OnePlus 13 30-day review: still a disappointment



Time for my OnePlus 13 review! I know a lot of people have great things to say about the new OnePlus 13, but I have a few issues with the phone that will keep me from recommending it to those looking for a true flagship device. The compromises made to deliver a phone at this price might mean you’ll be looking for a different smartphone this year.

Will you be buying the Oneplus 13?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_JYJoDYELU

Check out my Oneplus 13 versus Pixel 9 Pro XL camera comparison
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_JYJoDYELU

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48 thoughts on “OnePlus 13 30-day review: still a disappointment”

  1. Extremely confusing video. You say it has excellent durability, excellent performance, excellent battery life, excellent charging, that its inexpensive ($799 if you click one button), said it feels great in the hand, said the software was a huge improvement and the cameras take great photos except for the telephoto lens. And then the title of your video is "still a disappointment". Where is the disappointment? And what device do you think is better at $799?

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  2. PSA: DO NOT BUY THIS PHONE IF YOU USE VERIZON IN THE USA.

    Out of the box this phone has an issue preventing you from making outgoing phone calls. It defaults into going into real-time text (RTT) which forces the phone into a text mode and the people you call either have to have an rtt device or go into rtt mode on their phones. Most people don't know how to do this. I didn't before getting the OnePlus phone and being forced into this mode. I literally never knew this was an option.

    The other issue is with visual voicemail. Setting this up on the OnePlus 13 has been an ongoing nightmare since I've had the device. OnePlus refuses to help and Verizon doesn't know how to. Ironically, the accidentally fixed it one night, but subsequent troubleshooting for other issues destroyed the voicemail setup and they don't know how to get it back.

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  3. Sticking with the 12 over the 13. Seems like the 12 is better than the 13 at 3x, and in the same class at ultrawide and wide. Selfie definitely gets an upgrade with the 13, but I personally don't take many photos with the front facing camera. Performance and battery life go from really good to great, but I've never been disappointed in either on my 12.

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  4. I like the OnePlus 13! I think at all aspects, it's a way better phone than most that's out on the market and could potentially be better than some upcoming flagships this year. Camera could be better, but it's not bad. I love Oxygen OS!

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  5. To me, the OP13 is an all arounder device at a competitive price. It doesn't make sense to compare the cameras to Vivo/Xiaomi flagships as those cost way more. Oppo Find X8 Pro has literally the same camera system plus a mediocre 6X zoom lens. OP13 has even better selfie and ultrawide cameras than Vivo X200 Pro. Sure, it has a slightly worse main and much worse zoom camera, but extreme zoom or macro shots are not that useful for most people. What the OP13 does provide is a great display, great battery (S25U will not have similar battery life even with SD 8 Elite due to 1000 mah smaller battery), fast charging, flagship chip, competent cameras, and a smooth software experience, all while costing less than a base iPhone 16 or similar to base Pixel 9 in Canada. Hard to be disappointed with that

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  6. I get it, in the sea of reviews on YT praising this phone, it probably pays dividend to see a review with contrarian view to get people to click. To that I say you succeeded, but to make this as objective as possible, you need to build a better case to call this a disappointment rather than just saying the 3x zoom is weak, their wireless charging decision on past phones and the potential future to come up with a conclusion that this is not even close to being phone of the year. The way this review comes off now it's incredibly bias without any substantive points. You probably not a pay shill from other companies but your review sure does come off like one.

    For reference check out Juan Bagwell's review to see what a proper less bias review looks like .

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  7. Coming from Pixels and Ultras, I grabbed the OnePlus Open and I think that experience was awesome. I used that and the 9 Pro XL, then sold those for the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. I can't wait to go back to OnePlus, I need that charging speed again.

    Trading in my 9 Pro Fold for the OnePlus 13, then trading that in for the Open 2.

    I miss the camera, battery life and charging, smooth software, customization, and better multitasking features.

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  8. This phone has a lot of upgrades compared to the 12 and its still a disappointment? This is not a review. This is mostly click-bait, clout engaging video. I guess it's hard to gain subscribers these days.

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  9. This video is not meant for the North America audience or market, as we don't have access to those phones with better cameras that support the NA market. Even those phones cut corners to pander to the market they want to sell for.

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  10. I feel like you spent 95% of the video praising the phone and but because it's got a 3x zoom instead of 3.5x it's a disappointment? Total clickbait title and reported as such.

    First video of yours I've watched and it's definitely the last. Very shoddy.

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  11. What kind of video is this? After saying all those positive things about the phone you also don't like it? How your video got on my recommendations I don't know. Definitely won't watch another video by you.

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  12. Nick, this was not a great take all things considered. The title is clearly clickbait and despite everything, if you're leading with "disappointment", you need to back that up. As you said, you have the credentials but this was a miss from you (which, I admit, is rare as over the years you've done great). Not sure why this was the lead but nevertheless.

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  13. Thanks for the great review.
    The review suggests overwhelmingly positives about the phone, all things considered.
    The click bait title is, unfortunate and doesn't do your channel justice

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  14. I understand that it is a competitive market for reviewers.
    With that said the OnePlus 13 is a really good phone. I'm past with any of the biggest names phones. Price and battery life is were this phone excels and beats the other phones. Everything else is really good. For $900 to get a 16gb ram 512gb storage with 2 day battery and phone charging from 0 to 100 in less than 40 minutes is amazing. I'm sure to get the same level of internal specs from Samsung, Apple or Google a consumer will have to pay an additional $400+ more. That alone makes the phone amazing.

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  15. Yes I do own the OnePlus 12 and love the phone. Actually, it's the only phone I've liked this much since LG's G series and V series phones. iPhones and Samsungs just don't do it for me. They've always been overpriced also.

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  16. Every reviewer has a problem with the camera but I still to this day get compliments about pictures on my 7T and that's a 2019 phone. I just feel like there is some bias towards the bigger brands

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  17. The phone only makes sense in the US' s market. In canada is almost close to 1400 ca. It brings you to quite close to galaxy flagship. Oneplus have to figure it out, every year they are raising the price of their phone. The 12 cheaper. It is a great phone with smooth software. I also dont like the camera island look in the 13, sure the phone is premium, but it still looks like a typical chinese phone like poco and xiomi. They have to build their own design just like pixel , samsung and iphone.

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  18. I am not sure why whenever people critique a phone, it’s taken as a personal critique. No phone is perfect. Thank you for the review, pointing out the highlights and area for improvement with the camera. I’m sure it takes quite a bit of time to make these, and they are helpful.

    Reply

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