OnePlus 15R Review: Hey premium flagships, R U seeing this?

The R has always been the slightly less privileged of the OnePlus flagship family. It has been the phone that is the affordable flagship, the one with a lower price tag, and generally with specs that are a step behind the proper flagships. However, at a time when flagship phone prices are shooting through the roof, the OnePlus 15R has suddenly emerged from the shadow of its pricier bro, offering close to premium flagship performance at a less-than-premium price. But can it be the flagship killer the market so needs in these times of pricey flagships?

OnePlus 15R Looks and Appearance: Again, very like a BIG OnePlus 13s…and that’s just fine!

When reviewing the OnePlus 15, we had remarked on how similar the phone was to the OnePlus 13s. Well, the OnePlus 15R is even more so, only on a much larger scale. It comes with the same tall, flat display with narrow bezels, a flat back with a rectangular camera unit with round edges (unlike the square-ish one on the OnePlus 15), and straight sides with a Plus key on the left side replacing the iconic volume rocker.

We got the Mint Breeze variant of the OnePlus 15R, whose light green shade made it look even more like a big brother of the OnePlus 13s, whose Green Silk variant we had reviewed. The phone is also available in a sober Charcoal Black and a really eye-catching and bright Electric Violet.

The OnePlus 15R is a big phone, and is actually larger than the OnePlus 15 – it is 163.4 mm tall and 77 mm wide, as compared to the 161.4 mm and 76.7 mm of the OnePlus 15. It is also slightly thicker than the OnePlus 15, at 8.3 mm compared to 8.1 mm. At 219 grams, it is heavier than the 211 grams of the OnePlus 15, but seems light for its size.

Interestingly, the Electric Violet shade is slightly slimmer and lighter than its differently shaded bros (it is 8.1 mm thin and 213 grams light). It is a pretty tough device too, with the frame being metal, the front Gorilla Glass 7i, and the back is glass as well (the Electric Violet shade has fibreglass). The OnePlus 15R also comes with four IP ratings – IP66/67/69/69K – which means it can not only survive rain and water splashes but even a fall in the water.

Our Mint Breeze OnePlus 15R cut a very smart and elegant figure, with its smooth back, its dark green camera unit with metallic looks and feels, hitting the middle ground between the quiet black and dazzling violet. The green and black variants in particular have a very premium look to them, while the violet one might divide opinions.

OnePlus 15R Specs and Hardware: Chipping in with a new Snappy Dragon, and getting a huge battery

The OnePlus 15R’s spec sheet has “flagship killer” written all over it. Yes, there are some corners cut to accommodate its price tag, as compared to the OnePlus 15, but this is easily the most powerful R series device from OnePlus for a while. The main reason for this is the chip that powers the phone – the spanking new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, which makes its first appearance in the market via this phone. While not as powerful as the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 seen on the OnePlus 15, this new chip is supposed to be not too far behind and is considered flagship-class. This is paired with 12 GB of LPDDR5X Ultra RAM and 256 GB and 512 GB of UFS 4.1, which are definitely premium flagship-level.

The OnePlus 15R comes with a slightly larger AMOLED display than the OnePlus 15 – 6.83 inches as compared to 6.78 inches, but with the same resolution of 2800 x 1272, HBM of 1800 nits, and a similar refresh rate of 165 Hz. Unlike the OnePlus 15, the OnePlus 15R’s display is not an LTPO one, which means it cannot vary its refresh rates from 1-120 Hz (and 165 Hz in supported apps), but changes between fixed values of 60/90/120, and between 144/165 Hz in supported apps. Spec chasers will consider this to be a step down from the LTPO display on the OnePlus 13R, but regular users are unlikely to note the difference.

The cameras on the OnePlus 15R come with the same DetailMax Engine that was used on the OnePlus 15 for better photography, but differ in terms of quality and quantity. The OnePlus 15R comes with two rather than three cameras on its back – a 50-megapixel main sensor and an 8-megapixel ultrawide – and a 32-megapixel selfie camera. While the main Sony IMX906 50-megapixel sensor with OIS, and 32-megapixel selfie camera with autofocus are very similar to those on the OnePlus 15, the 8-megapixel ultrawide camera (with no autofocus) strikes a sour note in all the tech sweetness of the phone. There is also no telephoto sensor on board.

One department where the OnePlus 15R beats even the OnePlus 15 is in battery size. The phone comes with a 7400 mAh battery, which is bigger than the 7300 mAh one on the premium flagship. That said, it charges at a slower (but still very fast) 80W charger, and comes with an 80W charger in the box. There is no support for wireless charging, though. Also on board are stereo speakers, Bluetooth 6, and an infrared blaster. The Type C port, however, comes with USB 2.0 rather than USB 3.2 as on the OnePlus 15.

In software terms, the OnePlus 15R is right up there alongside the OnePlus 15 – it runs on the same OxygenOS 16 software on top of Android 16 and comes with an assurance of four years of software and six years of security updates. Barring that 8-megapixel camera, we found this a very good spec sheet for the price.

OnePlus 15R Cameras and Photography: Main and selfie sensor stars, but censor that ultrawide

Photography on the OnePlus 15R is very good as long as one sticks to the main camera and the selfie sensor. The main camera delivers shots that are slightly saturated but very pleasant to look at, and also comes with plenty of detail in good light conditions. The phone also takes some very good portrait snaps, with well-defined edges, although the bokeh can seem a little artificial at times. The absence of a telephoto camera does not affect the OnePlus 15R’s portrait photography.

