I have been using OnePlus 13 and OnePlus 13R for the last month (through the 2024 holiday season and CES 2025), which means I’ve put them through some of the lightest and busiest workloads. There’s not much to complain about these new Android phones, which are experts at a little bit of everything. The premium OnePlus 13 has almost all the features you would expect from a flagship smartphone today.
He OnePlus 13 starts at $900 for the base 12GB RAM and 256GB storage version, undercutting the competition slightly, while the OnePlus 13R costs $600; It has fewer specifications than its brother and loses some features. This generation’s updates are all about finesse. Software is smoother, batteries last longer, screens are brighter, and phones are more water resistant. If you’re looking to switch phone brands and battery life is the number one priority on your list, these OnePlus phones are worth considering.
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The OnePlus 13 and 13R look identical, but there are some slight discrepancies in their dimensions: the flagship has a 6.82-inch screen, while the cheaper phone has a 6.78-inch screen. The most obvious difference between the two is the Hasselblad branding on the OnePlus 13, as well as the more curved edges around the screen. The OnePlus 13R has flat edges, which I prefer because they are easier to grip.
There’s a fun marble-like pattern on the OnePlus 13 and a brushed look on the 13R, but neither are as attractive as last year’s OnePlus 12 and 12R – the emerald and ice blue were chef kiss. There is a nice Midnight Ocean color this year for the OnePlus 13, which has a luxurious-looking microfiber vegan leather material, but I didn’t get a chance to try it.
OnePlus has finally improved water resistance on its high-end device. It now gets a combined IP68 and IP69 rating, meaning the OnePlus 13 can be submerged underwater for 30 minutes up to 1.5 meters and can withstand heavy rain. That finally puts him on par with his peers. The display employs Ceramic Guard, which is OnePlus’ version of Apple’s Ceramic Glass, and is supposedly stronger than the Gorilla Glass Victus found on other phones. Glass is still glass and you should use a screen protector – my iPhone 16 Plus screen broke during testing.
Speaking of displays, the 120Hz OLED displays are sharp, colorful, and fluid. The only difference besides size is sharpness, although by default the OnePlus 13 is set to a lower resolution to save battery. They both look impressive. My only complaint is that I had to manually adjust the brightness slider more frequently than on most other Android phones; these devices kept turning the brightness down too much for me.
The OnePlus 13R makes do with an IP65 rating, which is fine in the rain, but may not survive a dip in the pool. It is also among the first to use Corning. Gorilla Glass 7iwhich is a budget to mid-range offering from the glass maker, so don’t expect the same level of durability, although it should be comparable, if not slightly better, than other phones at this price. The rest of the hardware is perfect, and OnePlus’ alert slider makes me wish every phone had a slider switch to toggle between Silent, Vibrate, and Sound (ahem, Apple).. I don’t mind the atrociously large camera bump.