OnePlus has introduced the 13s compact flagship phone in India and other regions earlier this month. The company has touted this as a powerful phone that fits in your palm and delivers flagship-grade performance. The best thing is that for Rs 54,999 you get the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset packed into a compact design with a large-size battery.

OnePlus has also dropped the alert slider in favour of the new dynamic Plus Key with this model. We’ve heard a lot of flagship killers over the years, and OnePlus had a few of them in its time. Does the OnePlus 13s fit into that equation and offer value that matches up to the whole package? We tested the device to get these answers and more. 

Compact Yet Premium 

 OnePlus 13s focuses on one big aspect and that is the compact nature of the device. You get a 6.32-inch form factor built into a premium metal casing that has an aluminium alloy frame and a frosted finish at the back.

The device weighs 185 grams which is neither too heavy nor too light and the 8.2mm thickness is never going to win any contests. You only get it with IP65 rating which is not exactly premium standards. 

Having said that, the 13s looks and feels premium the moment you hold it in your hand and that is the only thing that matters to the people. You get a squarish camera module which houses the dual rear sensors and the rest of the body remains clean and we like that about it. The 13s looks simple but elegant at the same time. 

No Compromises In Display 

The brand always makes sure the display on its phones are top-notch and the 13s sees no difference in that strategy. You get an AMOLED 1B LTPO panel with Dolby Vision and HDR10+ along with adaptive 120Hz refresh rate.

OnePlus is offering its own Crystal shield glass for protection which has held well during the last few weeks of our time with the device. The colours are punchy and the overall viewing quality of the display is pleasing to the eye and you never feel any discomfort while using it. The screen brightness levels aren’t the best in the segment but it is usable in outdoor conditions. 

The Performance Champ 

The 13s is going with the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset which has shown its quality and levels with a few other devices this year. The OnePlus 13s is just another flagship device making use of this hardware but also ensuring that the tuning is in place to avoid any major throttling issues. We barely noticed the device heating up, even in the blazing Delhi Summer, except for when you have the ultra-fast charging enabled which is expected. 

The 13s is a powerful and reliable performer that can handle all the tasks you ask a phone to handle and deliver it with ease. You can enjoy gaming, open a slew of tabs in Chrome and still have enough in the reserve to have other apps functioning in the background. 

The OS experience is another big plus for OnePlus devices even though OxygenOS that you get these days is a derivation of ColorOS. Having said that, you don’t have to worry about bloatware, the OS experience is fluid and gives that premium effect. 

Cameras Do The Trick? 

OnePlus has gone with a dual camera system which means you get a 50MP primary wide sensor with OIS and a 50MP telephoto lens. The main camera shows its quality in most conditions with enough details and colour tones retained.

The 50MP telephoto lens misses out on OIS which means you need the subject to be still while clicking the photo and even then you notice some issues with the camera’s colour identity. The main camera is the hero here and even in low light it does well. The lack of ultrawide lens on the 13s is noticeable but OnePlus claims that people in its survey said they don’t use the sensor that much so they decided to skip it in favour of other additions. 

The Plus Key Era 

OnePlus has introduced the Plus Key with the 13s and will be coming with future models as well. This is a customisable key that can be used to activate the camera, turn on the torch or more importantly use the new Mind Space feature.

OnePlus AI is also part of the new changed ecosystem, which lets you store the data on-device or run them on a private cloud system. 

The Battery Effect 

OnePlus 13s packs a 5,850mAh battery which is based on lithium-ion tech instead of the silicon carbide version that the 6,260mAh battery offers on the 13T model. OnePlus says it has made these changes based on the use case in different regions, which is why the 13s comes with a 32MP autofocus front camera. But that does not mean the small-ish battery puts a dent on the efficiency of the 13s by any way. 

It easily lasts for over 24 hours with regular usage where you mix it with Wi-Fi and 5G data, use apps like YouTube, X, Maps and Music for hours. We were able to get over 7 to 8 hours of screen-on-time which is similar to the levels offered by the OnePlus 13 model. The 80W charging speed might seem slower than having 100W support which is why you need 1 hour+ to get fully charged. 

The OnePlus 13s has two main talking points, the compact size and the flagship hardware. You also get a 5,850mAh battery which keeps you going for a day and more. The main camera also shows its quality while the telephoto lens could use some in-house support via updates. The 13s has all the ingredients to become a strong option if you need a compact phone that does not skimp on performance and longevity.