Towards the end of 2017 — mid-November to be precise — OnePlus launched the OnePlus 5T. Several months later, the company has brought to the market its latest flagship phone OnePlus 6. This is a phone that is a thoroughly 2018 phone, which in other words means it is a phone that comes with updated hardware and a few additional features that this hardware brings. But at the same time, even if it is different from the OnePlus 5T, it is also a phone that offers more of the same. And that is not a bad deal given how good is the OnePlus 5T.

We will have more to say about how the two phones compare, but for now here is a quick comparison to the OnePlus 6 with the OnePlus 5T, along with all the differences that it packs in.

Fresh design in OnePlus 6

The most significant difference between the OnePlus 6 and the OnePlus 5T is the design. Both the phones have very similar size — the only noticeable difference is that the OnePlus 5T is thinner by 0.4mm — but it is the material with which they have been built that is entirely different. While the OnePlus 5T is an all aluminium phone, the OnePlus 6 is mostly a phone made of glass, with the metal frame being only part that matches the same frame in the earlier OnePlus phone.

Due to glass, there is no doubt that the OnePlus 6 looks more premium and feels so jewel-like when you hold it in hands. While the OnePlus 5T distinctly looked like a phone under Rs 50,000 from design point of view, the OnePlus 6 matches the likes of the Galaxy S9 in terms of the premium factor. On a different note, it is also more slippery and prone to smudges than the OnePlus 5T because it’s all glass.

Talking of design, the OnePlus 6 comes with its rear camera module in the middle of the phone, and under the phone there is a squarish fingerprint sensor compared the round one in the OnePlus 5T. For all practical purposes, I don’t find the change any better or worse compared to the OnePlus 5T.

Another bit about the design, the OnePlus 6 is practically water resistant if you are not going to dunk it in a swimming pool. It should do fine with some water splashes, light rain, wet hands etc. And while OnePlus 5T too is said to have a similar design, OnePlus never claimed that it was resistant to water splashes. For the OnePlus 6, it does.

And finally, for design only, the OnePlus 6 comes in three different finishes (it’s glass). One is Midnight Black, then there is Mirror Black (very shiny and smooth) and there is the Silk White.

A 6.28-inch screen

The other big difference between the OnePlus 5T and the OnePlus 6 is the screen of the newer phone. While the 5T has a 6-inch screen, the OnePlus 6 gets a 6.28-inch AMOLED screen even if its overall size remains same. This is because the bezels are all gone from the OnePlus, except that chin at the bottom that is necessary due to placement of ports like USB C and headphone jack. The screen in terms of quality looks more or less similar to that of the 5T. Both show extremely vibrant colours and support DCI-P3, which is expanded colour space. And yes, the OnePlus 6 comes with slightly more resolution at 2280 x 1080 pixels, which actually doesn’t make any difference. The screen of the 5T is really good — made by Samsung, which also supplies screen for the OnePlus 6 — so there are no big practical differences between the 5T display and OnePlus 6.

Although it is worth noting that the OnePlus 6 comes with a notch, which helps give users a more immersive display because the screen extends from edge to edge. But then notch can also be an issue in videos, so you can use a default screen mode in apps to hide it, which essentially makes the OnePlus 6 screen almost same as the screen in the OnePlus 5T.

Faster processor in Snapdragon 845

If you see it on the paper, the OnePlus 6 is obviously a faster phone than the OnePlus 5T. But it’s fast in benchmarks. In actual use, both phones are speed demons. They are blazing fast. The OnePlus 6 uses Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 while the OnePlus 5T has the Snapdragon 835 inside it, but there is virtually no difference between the two phones in actual use right now, even if it can be said that the newer OnePlus phone is more future-proof device. The amount of RAM in both phones is same — up to 8GB — and storage too is same that is up to 128GB, except in the special Infinity Wars edition of the OnePlus 6 that comes with 256GB.

Speed of its phones is one of the strong aspects of OnePlus and because 5T was already so fast, most users will not even notice the additional milliseconds of responsiveness that the OnePlus 6 may offer when you are browsing through Facebook or applying a filter in Instagram.

Better camera hardware

Another major difference between the OnePlus 6 and the OnePlus 5T is the camera hardware. The rear camera in the OnePlus 6 not only comes with Sony-made IMX 519 image sensor that is 19 per cent bigger than the sensor in the OnePlus 5T, it also comes with the lens that has optical image stabilisation (OIS). However, right now I am not sure how much of difference this better hardware makes in real world conditions, as I am yet to try the OnePlus 6 thoroughly. But on paper it does offer the tantalising prospects of better low-light performance from OnePlus 6 compared to what the OnePlus 5T managed, and that phone wasn’t all that shabby.

The OnePlus 6 has a secondary camera that uses a 20-megapixel sensor. This is similar to what was there in the OnePlus 5T, and the same is true for the 16-megapixel front camera.

But in terms of camera features, the OnePlus 6 camera comes with some goodies. It can record 4K videos as well as slow-mo in up to 480FPS.

More storage

This is actually true for only the OnePlus 6 Avengers Infinity War edition. That comes with 256GB variant.

But not for OnePlus 5T users

By now you must have understood that even though the OnePlus 6 is a phone with new hardware and design, it is essentially a OnePlus phone that builds on the OnePlus 5T. There are no great surprises here. Yes, it comes with better hardware, including camera hardware, compare to what people got in the OnePlus 5T but in terms of actual use — the speed, the screen, even the camera — the differences are evolutionary. Surely, if you are buying a new OnePlus phone, you should get the OnePlus 6. But if you already have the OnePlus 5T keep loving that because in no way OnePlus 6 moves the needle significantly over it. And that is not because there is anything wrong with OnePlus 6. It’s just that OnePlus 5T is so good that you can wait for OnePlus 6T or OnePlus before you change the phone. Everyone else, please line up to get the OnePlus 6.