This OnePlus 15 camera leak makes me very nervous about the flagship
OnePlus's next flagship smartphone is expected to be the OnePlus 15 – due to arrive later this year. The rumour mill has started churning out some leaks about the handset, including one major camera titbit. And I'm officially nervous about the flagship.
Since 2021, Hasselblad has been a quiet co-pilot on OnePlus's camera journey. The results haven't always been revolutionary, but you can't deny the colour science got a notable boost, and portrait shots started getting more effective. So a leak from the reputable Digital Chat Station on Weibo says that the OnePlus 15 might ditch the Hasselblad collab in favour of an in-house 'image brand' makes me twitchy.
There's a reason phone makers like to slap big-name logos on their camera modules. It's not just for show – those partnerships usually nudge the camera tuning in the right direction. Without it, there's a risk we're back to OnePlus' days of good hardware, muddled by inconsistent camera results.
But, the leak suggests the OnePlus 15 will still have a triple-lens setup, including a periscope lens and a big primary sensor. That sounds great on paper, but hardware alone doesn't make a brilliant camera system. Tuning, software, and experience matter – and that's where Hasselblad's influence has historically helped OnePlus punch above its weight.
Of course, there's a chance that OnePlus has picked up enough know-how from years of collaboration to go solo without things crashing and burning. But that's a pretty big gamble. It's hard not to see this as a cost-cutting move dressed up as innovation.
The rest of the spec sheet is shaping up just fine. A 6.78-inch 1.5K flat display might seem like a step down from the OnePlus 13's curvy QHD+ panel. But flat screens are far more practical in daily use. Add in the next-gen Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 chip and thinner bezels, and the OnePlus 15 is still sounding like a flagship contender. I'm just hoping the camera doesn't let the side down.
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3 days ago
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This OnePlus 15 camera leak makes me very nervous about the flagship
OnePlus's next flagship smartphone is expected to be the OnePlus 15 – due to arrive later this year. The rumour mill has started churning out some leaks about the handset, including one major camera titbit. And I'm officially nervous about the flagship. Since 2021, Hasselblad has been a quiet co-pilot on OnePlus's camera journey. The results haven't always been revolutionary, but you can't deny the colour science got a notable boost, and portrait shots started getting more effective. So a leak from the reputable Digital Chat Station on Weibo says that the OnePlus 15 might ditch the Hasselblad collab in favour of an in-house 'image brand' makes me twitchy. There's a reason phone makers like to slap big-name logos on their camera modules. It's not just for show – those partnerships usually nudge the camera tuning in the right direction. Without it, there's a risk we're back to OnePlus' days of good hardware, muddled by inconsistent camera results. But, the leak suggests the OnePlus 15 will still have a triple-lens setup, including a periscope lens and a big primary sensor. That sounds great on paper, but hardware alone doesn't make a brilliant camera system. Tuning, software, and experience matter – and that's where Hasselblad's influence has historically helped OnePlus punch above its weight. Of course, there's a chance that OnePlus has picked up enough know-how from years of collaboration to go solo without things crashing and burning. But that's a pretty big gamble. It's hard not to see this as a cost-cutting move dressed up as innovation. The rest of the spec sheet is shaping up just fine. A 6.78-inch 1.5K flat display might seem like a step down from the OnePlus 13's curvy QHD+ panel. But flat screens are far more practical in daily use. Add in the next-gen Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 chip and thinner bezels, and the OnePlus 15 is still sounding like a flagship contender. I'm just hoping the camera doesn't let the side down.
