OnePlus 16 Launches in China, Skips US and Europe — SkimNews
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- OnePlus launched the OnePlus 16 in China, its first flagship since quitting the US and European markets this summer, priced starting at ¥5,699 (~$850) with no Western release in sight.
- The OnePlus 16 runs a Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chipset with up to 1TB of storage and 16GB of RAM, backed by a 9,000mAh silicon-carbon battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless charging.
- OnePlus equipped the 16 with a first-of-its-kind 185Hz OLED panel that runs at up to 165Hz across the system UI and enables 185fps gaming in compatible titles.
- The OnePlus 16's main camera jumps to a 200MP sensor (1/1.4-inch, f/1.4) after the OnePlus 15's low-light "imitations," with a 50MP ultrawide and a 50MP telephoto using a 1/1.95-inch sensor.
- OnePlus added an LED-embedded silver finish featuring a "16" and galactic coordinates on the OnePlus 16's back panel, with the lights flashing in different rhythms for calls, messages, and battery alerts.
Why it matters: With OnePlus out of the US and Europe, the OnePlus 16 — arguably its most ambitious phone to date — stays out of reach of Western buyers who previously drove significant volume for the brand. The 9,000mAh battery and 185Hz display push new category benchmarks, but without a US or European launch, those innovations won't pressure Samsung or Apple in the markets that matter most.
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