The rear of the phones have even more character than the front
but the iPhone 11 was the only one of the bunch to illuminate all of the numbers (even if some aren’t legible) and properly brighten the wall.
When shooting in normal light, however, the differences aren’t nearly as extreme. In the portrait examples on page 40, each camera handles the background blur (and my son’s messy hair) very well. You can quibble with skin tone and saturation (I personally prefer the Pixel 4 XL’s), but for the most part they all handle portraits very well.
Everyday shots come down to little details as well. Take the shots of a plant on page 41, above. Good bark, contrast, and colour detail are present in all four pictures, but you can see how the OnePlus 7T lags a bit compared to its higher-priced peers, mainly due to autofocus issues. The iPhone 11 and Pixel 4 XL captured the deep maroon best, but again, I’m splitting hairs.
For example, if you had to guess which camera took the photos opposite, you’d probably guess the iPhone 11 or Pixel 4 XL, but they were actually snapped with the OnePlus 7T. Granted they were taken in ideal lighting, but they underscore just how far OnePlus has come with its smartphone photography.
Winner: Apple iPhone 11
Price
While you’d expect to pay about the same price for any of four smartphones with the best processor, screen, design, and cameras you can buy, that’s not the case:
OnePlus 7T: £549 Apple iPhone 11: £729 Google Pixel 4 XL: £829 Samsung Galaxy S10+: £899
That’s a £350 gap between the Galaxy S10+ and the OnePlus 7T, and well, if you’ve gotten this far, you know that the S10+ isn’t £350 better than the 7T. Quite frankly it’s not £170 better than the iPhone 11, either. Apple shocked the world by lowering the price of the iPhone 11 compared to its iPhone XR predecessor, but for all you’re getting with the 7T, the other phones here just can’t compete.
Winner: OnePlus 7T
Verdict
With all due respect to the Pixel 4 XL, this is a threephone race. Tally the category winners, and it’s a close
call between the iPhone 11, Galaxy S10+, and OnePlus 7T. You won’t regret buying any of them, but the one you’ll feel just a little better about is the OnePlus 7T.
OnePlus phones have long been our pick for best value in a smartphone, but it’s time to recognize the 7T for what it is: a legitimate flagship that costs hundreds of pounds less than it should. Where things like the camera, design, and network compatibility used to drag down its predecessors, the 7T is a milestone for OnePlus, putting every other Android phone on notice – and the iPhone 11.
Yes the iPhone does some things better – and the lack of wireless charging on the OnePlus 7T is frustrating – but as a full package that’s £180 cheaper,
it’s easy to recommend the OnePlus 7T to anyone in the market for a new phone, no matter which operating system they want.