The OnePlus 2: A Smartphone that Raises the Bar

In terms of hardware, one of the big changes in the OnePlus 2 is the shift to USB Type-C, making it the first Android smartphone to feature this technology. This welcome addition is not only a step forward for the industry but also a great option for users who want to future-proof their device. The actual cable itself will be made available at cost, making it one of the cheapest ways for everyone to adopt what might become the new standard of connections for Android smartphones.

One of the standout features of the OnePlus 2 is its alert slider. As mentioned earlier, this reversible plug on both sides of the cord allows for easy identification and makes the device more intuitive to use. The actual cable itself will be made available at cost, making it a very affordable option for users who want to get their hands on this innovative technology.

When it comes to cameras, the Galaxy S6 might just be the king of Android when it comes to picture quality, boasting a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera with smart Optical image stabilization and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. Samsung has also included some nice camera features, including the ability to launch the app from the home button by pressing it twice, which loads up in under a second. However, one slightly disappointing aspect of the OnePlus One was its camera performance, but the OnePlus 2 is looking to really change that with a similar 13-megapixel shooter as its predecessor.

The new camera features on the OnePlus 2 include a f/2.0 aperture with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) and a laser-guided autofocus system. This should make a significant difference in terms of image quality, as well as in terms of experience, particularly when it comes to touch refocusing and low-light performance. Additionally, the OnePlus 2 supports 4K video shooting and capturing images in raw format, which is a great option for photography enthusiasts.

Another aspect where the OnePlus 2 stands out is its software. The device runs Oxygen OS, which is born out of the ashes from the relationship that went sour between OnePlus and Cyanogen MOD. Oxygen OS is version 2.0 based on Android 5.1 Lollipop, bringing a lot of the stock Android features and Material Design elements to its platform. It's packed with features such as offscreen gestures and the ability to change the button layout to soft keys if you so choose. Other notable features include offscreen gestures, dark UI mode for better nighttime viewing, and the Shelf, which is a new way of looking at frequently used apps and contacts.

The Galaxy S6, on the other hand, runs Android 5.1 Lollipop in TouchWiz, with some notable changes to its interface. While it has toned down many of the features that might have been considered "in your face" throughout the usage of the OS, it still provides a lot more customization options than Oxygen OS, including a theme engine and additional features on top of the Android shell underneath. However, some users may find that the stock Android experience feels a little too vanilla, and not particularly differentiating from other Android devices.

In terms of pricing, the OnePlus 2 is an absolute steal, with a price point less than half of what the Galaxy S6 would set you back. The device is available in two storage options: 64 GB for $389, and 32 GB for $329. With its incredible value proposition, it's no wonder that many users are clamoring to get their hands on this device.

