OnePlus phones used to be lauded by the Android community for bringing premium hardware and specs at a budget price. They are known for inventing the quote-on-quote "flagship killer". They
lost all that merit once they started including a premium price alongside their premium phones, as well as "settling down" by removing the headphone jack. That is not to say their phones are bad, but they lost the
core virtue of what they stood for.
Today, people mainly buy a OnePlus just for the brand.
Like a famous
Tech Youtuber once stated, "you either
die a hero or live long enough to become the villain."
User X: After using an
iPhone for my entire life, I finally decided to switch over to the OnePlus 9! So this is the flagship killer they've been talking about.
User Y: I hate to break it to ya but you're late to the party my guy. OnePlus has already settled, what you have is not a flagship killer anymore, it's just another high-end smartphone with a high-end price tag attached to it. IMO the OnePlus 3 was their peak smartphone.
User X: Idk
man, the OnePlus 9 seems
pretty great to me.
User Y: Oh don't get me wrong, the OnePlus 9 is a great
phone and is a great pick for someone who's transitioning over from
iPhone to Android. But this isn't the budget-friendly OnePlus we used to all love and know. That was my point.