OnePlus 5 review

Looking at the OnePlus 5, it’s hard to believe that the company that made it is less than four years old. This is a phone that manages to hold its own alongside flagship devices from companies that have enormous pots of money to spend on research, development and design, and a decade or more of experience making smartphones.

Yet OnePlus has managed to make one of the best phones of 2017, and keep the price lower than most of the competition.

OnePlus has always made impressive phones at sub-flagship prices, but with this iteration the Chinese company has learned from previous mistakes, and built on its successes, to create an all-round fantastic phone.

OnePlus 5 price and release date

• OnePlus 5 is more expensive than OnePlus 3T
• Two versions of the phone, starts at $479 (£449, around AU$630)

Coming to US and UK, won't be released in Australia.

 The OnePlus 5 costs more than the OnePlus 3T did when that phone was on sale. That’s the hard truth about this new phone, but it’s partly because OnePlus has decided to use more premium materials for this handset.

OnePlus has opted to produce two versions of the OnePlus 5. The base model, with 64GB of internal storage and 6GB of RAM, will cost you $479 (£449, around AU$630).

The higher-end version, with 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, is priced at $539 (£499, around AU$710) and that’s the device we’re reviewing here. 

Whichever version you buy, it’s a big price jump compared to the OnePlus 3T, which cost $439 (£399, around AU$580) for the 64GB model and $479 (£439, around AU$630) for the 128GB version.

And bear in mind that OnePlus had already increased the price for that phone release – the OnePlus 3, released in June 2016, was only $399 (£329, around AU$450). If you’re looking to upgrade the OnePlus phone you bought this time last year, you’re going to be spending quite a bit more than you may have anticipated on the OnePlus 5.

Those who've watched the launch livestream will be able to buy it immediately online, using a code displayed on the screen. Otherwise you’ll have to wait until June 27 for the full online release.

If you live in the US or UK, OnePlus is having physical flash sales on June 21 and 22, so it may be worth seeing if you can get to one of those too – you can find out more on the OnePlus website.

In the UK, network provider O2 has exclusive rights to stock the OnePlus 5 in store, where it's available on contract. Paying £9.99 upfront and £40 per month for two years will get you the phone, unlimited calls and texts and 1GB of data.