OnePlus 13 launch confirmed – coming much earlier than usual

OnePlus' flagship phone will likely come with an industry first

OnePlus 12 in three colours
(Image credit: OnePlus)
Quick Summary

OnePlus' president has confirmed that the company's next flagship phone will launch in October.

It'll be available first in China but is likely to be launched globally a couple of months' later and therefore before the end of the year.

For many years, OnePlus has traditionally launched its latest flagship in China in December but is changing the script for its latest.

The OnePlus 13 will be unveiled in the company's homeland in October, it has confirmed, which could mean we'll get it in the UK and US before the end of the year.

Posting on his Weibo page, OnePlus' president, Li Jie Louis, revealed that the replacement for its best phone will be " released next month". It will also sport "the latest generation of flagship chips".

That's thought to be the currently unannounced Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 4, which will also be made official in October. The timing is no coincidence and it's almost certain that the OnePlus 13 will be the first phone to market on that platform.

"This flagship chip, combined with OnePlus' exclusive technology, not only represents the strongest performance, but also has many exclusive experiences," Li Jie wrote (as translated by Google).

"On the new OnePlus flagship, you will experience unprecedented performance charm."

Previous rumours have suggested that the OnePlus 13 will gain a massive camera boost, with a similar system to the superb cam on the rear of the Oppo Find X7 Ultra.

We took that phone to the Champions League Final earlier this year and were very impressed by the Hasselblad optics and software it uses. Sadly, the Find X7 Ultra will never make it to the UK, so it's likely the first time Brits will be able to experience similar photo performance is in the new OnePlus.

It's also claimed that the phone will have a fairly significant design change, with the rear camera module swapping from a circular form to a squared-off aesthetic.

Whichever it turns out to be, we won't have too long to wait thanks to the release scheduled being move forward a couple of months.

T3, as always, will be on hand to bring you all the launch announcements and news as it happens.

Rik Henderson
News Editor

Rik is T3’s news editor, which means he looks after the news team and the up-to-the-minute coverage of all the hottest gadgets and products you’ll definitely want to read about. And, with more than 35 years of experience in tech and entertainment journalism, including editing and writing for numerous websites, magazines, and newspapers, he’s always got an eye on the next big thing.

Rik also has extensive knowledge of AV, TV streaming and smart home kit, plus just about everything to do with games since the late 80s. Prior to T3, he spent 13 years at Pocket-lint heading up its news team, and was a TV producer and presenter on such shows as Channel 4's GamesMaster, plus Sky's Games World, Game Over, and Virtual World of Sport.