Overall, the OnePlus 2 is a smartphone that raises the bar for Android devices in terms of hardware, software, and pricing. Its innovative features, including USB Type-C, the alert slider, and camera improvements, make it an attractive option for users who want a high-quality device without breaking the bank. With its affordable price point and feature-packed software, the OnePlus 2 is definitely worth considering for anyone in the market for a new smartphone.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enif the brand new OnePlus 2 is looking to be a Flagship killer then this might be the one it has to aim for hey it's Joshua varar from Android authority what's going on everybody and this is the OnePlus 2 versus the Samsung Galaxy S6 in this quick look the big change noticeable right away is up front with a new home button that is not really a button that you can really press down but more of a capacitive area for a home key but it also houses a fingerprint sensor that is looking for fingerprints even when the phone is off on its screen and from there there's also the alert slider on the left side which moves the power button and the volume rockers over to the right side Al together the alert slider is like a Notification Toggle in which you can change how you get your notifications whether all none or just the priority ones but on the other hand is the Samsung Galaxy S6 that saw a dramatic departure from the norm in build quality this time moving to metal and glass unibody constructions this move wasn't without its compromises uh however with the replaceable battery and expandable storage is becoming omissions nonetheless it was a much needed shift and something that pretty much everybody tends to appreciate there's no mistaking the S6 for any other Samsung device though with its signature physical home button flanked by recent apps keys and back Keys as well still present along with the standard button layout of the power button and volume rocker to the right and left respectively in the case of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge you do have the curves on the right and left of the screen helping with handling but not really providing too much else when it comes to Features the OnePlus 2 is obviously the bigger of the two devices with a 5.5 in screen and such points for handling and experience in handling have to be given to the sleeker and smaller Samsung Flag ship now as we already mentioned the OnePlus 2 keeps the same 5.5 in size as its predecessor in its screen as well as the same full HD resolution which is kind of disappointing for those who wanted or expected Quad HD which you do get in the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Edge despite its smaller size the viewing angles are still fantastic in either of these however just the Pix density of the S6 and S6 Edge Will trump that of the OnePlus 2 but we still think that the OnePlus 2 display looks pretty great and especially when compared to the OnePlus 1 there is a bit of a enhancement in the one that we have now the Super AMOLED display however on Samsung's cam does bring some pretty great colors and high saturation a little bit of sensory overload so if that is a little bit too much for you the OnePlus 2 might be the choice for you in this case in performance it's all about pure power as the OnePlus 2 packs the Snapdragon 810 backed by the adreno 430 and 4 GB of RAM in the 64 GB storage option making it one of the few devices around to have this kind of combo despite some known issues with overheating which OnePlus claims will not happen with this version 2.1 of the processor this processing package is looking to be one of the best in the world while we'll definitely be pushing its device to its limits in an upcoming full review performance was certainly of no issue in the time that we were using it thus far but on the other hand the PowerHouse that is the EXO 7420 is backed by 3 GB of RAM in the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Edge Samsung decided to give the snapdragons of the world uh a bit of a skip in its step with its in-house processor which so far has been a pretty fantastic move the optimization is evident with the very Snappy and mostly LaGree Touchwiz UI even if it's more toned down nature is also a contributing factor for this nonetheless in between these two different devices we already see that performance is at high marks no matter which one of these two you choose for your daily driver a shift in hardware for the OnePlus 2 and the Samsung Galaxy S6 generally meant better-looking phones for both but it also came at the cost of a couple of features for the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Edge in the case of the Samsung phones there was a loss of removable battery and expandable storage both issues that have been addressed in the OnePlus 2 for the most part while the OnePlus 2 does not have expandable storage it has an option of 64 GB that should be enough for the common user and it's bigger 3,300 milliamp battery might be able to last the full day especially considering its full HD display both devices do feature fingerprint scanners and readers rather in a similar implementation and position with it integrated into the home buttons up front the S6 fingerprint reader is actually quite accurate and that happens to be the case in the OnePlus 2 as well but we do give the OnePlus 2 a bit of an edge because you are able to just put your finger down on a turned off screen in order for it to trigger as well now one of the big changes in terms of hardware for the OnePlus 2 is the shift to USB type-c making it the first Android smartphone to feature one another welcome addition is the alert slider as we mentioned already it is a reversible plug on both sides of the cord and the actual cable itself will be made available at cost so it will be one of the cheapest ways for everyone to adopt what might be the new standard of connections for Android smartphones now when it comes to the cameras the Galaxy S6 might just be the king of the Android space when it comes to its picture quality boasting a 16 megapixel rear-facing camera with smart Optical image stabilization and a 5 megapixel front-facing camera Samsung has a handful of nice camera features and you are able to launch the app from the home button just pressing it twice so it'll load up in under a second now one