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Stuff Verdict Simply one of the best all-rounder Android tablets out there right now. The OnePlus Pad 3 is productivity powerhouse, gaming great and multimedia darling all in one, at a sensible price. Pros Flagship-tier performance Bright, detailed and colourful display that's perfect for creative work Long-lasting battery and rapid charging Cons Keyboard and stylus bump the price up a fair bit Only three years of new Android generations Average cameras and no IP rating Introduction It hasn't been in the tablet game all that long, but OnePlus has rapidly turned itself into a major player. Its last few efforts ranked as some of the best tablets running Android, and now it's back with a threequel that could also give the iPad Air a run for its money. The OnePlus Pad 3 has a bigger screen, bigger battery, and more powerful internals than its predecessor, yet continues the firm's run of undercutting the competition. 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Design & build: blue me away Measuring less than 6mm, the OnePlus Pad 3 has the iPad Air beaten for thinness, though at 675g it's a smidge heavier. I found it comfortable enough to hold one-handed for a little while, but not for an entire Netflix box-set. The screen bezels are pretty svelte, but leave just enough room to grasp it without blocking the panel. With flattened sides and an aluminium unibody build, the Pad 3 has definitely gotten with the times. Swapping the rear camera bump from a central circle to a corner-positioned pill-shape means it has lost some of the old tablet's unique identity, though. The camera itself – a 13MP sensor with electronic image stabilisation – is still pretty basic, falling behind even inexpensive smartphones for detail, exposure and colour. The 8MP front webcam is more of the same, and best used for video calls. It sits stealthily within the screen bezel, which is way better than a punch-hole or notch. There's face unlock support, but not the kind that's secure enough to unlock your banking apps, and what looks like a fingerprint sensor on the top edge is actually a magnetic charging port for the optional OnePlus Stylo 2 stylus. That means you'll be reaching for the screen to tap in a PIN more often than you would on competing slates. The Storm Blue colour scheme helps the Pad 3 stand out from its rivals a bit. This is the only option for US and Europe, but India will also get a silver version. It's not the best at hiding fingerprint smudges, but that's not really an issue once you slap the tablet into the official Folio case; my review unit has pretty much lived in one from the off, as it has an adjustable kickstand that's ideal for hands-free viewing. It was the Smart keyboard (a £169/€169 optional extra) that transformed the Pad 3 into a do-it-all tablet for me. It hooks up to the Pad with pogo pins, just like the previous generation, but the key caps are larger here – and more spaced out – so typing was a breeze. I wish it was backlit for low-light working, but like that the shortcut keys get their own row above the number keys. It doesn't add a huge amount of weight, either, so I was happy to leave it connected even when I didn't need to type anything. The expansive touchpad underneath is a nice touch, saving the need to constantly reach for the touchscreen, and the NFC reader built into the palm rest is handy for triggering fast file transfers. It's pretty much a must-buy if you're getting a Pad 3. Screen & sound: bigger and better OnePlus was onto a good thing with the outgoing Pad 2's gorgeous display, so it hasn't shaken things up for the sequel – just made it even bigger. The Pad 3's panel now stretches over 13.2in, putting it on par with the larger iPad Air and Samsung's Tab S10 FE+. 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Just keep in mind you'll spend considerably more for an Apple slate with as big a screen as the OnePlus Pad 3. Performance & battery life: ain't no stoppin' me now OnePlus has given the Pad 3 a real powerhouse of a CPU, breaking the trend for Android tablets rarely being performance monsters. It's rocking a Snapdragon 8 Elite, along with up to 16GB of RAM, which puts it on par with the latest crop of flagship smartphones – and brings the fight to Samsung's MediaTek-powered Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra. As you'd expect, that means this tablet can handle just about anything you'd care to throw its way. Editing images in Lightroom, cutting videos together in Adobe Rush, and drawing with Sketchbook were all pretty much flawless. Multitasking between a web browser, document editor and file manager was also a dream, with Open Canvas making it so easy to bounce between each app. Synthetic tests show it has plenty of grunt for both apps and games. While I've seen slightly higher benchmark scores in the phone world, they've only been from Samsung devices with overclocked 'for Galaxy' silicon. The Pad 3 has a High Performance mode that promises to wring out every last drop of power, but I only saw marginal gains. OnePlus Pad 3 benchmark scores Balanced mode High performance mode Geekbench 6 single-core 3114 3129 Geekbench 6 multi-core 8869 9177 PC Mark Work 3.0 13629 13690 3DMark Wild Life Extreme 6587 6635 A vapour chamber that uses graphene effectively dissipates heat, so the Pad 3 never not uncomfortably hot or had to dramatically throttle performance when in regular use. I got in an hour of Diablo Immortal and frame rates stayed very consistent. Demanding 3D games are no problem here. That it can rival Samsung's far pricier flagship tablets on power is seriously impressive. OnePlus has pulled a blinder on battery life, too. The Pad 3 has a simply enormous 12,140mAh cell, which is bigger than you'll find in any iPad or Samsung tablet. My usual mix of web browsing, gaming, video streaming and creative work saw it last several days before I needed to plug in; continuous video playback then nudged over sixteen hours, which is one of the best showings of any tablet I've tested. Getting your game on will drain it a lot faster, but even hardcore players should see over five hours per charge. I continue to be impressed with OnePlus' ability to eke out long standby times from its tablets, too. The firm says this one will last over 70 days; I've left it for three and come back to very little power loss. Charging is suitably speedy if you've got a OnePlus Supervooc power brick, with the Pad 3 able to suck down 80W. A full top-up is done in an hour and a half, while ten minutes will net almost 20%. 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The OnePlus Pad 3 is productivity powerhouse, gaming great and multimedia darling all in one, at a sensible price. Pros Flagship-tier performance Bright, detailed and colourful display that's perfect for creative work Long-lasting battery and rapid charging Cons Keyboard and stylus bump the price up a fair bit Only three years of new Android generations Average cameras and no IP rating OnePlus Pad 3 technical specifications Screen 13.2in, 3392×2400 LCD w/ 144Hz CPU Snapdragon 8 Elite Memory 12/16GB Cameras 13MP rear, 8MP front Storage 256/512GB on-board Operating system Android 15 Battery 12,140mAh w/ 80W wired charging Dimensions 290x210x5.97mm, 675g
