There’s a new foldable smartphone coming to town and before you roll your eyes, we would like to tell you that it wears the OnePlus badge. Do we have your attention?
Assuming it’s a yes, let’s discuss the upcoming OnePlus Open. OnePlus’ foray into the foldable smartphone segment is a colossal deal for the tech community and we won’t rest our case on just the Hasselblad-branded cameras. Rather, OnePlus will be ending Samsung’s monopoly in the big book-style foldable smartphone segment with a product that seems to leave no stone unturned. For years, OnePlus has been challenging Samsung’s Galaxy S series flagships with insane specs and premium designs without asking for a fortune. Now, with its first foldable smartphone, we expect nothing less than a revolution in the folding smartphone space.
But it’s not easy to dethrone a behemoth like Samsung, especially in 2023. We got a chance to check out the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 a few months ago and it left us impressed. More than its sheer magnificence, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 got our attention with its finesse and the infinite possibilities to multitask. Samsung’s advantage in software development shines brightly here, offering an unmatched smartphone experience.
Hence, before two of the industry’s biggest names lock horns in the fight to assert dominance in the foldable category, let us do a typical Augustman-style comparison between the OnePlus Open vs Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and try to find out if we have a clear winner.
OnePlus Open vs Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5
Design
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is all about sticking to traditions and for us, that isn’t a bad idea. In its folded state, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is slimmer than most smartphones, offering a large 6.3-inch cover display with a narrow aspect ratio. This allows an easier in-hand grip. A reliable and steady hinge system allows users to unfold the larger 7.6-inch 120Hz AMOLED display that even houses a 4-megapixel under-display camera! The rear wears an elegant look inspired by the Galaxy S23 series, flaunting matte glass in a couple of beautiful colours.
The OnePlus Open, on the other hand, seems to be going for a luxurious design theme. It tries to imitate a conventional OnePlus device when closed, presenting a 6.3-inch OLED cover display. When unfolded, the OnePlus Open will offer a larger 7.8-inch main display and rumours suggest that OnePlus is bent on avoiding the infamous crease that current foldable phones have to suffer. The rear of the phone will be an even bigger attention magnet primarily due to the huge circular camera hump with a Hasselblad logo stamped on it.
As if that wasn’t enough, the leaked renders reveal that OnePlus will offer a vegan leather finish for the black variant.
Winner: OnePlus Open
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Display
Based on the leaks alone, the OnePlus Open seems to be having an edge over the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 with its display. While both smartphones feature a 6.3-inch cover display, the OnePlus Open’s wider aspect ratio allows it to be more practical. Once unfolded, the OnePlus Open also tends to offer a larger main display at 7.8 inches to the Galaxy Z Fold 5’s 7.6 inches. Moreover, OnePlus is also rumoured to reduce the crease and that tends to give an advantage to the Open.
However, the Galaxy Z Fold 5’s display has an in-display front camera that can be hidden out of plain sight for a more immersive experience. Moreover, Samsung’s display panels are of the highest quality, offering a combination of great colours and high contrasts.
For us then, both of these phones score high and we call it a draw here.
Winner: Tie
Performance
Based on the rumoured OnePlus Open specifications, the mighty capable and power-efficient Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset will power the phone and coupled with a slick OxygenOS interface, we expect the device to perform like a champion. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is also based on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 platform, but Samsung uses an overclocked version of the chip. Paired with Samsung’s highly versatile OneUI 5.1 interface based on Android 13, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is a cellular powerhouse for multitaskers and creators alike.
While we are yet to see what OnePlus does with its software, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 5 aces the game with its insane levels of customisation and versatility. You can run up to four apps simultaneously in separate windows and even do a ‘drag-and-drop’ with files! Samsung also gets you a taskbar to quickly access background apps and adapts most apps natively to the main display’s wider aspect ratio. You can even use an S Pen stylus to draw or scribble on the main display. The icing on the cake is Samsung’s commitment to provide four Android OS updates and five years of security patches.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5
Cameras
This is one area where OnePlus could decimate the Galaxy Z Fold 5 if it manages to implement everything just right.
For the Galaxy Z Fold 5, Samsung chose to stick to a rather conventional combination of a 50-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera and a 10-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. This camera setup will be good for most people but enthusiasts seeking the best experience won’t be happy.
OnePlus seems to appeal to people with its Hasselblad-tuned triple rear camera system. Rumours suggest that the OnePlus Open could feature a 48-megapixel Sony sensor for the main camera, another 48-megapixel sensor for the ultra-wide camera and a 64-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. This setup looks to be a winning recipe (at least on paper) and OnePlus could end up offering the complete flagship smartphone experience on a foldable smartphone on a global scale.
Winner: OnePlus Open
Battery
It’s often difficult to pack in a huge battery capacity in a folding phone but these book-style foldable smartphones surprisingly last long. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 with its 4400mAh battery surprised us by consistently delivering an all-day battery stamina and even left some for the next day. Sadly, the 25W charging on the Fold 5 took around an hour to fill up the battery.
This is where the OnePlus Open is expected to shine. According to the grapevine, the OnePlus Open could pack in a bigger 4,800mAh battery that could ensure longer stamina. It is also expected to offer a much faster 67W wired charging solution, just like the more modern flagship Android smartphones of today.
Winner: OnePlus Open
OnePlus Open vs Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5: The verdict
After a thorough comparison of the OnePlus vs Samsung contest, the OnePlus Open seems to emerge as the winner. On paper, it seems to be doing everything that the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 does but only more practical. It has a larger main display, a bigger capacity battery and a much faster charging solution. However, you must keep in mind that the OnePlus Open’s review is based on speculations and until the phone is launched, it would be unfair to give it the crown. Additionally, smartphones with more of everything may not provide a better experience than those having less. It all boils down to the software design and tuning in the end.
Hence, if you are willing to upgrade to a foldable smartphone this festive season, it would be wise to wait for the OnePlus Open. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5, on the other hand, is currently the nicest foldable smartphone to own. Its software experience is unprecedented and the rest of the package makes for a super immersive smartphone experience. For now, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is our top recommendation.
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(Hero and Featured Image Credits: Courtesy Amritanshu Mukherjee / Augustman)