slightly disappointing aspect of the OnePlus One was its camera performance but the OnePlus is looking to really change all that with the two while featuring a similar 13 megapix shooter as its predecessor It Now features f2.0 aperture with ois and a laser guided autofocus system which should make a bit of a difference as far as image quality but also in terms of experience the laser autofocus allows for touch refocusing and the optical image stabilization will help with some low light performance as well 4K video shooting is also available in the video format and also capturing images in raw format is available as well of course it's really too soon to tell which of these two cameras will be better but we will say that the OnePlus 2 is performing a little bit better than we expected but we're not sure if it's going to live up to the standard of the S6 until we get our hands on a review unit and put it through its paces and finally in software the OnePlus 2 is running oxygen OS born of the ashes from the relationship that went sour from OnePlus and Cyanogen MOD uh oxygen OS otherwise is now version 2.0 based on 5.1.1 lollipop that brings a lot of the stock Android and material Design Elements to its version of Android it's packed to the guilds with a slew of features though including offscreen gestures and the ability to change the button layout to soft keys if you so choose to features that were available in the OnePlus One from the get-go and now even a dark UI mode is available for better night time viewing and then there is of course the Shelf which is a new type of way of looking at your frequently used apps and frequently contacted people the Galaxy S6 on the other hand is running Android lollipop in TouchWiz and Touchwiz looks just about the same on the Galaxy S6 as we've seen in the past but the main changes that it has been toned down a lot of the features that might have been in your face throughout the usage of the OS have now been put aside or at least hidden to the point where the operating system feels a lot faster than it did before it does provide a lot more customization with a theme engine and also a lot more features on top of uh the Android shell underneath but the oxygen OS just sort of gets uh a little bit of a detraction here because it is just about as stock as Android can get and by feeling just a little bit too vanilla it doesn't feel like it's really differentiating itself from the rest of the Androids in the pack we still won't really go as far as to say that either device really overtakes the other in terms of specifications and raw features but what gives the OnePlus 2 a huge leg up is its price with a price point less than half of what the Galaxy S6 would set you back it is fantastic to think that a device like the one OnePlus 2 even exists of course if you're clamoring to get your hands on this device you'll have to navigate through the invite system once again however many more devices should be available now and at 389 for the 64 GB version and an even cheaper 3296 GB version soon to be available there are some choices here especially when you consider some customization with Styles swap backgrounds to make the OnePlus 2 your own stay tuned for even more about the OnePlus 2 here at Android authority especially when we get our full review unit and put these two devices through their real Paces with everything from versus videos to camera shootouts because we are your source for all things Androidif the brand new OnePlus 2 is looking to be a Flagship killer then this might be the one it has to aim for hey it's Joshua varar from Android authority what's going on everybody and this is the OnePlus 2 versus the Samsung Galaxy S6 in this quick look the big change noticeable right away is up front with a new home button that is not really a button that you can really press down but more of a capacitive area for a home key but it also houses a fingerprint sensor that is looking for fingerprints even when the phone is off on its screen and from there there's also the alert slider on the left side which moves the power button and the volume rockers over to the right side Al together the alert slider is like a Notification Toggle in which you can change how you get your notifications whether all none or just the priority ones but on the other hand is the Samsung Galaxy S6 that saw a dramatic departure from the norm in build quality this time moving to metal and glass unibody constructions this move wasn't without its compromises uh however with the replaceable battery and expandable storage is becoming omissions nonetheless it was a much needed shift and something that pretty much everybody tends to appreciate there's no mistaking the S6 for any other Samsung device though with its signature physical home button flanked by recent apps keys and back Keys as well still present along with the standard button layout of the power button and volume rocker to the right and left respectively in the case of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge you do have the curves on the right and left of the screen helping with handling but not really providing too much else when it comes to Features the OnePlus 2 is obviously the bigger of the two devices with a 5.5 in screen and such points for handling and experience in handling have to be given to the sleeker and smaller Samsung Flag ship now as we already mentioned the OnePlus 2 keeps the same 5.5 in size as its predecessor in its screen as well as the same full HD resolution which is kind of disappointing for those who wanted or expected Quad HD which you do get in the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Edge despite its smaller size the viewing angles are still fantastic in either of these however just the Pix density of the S6 and S6 Edge Will trump that of the OnePlus 2 but we still think that the OnePlus 2 display looks pretty great and especially when compared to the OnePlus 1 there is a bit of a enhancement in the one that we have now the Super AMOLED display however on Samsung's cam does bring some pretty great colors and high saturation a little bit of sensory overload so if that is a little bit too much for you the OnePlus 2 might be the choice for you in this case in performance it's all about pure power as the OnePlus 2 packs the Snapdragon 810 backed by the adreno 430 and 4 GB of RAM in the 64 GB storage option