from its predecessor , the snappy slider is now on the left-hand side of the speech sound rather of the right hand . This means the alert skidder is now on the opposite side of the volume and quietus / wake buttons .

While not everyone may like the position modification of the alert yellow-bellied terrapin , I think it works well and brings a bit of balance to the usable button and toggle . It would seem too one - side if everything was on the right side , so having it on the odd kind of balance it out . It also should n’t be that surprising , look at that ’s how the alert slider and buttons are on the OnePlus Open when it ’s full open .

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald laying flat on table.

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A solid start for 2024

The OnePlus 12 is going to be one of the first majorAndroid phonereleases for 2024 , and it ’s a good start . The hardware for the OnePlus 12 feel exceptionally premium , despite only being aluminum alloy and looking glass .

The OnePlus 12 in the Flowy Emerald color is in spades the one to get , as it is simply gorgeous to lay eyes on . In a sea of mostly boring smartphone colouring , Flowy Emerald stands out , especially with that shimmer in the photographic camera faculty . But if green is n’t your colour , there is also a Silky fateful people of colour . Unfortunately , it does n’t look like the white color that launched in China will be available in the U.S.

And that ’s just the pattern ! The OnePlus 12 also has alotof promising specification — let in a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 CPU , a 6.8 - in AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate , and Android 14 useable aright out of the box . There ’s also 80 - watt pumped charging , 50W wireless charging , and a triple photographic camera system with a 50MP main detector , 64MP telephotograph camera with 3x rapid climb , and a 48MP ultrawide camera . You ’ll need to wait for the full review to make love how all of these things do , but at least on paper , it soundsverypromising .

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald showing volume and power buttons.

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What about the cost ? That ’s also not something we can mouth about , but considering past OnePlus devices , expect it to be quite a bit chinchy than competing phone like theSamsung Galaxy S23 UltraandGoogle Pixel 8 Pro .

We ’ll be putting the OnePlus 12 through more rigorous testing in the next few week ahead of a full review , so stay tuned for more coverage coming shortly .

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald showing flat top edge.

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OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald showing flat bottom edge.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald showing alert slider on frame.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

OnePlus 12 in Flowy Emerald laying flat on table showing alert slider side.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends