The OnePlus 12 is a Unicorn: The Last True "Never Settle" Flagship
Anybody here bought OnePlus specifically to root(due to fairly straightforward, frictionless and easy bootloader unlocking procedure, which is the prerequisite to any modern Android device modding) once its software premiere support clock runs out? I do. But OnePlus 12 is more than meets the eye.
When we look at modern flagship phones, we usually look for that one standout feature. But for the OnePlus 12, its true superpower isn't an isolated spec—it’s the rare convergence of enthusiast features that simply do not coexist anywhere else today.
Think of the perfect enthusiast flagship as a maxed-out RPG Radar Chart. To be a true premium device, it needs to hit every single corner: performance, hardware identity, audio, video, camera, and software freedom.
While one may argue that these two elements, Hasselblad and alert slider are not necessary upper-hands for a smartphone, such that they can be perceived as optional, it matters within the OnePlus-verse. Without these two, OnePlus suffers from identity crisis. OnePlus 15 is just a glorified Oppo phone. I don't meant to sound emotionally charged, but there is a reason why Porsche does not skimp on active aerodynamic spoilers even on their "entry-level" Cayman and Boxster models. They know that without it, Porsche may be perceived as glorified Volkswagen.
Moving on to the remaining five metrics of the heptagon, we cross from brand soul into the baseline definitions of what a flagship must objectively be. Dolby Vision Atmos should be unquestionable standard features on a flagship as they become common among streaming services. To illustrate my point, look no further than "low-hanging fruit" Apple. They are the ultimate "frenemy" of Android, Apple has been consistently supporting Dolby Vision Atmos on all iphones(no gatekeeping to pro models) all the way back since 2018. Top tier SOC for flagship should be self explanatory, an entitlement at this point. If not, that device is bound to be ridiculed for raw processing power till kingdom come like that of Pixel devices' Tensor chips. Display resolution of at least 2K should also be pretty much self-explanatory when it is the industry standard for flagship devices. The math doesn't lie, the moment OnePlus 15 switches from 2K to 1.5K, the ppi dropped from 500+ppi to 450ppi. My point is, all of these should be non-negotiable no matter the brand in today's smartphone landscape. Users may not need it all the time, but they need to be there at end-users' disposal all the time.
Finally, the contentious "easiness of rooting" metric. OnePlus is historically known for its relatively straightforward and frictionless bootloader unlocking procedure, I think I need not elaborate when it comes to easiness of rooting for OnePlus. I will instead explain the importance of rooting, why it is essential to begin with, why is this a fair metric to judge a flagship upon. To put things into context, now you have the other 6 remaining hardware stack, but you do not have sovereignty over them to use them the way you want, you cannot fully dictate the terms on your own device. I will explain how a few ways sovereingty matter. By the time your phone's OEM(in this caes OnePlus) stops supporting your phone, you are reluctant to switch to a new phone because your device is still physically healthy, but the apps on your phone refuse to work because you are now on "old Android version that is less secured". Now you are weighing what options do you have only to find that you don't have the upgrade Android version card with custom ROM pathway because your bootloader is unlockable. Now you realize your device is being crippled software wise by the technofeudals to lock you out of their modern internet world.
I know it's an uphill battle in the rooting scene as of today, I am fully aware of the Google Play Attestation gridlock, however, if you cannot root your phone you are denied entry for even the qualifying rounds(playing cat and mouse game with Google), you lost before the fight even begins, you can't even show any form of resistance.
Satisfying app's Android version requirement is one thing, do you realize that Google is restricting Android's ability to sideload freely? They use security(the scam fraud trope) reasons as pretext, but at the same time, there's no downplaying the collateral damage dealt onto legitimate use cases when Google enfroces blanket restriction on sideloading. These two are not isolatable, you can't have one and claim the other doesn't happen, it would seem hypocritical otherwise.
Back to OnePlus 12, I'd like to share with you my personal experience of using OnePlus 12 for 2 years and 4 months to date. For generations, OnePlus were plagued with green line failures that persisted from 8 series through 11 series. As of now I can vouch that OnePlus 12 is indeed free from green line anxiety. I'm not someone sold on the software update FOMO, I'm still on 14.0.0.604, I'm entirely free from the AI suite, much less ARB-irrervisible fiasco that takes effect on Android 16 .500 version and later. I plan to use it till it dies its natural death.
This model does live up to its "Never Settle" reputation and 10 year anniversary hype. Right after this, OnePlus takes a slump. The successor while it outperforms 12 in SOC regard, the lack of Dolby Atmos, which is hard to defend against when entry level iPhone model from 5 years ago has it. The case for OnePlus 15 is made worse when their competitor Poco F8 Ultra not only retains Dolby one-two punch and 2K screen, it has brand partnership with Bose even though it doesn't have its sibling 17 series's Leica, whereas OnePlus 15 is left with nothing after being stripped of Hasselblad.
That being said, I regret not getting the top of the line 24GB 1TB CN variant of this. I heard that conversion to Global OxygenOS rom is relatively frictionless, before during and after. At least on where I live, for converted CN variant, I've never came across report of signal loss nor OTA/local install friction on either unlocked/locked bootloader state. To me, the performance gain in 24GB is a well justified tradeoff for the lack of eSim.
Yet another one of the lesser talked about OnePlus 12 trait is its relatively frictionless cross-regional ROM flashing, no matter your hardware variant(global or cn), you can cross-flash and safely relock and unlock bootloader without caveats like risking softbrick/bootloop, yes, regardless of whether it's OxygenOS(whichever region) or ColorOS. If I were to also include this 2 niche traits, that makes the OnePlus 12 stack of unique traits even more unparalled.
Some screenshot I snagged online, this takes the holy grail to another level.
- Dolby Vision
- Dolby Atmos
- Hasselblad Camera
- Alert Slider
- 24GB RAM
- 1TB ROM
- Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
- 2K Display
- Easy Bootloader Unlocking
- unblown efuse, not yet affected by ARB
Not what I want to overhype this former flagship, there are few devices that quite fit the bill. You may find newer devices that outshine OnePlus 12 in any of these regards, but you won't find another one that happen to tick all the boxes at the same time, much less outclass.
Setting Hasselblad camera and alert slider aside, Xiaomi numbered flagship and Poco F series are close. Xiaomi came close to being on par with OnePlus 12 on this unique assessment metrics, but still fall short unfortunately whe it coems to easiness of bootloader unlocking(Xiaomi is notorious for being Kafka-esque bureaucratic).
At the rate things are going, I think OnePlus 12 might be the last OnePlus model that befitting the Never Settle mantra, while OnePlus 13 marks the end of true OnePlus DNA, and it's never coming back. It's kind of a bitter goodbye, but I think I will start looking into rice brand and live with the bureaucracy tradeoff for my next smartphone purchase.