The Chinese smartphone manufacturer OnePlus has presented a groundbreaking concept. An experimental variant of the popular OnePlus 8T features a color-changing back. The company also adds a so-called mmWave sensor. This offers a practical gesture control.
Exciting additional features
The concept is not a completely new smartphone from OnePlus. Instead, the manufacturer has more or less upgraded its OnePlus 8T. The exciting additional features concern the back side on the one hand and the control of the device on the other. The so-called OnePlus 8T Concept features an unprecedented decoration on the back. It is supposed to be able to change its color. According to the company, it uses a color-changing film to make this possible. The back contains metal oxide in glass. Depending on the voltage in the device, the contained ions then shine between the colors silver and dark blue.
Why the color change?
The color change is not only intended to look cool, but also to fulfill a practical aspect. For example, the signals are supposed to make it clear that a message has just come in or someone is trying to call you. Of course, only practical aspects come into play with the exciting mmWave sensor. After all, you will hardly be able to detect it. The millimeter wave sensor is supposed to be placed in the camera module on the back of the OnePlus 8T Concept. The smartphone will be controlled contactlessly with the help of the modern sensor. According to the manufacturer, the user will be able to accept calls with the hand above the sensor, for example.
The gesture control might look familiar to some. For example, the Pixel 4 offered a similar technology. This was made possible in Google’s in-house smartphone by the radar chip Soli. In the meantime, however, the company has abandoned this control option. This is hardly surprising. After all, gesture controls are rarely used. But not only gesture control is supposed to be possible with the new sensor. It should also be able to measure the user’s breathing. However, we do not yet know how this will work in practice. OnePlus has not yet commented on this in more detail.
The market launch is still unclear
Those who want a powerful smartphone from OnePlus can use the OnePlus 8T since October 2020. In our review from October, this one bagged a Gold Award. Since the smartphone is still fresh on the market, the concept version will use the same innards. Besides a Snapdragon 865 from Qualcomm, 8 or 12 GB of RAM are also available. The positive overall picture is rounded off by a refresh rate of 120 hertz. The tried-and-tested quad camera is still supposed to ensure great photos. This consists of a main camera with 48 MP, an ultra-wide-angle with 16 MP, a macro lens with 5 MP and a monochrome camera with 2 MP.
Price and availability
The OnePlus 8T came with an MSRP of 600 euros at market launch. However, there are still many question marks surrounding the price and availability of the concept version. First and foremost, we have to wonder whether the redesigned smartphone will be launched at all. After all, it has already been seen in the past that OnePlus does not necessarily make concept devices available for the end customer. The most famous example is probably the manufacturer’s Concept One.
