OnePlus is officially halting sales of the OnePlus 5T, its latest flagship device, in North American markets.
The move comes just four months after the OnePlus 5T went on sale in America. It sported an 18:9 6-inch AMOLED display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, up to 8 GB of RAM, and Android Nougat baked in, upgradeable to Android Oreo. Per usual OnePlus fare, the phone costs a lot less than other flagships with the same list of specs.
The phone's release, however, wasn't without hiccups. Customers soon complained about the device not being able to stream in HD via Netflix or Amazon Prime Video. It turns out the OnePlus 5T lacked Widevine Level 1, a software component that allows HD streaming. Fans frantically asked OnePlus to provide an over-the-air update to fix this, but OnePlus later clarified that they would need to send in their device to get the fix, since applying Widevine Level 1 requires physical connection from an authenticated PC. Needless to say that this cumbersome solution angered many customers.
OnePlus 5T Demand
Even so, the demand for the phone was higher than anticipated, said global marketing head and general manager for North America Kyle Kiang. In fact, this is exactly why they're halting sales of the phone in that region — there are simply no more units to sell, so why not just reproportion stocks for other markets and bring them to North America? Well, a spokesperson said replacing the power supply adapters for each unit would be too much of a hassle, so OnePlus isn't about to go that route.
What If You Really Want A OnePlus 5T?
Those who really want to purchase a OnePlus 5T will either have to look for a used model on online stores, as it's easy to imagine there'd be plenty of those. However, why not just wait for OnePlus's forthcoming OnePlus 6 flagship? Rumors about this phone are being thrown around, with a few reports claiming it'll come with a slightly larger display, a 256 GB model and up to 8 GB of RAM — for allegedly half the price of a $1,000 iPhone X?
For those who are looking for a low-cost phone with top-tier specs, why not consider the Essential PH-1, which has gotten its price cut to just $499? Sure, it's got no headphone jack, and sure, its camera is sort of lackluster, but it does have a gorgeous design, an excellent near-stock Android experience, a great screen, and premium-level internals.
So are you going to wait for the OnePlus 6 or look for alternatives? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