Still, we ended up missing the option to zoom into distant subjects and scenes – the 2x lossless zoom is of very limited use, and even digital zoom stops at 20x, and is best used only up to 4x-5x. Zooming any further tends to ruin the detail. We also got some surprisingly colorful low-light images, even though details tended to get a little smudged. Video performance from the main camera was very good in good light conditions, although details took a hit when the lights dimmed. The selfie camera also seemed slightly more “colorful” than the one on the OnePlus 15, delivering some very striking selfies with plenty of detail.

The 8-megapixel ultrawide camera is an unwanted gatecrasher at the OnePlus 15R photography party. It delivers a wider perspective, but at the cost of details, and the absence of autofocus further restricts its utility. Avoid it, and the photography experience on the OnePlus 15R is largely a pleasant one, with generally bright colors and plenty of detail. We found the cameras on the OnePlus 15R are slightly more “popularly” tuned with greater emphasis on bright colors. There are plenty of AI tools on board to tweak results, remove undesirable objects, and so on, and thanks to the hardware on board, they work very smoothly too. Those who just point and shoot, and don’t worry about zooming, will love the cameras on the OnePlus 15R. The presence of that ultrawide and the absence of a telephoto are, however, potential deal breakers for photography enthusiasts.

OnePlus 15R Performance: This is one for gamers on a budget

The OnePlus 15R’s excellent hardware means that it can handle routine tasks effortlessly. It sails through Web browsing, social media doomscrolling, emails, and messaging without losing its cool. We were often able to run 7-10 apps on it at the same time with zero lag or issues. That large, bright display is great for viewing content ranging from websites to films and videos, and the speakers, while not as good in quality terms as on the OnePlus 15, are impressively loud and make viewing content a more immersive experience. Call quality is very good, and the in-display fingerprint scanner works with a smoothness that Google and Samsung might envy.

OxygenOS 16 runs smoothly on the phone, and while there are a few third-party apps, the overall experience is a clean, uncluttered one. OnePlus has included a number of AI features in OxygenOS, so apart from the usual Google tools like Gemini, Circle to Search and Object Eraser, one also gets OnePlus AI tools like AI Writer, AI Recorder, AI Scan, and of course, OnePlus’ Mind Space feature which can be accessed by pressing the Plus key letting us save and analyze whatever we saw on the phone’s display. Just as on the OnePlus 15, the Plus key can also be mapped to other functions.

It is, however, in gaming and multimedia that the OnePlus 15R really stands out. We played games like Call of Duty and Genshin Impact on it and got performances that were very close to those on the OnePlus 15. We are not sure what difference the 165 Hz refresh rate made, but gaming was very smooth on the phone, and what’s more, the phone never got uncomfortably warm. The speakers delivered great sound for action games, and well, that massive battery made sure we could play for hours without worrying about ever running out of power.

We will keep it simple: the OnePlus 15R is the best gaming phone one can get for the price at the time of writing. Its predecessors had to deal with better-specced iQOO flagships that were often a bit more expensive, but the recent price increases have taken them out of the equation. In gaming terms, the OnePlus 15R right now is in a class of one.

OnePlus 15R Battery and charging: Oh mAh God, Battery Boss spotted!

The OnePlus 15R comes with a 7400 mAh battery, which is among the largest we have seen not only in its price segment but also in those above it. And while it initially seemed to last about a day and a half, a few software updates saw it zoom into the two days of normal usage on a single charge. In fact, if one is reasonably careful and keeps the refresh rate down, this battery is capable of seeing the OnePlus 15R through two and a half days of normal usage. Avoid gaming and multimedia altogether (although why would you, given those specs and performance), and we could even get through three days on this. This is the kind of battery life one is accustomed to seeing in budget phones priced in the Rs 10,000 – Rs 12,000 range, with lower resolution displays, very little gaming potential, and limited cameras.

The 80W charger takes slightly more than an hour to charge it, but one can comfortably get about 65 per cent charge from half an hour of charging, which is enough to see out a day of use quite comfortably. The OnePlus 15R is pretty much the battery boss of the flagship phone zone in terms of battery life. In fact, it outclasses even lower-priced and lower-specced phones in this regard.

OnePlus 15R Price: Slightly more expensive, but thanks to rising prices all round, still very competitive

The OnePlus 15R is available at these prices:

• 12 GB/ 256 GB: Rs 47,999
• 12 GB/ 512 GB: Rs 52,999

This is slightly higher than the pricing of the OnePlus 13R, which was priced at Rs 42,999 and Rs 49,999 for similar variants, but given that the phone comes with a newer chip, bigger display, and a much bigger battery, we think the price rise is not a dramatic one, especially given what we have seen in some other devices.

OnePlus 15R Competition and Challengers: A smaller Never Settler, an a-rated Pixel and more…

OnePlus 13S – small wonder
Rs 54,999
The biggest headache for the OnePlus 15R. It brings a Snapdragon 8 Elite chip and comparable cameras (with a telephoto), although it loses out on battery and display size.

Oppo Reno 14 Pro – bringing camera muscle to the mix
Rs 49,999
The Reno 14 Pro has a similar large display and a pretty powerful Dimensity 8450 chip, but the real attraction is the triple 50-megapixel camera setup on the back.

Pixel 9a – the power of clean Android
Rs 44,999
This oldie remains a golden one with very good dual cameras, good battery life, and best of all, terrific AI on top of clean Android with assured updates. One for the purists.

OnePlus 15R Review Verdict: R you looking for this?

We are going to keep it simple – unless you totally need a telephoto camera, the OnePlus 15R is a no-brainer at its price. You get a great display, flagship performance, and amazing battery life, as well as a decent pair of cameras, all wrapped in a modern interface and sleek frame for under Rs 50,000. At a time when premium flagship prices are going through the roof, the OnePlus 15R is the flagship killer the market needs, and brings back the OG spirit which ensured that the competition NeverSettled.

Buy OnePlus 15R