making it one of the few devices around to have this kind of combo despite some known issues with overheating which OnePlus claims will not happen with this version 2.1 of the processor this processing package is looking to be one of the best in the world while we'll definitely be pushing its device to its limits in an upcoming full review performance was certainly of no issue in the time that we were using it thus far but on the other hand the PowerHouse that is the EXO 7420 is backed by 3 GB of RAM in the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Edge Samsung decided to give the snapdragons of the world uh a bit of a skip in its step with its in-house processor which so far has been a pretty fantastic move the optimization is evident with the very Snappy and mostly LaGree Touchwiz UI even if it's more toned down nature is also a contributing factor for this nonetheless in between these two different devices we already see that performance is at high marks no matter which one of these two you choose for your daily driver a shift in hardware for the OnePlus 2 and the Samsung Galaxy S6 generally meant better-looking phones for both but it also came at the cost of a couple of features for the Samsung Galaxy S6 and Edge in the case of the Samsung phones there was a loss of removable battery and expandable storage both issues that have been addressed in the OnePlus 2 for the most part while the OnePlus 2 does not have expandable storage it has an option of 64 GB that should be enough for the common user and it's bigger 3,300 milliamp battery might be able to last the full day especially considering its full HD display both devices do feature fingerprint scanners and readers rather in a similar implementation and position with it integrated into the home buttons up front the S6 fingerprint reader is actually quite accurate and that happens to be the case in the OnePlus 2 as well but we do give the OnePlus 2 a bit of an edge because you are able to just put your finger down on a turned off screen in order for it to trigger as well now one of the big changes in terms of hardware for the OnePlus 2 is the shift to USB type-c making it the first Android smartphone to feature one another welcome addition is the alert slider as we mentioned already it is a reversible plug on both sides of the cord and the actual cable itself will be made available at cost so it will be one of the cheapest ways for everyone to adopt what might be the new standard of connections for Android smartphones now when it comes to the cameras the Galaxy S6 might just be the king of the Android space when it comes to its picture quality boasting a 16 megapixel rear-facing camera with smart Optical image stabilization and a 5 megapixel front-facing camera Samsung has a handful of nice camera features and you are able to launch the app from the home button just pressing it twice so it'll load up in under a second now one slightly disappointing aspect of the OnePlus One was its camera performance but the OnePlus is looking to really change all that with the two while featuring a similar 13 megapix shooter as its predecessor It Now features f2.0 aperture with ois and a laser guided autofocus system which should make a bit of a difference as far as image quality but also in terms of experience the laser autofocus allows for touch refocusing and the optical image stabilization will help with some low light performance as well 4K video shooting is also available in the video format and also capturing images in raw format is available as well of course it's really too soon to tell which of these two cameras will be better but we will say that the OnePlus 2 is performing a little bit better than we expected but we're not sure if it's going to live up to the standard of the S6 until we get our hands on a review unit and put it through its paces and finally in software the OnePlus 2 is running oxygen OS born of the ashes from the relationship that went sour from OnePlus and Cyanogen MOD uh oxygen OS otherwise is now version 2.0 based on 5.1.1 lollipop that brings a lot of the stock Android and material Design Elements to its version of Android it's packed to the guilds with a slew of features though including offscreen gestures and the ability to change the button layout to soft keys if you so choose to features that were available in the OnePlus One from the get-go and now even a dark UI mode is available for better night time viewing and then there is of course the Shelf which is a new type of way of looking at your frequently used apps and frequently contacted people the Galaxy S6 on the other hand is running Android lollipop in TouchWiz and Touchwiz looks just about the same on the Galaxy S6 as we've seen in the past but the main changes that it has been toned down a lot of the features that might have been in your face throughout the usage of the OS have now been put aside or at least hidden to the point where the operating system feels a lot faster than it did before it does provide a lot more customization with a theme engine and also a lot more features on top of uh the Android shell underneath but the oxygen OS just sort of gets uh a little bit of a detraction here because it is just about as stock as Android can get and by feeling just a little bit too vanilla it doesn't feel like it's really differentiating itself from the rest of the Androids in the pack we still won't really go as far as to say that either device really overtakes the other in terms of specifications and raw features but what gives the OnePlus 2 a huge leg up is its price with a price point less than half of what the Galaxy S6 would set you back it is fantastic to think that a device like the one OnePlus 2 even exists of course if you're clamoring to get your hands on this device you'll have to navigate through the invite system once again however many more devices should be available now and at 389 for the 64 GB version and an even cheaper 3296 GB version soon to be available there are some choices here especially when you consider some customization with Styles swap backgrounds to make the OnePlus 2 your own stay tuned for even more about the OnePlus 2 here at Android authority especially when we get our full review unit and put these two devices through their real Paces with everything from versus videos to camera shootouts because we are your source for all things Android\n"