OnePlus 9RT hands-on review

from ₹ 42,999

Up close and personal with the latest OnePlus iterative upgrade

Sambit Satpathy | 14 Jan 2022 06:23 PM Share -

OnePlus kicked off 2022 with its 10 series, but that isn’t the first phone hitting the Indian market. The first new OnePlus phone for us is a flagship-grade device called the OnePlus 9RT.

We’ve spent a couple of days caressing it with our love and attention. Although this is not the final review, here are our first impressions of the OnePlus 9RT.

Design

This being an iterative upgrade, there’s nothing drastically different about the OnePlus 9RT’s design, and it looks like any of the 9 series devices. That said, the company has played around a bit with the colourway and finish.

There are two colours to choose from – Nano Silver and Hacker Black. We’ve got the latter for review, and it gets this silken glass-like finish. The back feels really smooth to touch, and OnePlus has added a bit of sheen to the surface which shines under the light. A combination of the glass front and the shiny back panel screams premium so we really don’t feel like hiding it inside the case that comes in the box.

Specs and features

There are quite a bit of upgrades under the hood. Starting with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chip which offers more processing power to handle day-to-day tasks, multitasking, and gaming with ease. It also manages to remain significantly cool under heavy load. We’ve played a couple of games, shot 4K videos, and even watched high-res content. Through thick and thin, the OnePlus 9RT remained as cool as Dhoni during a crunch match.

The 6.62in Fluid AMOLED screen up front looks good and sharp, and the 120Hz refresh rate makes everything super smooth. The touch sampling rate of 300Hz makes the whole experience even smoother, and it can be cranked up to a whopping 600Hz during gaming!

It’s too soon to comment on the battery life, but the 4,500mAh unit looks to be good enough to last an entire day. When you do need to juice it up, there’s 65W fast charging support.

Cameras

For photography, there’s a 50MP Sony IMX766 primary camera that has a larger sensor than the one found on the previous device. In essence, this should translate into brighter and sharper photos. We are waiting to try out the hi-res mode, which combines multiple shots from the 50MP camera to create a 108MP output.

Accompanying the primary lens is a 16MP ultra-wide camera, and a 2MP macro camera at the back. Up front for selfies and video calls, there’s a 16MP snapper.

Initial Verdict

In the little time that we’ve spent with the OnePlus 9RT, there’s a lot to like. The size and design make it comfortable to hold, and there’s more than enough power on offer for your gaming and other needs.

With prices starting from ₹42,999, the device faces a lot of competition from the likes of the recently launched Samsung Galaxy S21 FE. We will be putting the OnePlus 9RT through its paces in the coming days, so stay tuned for a more detailed review.

Specifications

Display: 6.62in FHD+ Fluid AMOLED, 20:9, 120Hz
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888
Battery: 4,500mAh Warp Charge 65T
Cameras: 50MP+16MP+2MP (rear) / 16MP (front)
OS: Android 11
Dimensions: 162.2 x 74.6 x 8.29 mm
Weight: 198.5g