Rumours have been building this year about a potential top-of-the-range new smartphone from OnePlus that brings a periscope camera and plenty of flagship features, tipped to be called the OnePlus 10 Ultra.
We’re no longer sure that the 10 Ultra is on the way – at least not this year – but there’s still a chance there’s something coming further down the line. Here’s all we know so far about the OnePlus 10 Ultra.
When will the OnePlus 10 Ultra be released?
Details about the OnePlus 10 Ultra are sketchy at the moment, with only some patent listings and a few leaks giving clues about the very existence of the device.
If it exists, the Ultra will sit above the OnePlus 10 Pro in the company’s smartphone range. As the OnePlus 10 Pro was only launched in spring 2022, it could still be a while before we see the Ultra model.
The Ultra was expected to launch in August or September, as tipped by leaker Yogesh Brar, but we’re no longer so sure, as OnePlus teased in July 2022 that the OnePlus 10T flagship is launching soon.
That had been predicted by leaker Max Jambor, who tweeted that the “next and only flagship phone coming this year” will be the OnePlus 10T 5G, in which case the Ultra isn’t coming at all – or at least not this year.
That means we’re a little sceptical that the 10 Ultra is on the way any more, but we’ve left in the last leaks and rumours as we heard them below – because they may well refer to a future Ultra model, or even something in next year’s OnePlus 11 line.
How much will the OnePlus 10 Ultra cost?
As this is potentially a new tier in the OnePlus range, there’s no information about the price tag that may be attached. We can use the OnePlus 10 Pro as a guide though, with that model costing as follows (based on the announced prices in China):
- 8+128GB – ¥4,699 ($740/£540/€650/₹56,699)
- 8+256GB – ¥4,999 ($785/£575/€690/₹60,299)
- 12+256GB – ¥5,299 ($830/£610/€730/₹63,999)
- 12+512GB – ¥5,799 ($915/£670/€805/₹69,999)
If the Ultra is a more expensive device, then it may stray above the $1,000/£1,000/€1,000 mark that we’ve seen become the norm with flagship smartphones in recent years.
What will be the OnePlus 10 Ultra specs and features?
As there’s now healthy scepticism about the 10 Ultra’s existence, you should take the details laid out below with a pinch of salt, although we will update this article as more information becomes available. So far, these are the rumours that surround this mysterious new device.
Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
OnePlus has confirmed on Weibo that it’s releasing a phone powered by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. This is likely the 10T, but the Ultra would surely feature at least that chip – if not next year’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. That means the phone should be a little faster than the 10 Pro, as the chip offers 10% improved CPU and GPU performance.
Battery life might also improve, with Qualcomm boasting that the chip is overall 15% more power efficient than the 8 Gen 1 found in the older phone.
Faster charging
The 10 Pro’s 80W charging is pretty nippy, but the more recent OnePlus 10R (released in China as the OnePlus Ace) boasts even faster 150W speeds.
It would be downright odd for the company’s ultra flagship not to have its faster charging, so it seems almost certain that at least 150W speeds will be included in the Ultra.
A periscope camera
In February, TechInsiderBlog posted on its Twitter feed (which has since been suspended) details about a patent application that had been made by OnePlus for a device that was very similar to the OnePlus 10 Pro.
The main difference was a more advanced camera system. While the placement on the upper left side of the rear panel is the same as the OnePlus 10 Pro, and the top two cameras are also seemingly identical, the lower section replaces the third camera and flash found on the 10 Pro with a recessed camera and empty panel to its right.
The flash has been changed to a small rounded rectangle as opposed to the circle on the 10 Ultra. This is also moved to sit next to the dual cameras in the upper section.
Thankfully, you don’t have to imagine all of this, as you can view the patent application and its images online via Lets Go Digital. Helpfully, it also posted mock-up images from graphic designer Jermaine Smit (also know as Concept Creator) which look fantastic.
Here is what the OnePlus 10 Ultra could look like:
The current theory is that the recessed camera could be something along the lines of a 5x zoom equipped camera that would allow users to capture distant images without the loss of quality you usually have to give up when using digital zooms.
Yogesh Brar has since tweeted that he “can confirm periscope,” for the phone, so it looks increasingly likely that some level of periscopic camera will be included.
It’s also thought that OnePlus will use the MariSilicon X Imaging NPU from Oppo, which made its debut in the Oppo Find X5 Pro.
This was echoed by Brar on Twitter who posted about a new OnePlus flagship coming in the second half of 2022 with Oppo technology onboard.
If this turns out to be true, then the OnePlus 10 Ultra could have some serious optics onboard when it arrives.
Here’s a breakdown of the technical specs for the OnePlus 10 Pro, so that you know the base that OnePlus is building from:
- 6.7in LTPO2 AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, 1440×3216 resolution
- Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC
- 8GB RAM
- 128GB Storage
- 48 MP, f/1.8, 23mm (Wide) with OIS
- 8 MP, f/2.4, 77mm (Telephoto), with OIS and 3.3x optical zoom
- 50 MP, f/2.2, 14mm, 150˚ (Ultrawide)
- 32 MP, f/2.2, (Wide) selfie camera
- WiFi 6
- 5G LTE
- Bluetooth 5.2
- NFC
- GPS
- 5,000mAh battery with 80W Fast Charging and 50W Wireless Charging
- 163 x 73.9 x 8.6 mm
- 200.5 g
You can check back regularly to this article for any updates we discover and in the meantime be sure to read our guides to the best phones in 2022 and best Android phones to see what kind of competition the OnePlus 10 Ultra will have to fend off when it launches.
Author: Dominic Preston, Contributor
Previously Tech Advisor's Deputy Editor, Dom covers everything that runs on electricity, from phones and laptops to wearables, audio, gaming, smart home, and streaming.