Pour one out for OnePlus, the phone maker that once aggressively challenged Apple and Samsung with “flagship killer” phones. The company has announced that, moving forward, no new products will be released in North America (U.S. and Canada) and Europe.
OnePlus called the pullout in both regions a “proactive global strategy adjustment” in a community post. The company assures customers that their existing devices will “continue to receive scheduled software updates and security patches” and “support will continue in accordance with our warranty and support obligations.” Furthermore, OnePlus says that after ColorOS 17 is released, users with supported OnePlus devices can “voluntarily update” to it.
While the news means less competition in what is already basically a duopoly between Apple and Samsung in the U.S., the writing for OnePlus has been on the wall. Earlier this year, Android Headlines broke the news that OnePlus would end operations in North America. OnePlus refuted the report, which itself was mired in controversy (the author had used AI to write the story). Almost six months after Android Headlines’ story, and OnePlus is officially dead in both North America and Europe.
OnePlus launched in North America to much viral buzz. Its first phone, the OnePlus One released in 2014, sold for $299 unlocked, promising a “fast and smooth” Android experience that was free of bloatware. (You have to remember that many Android phones at the time came preinstalled with carrier or third-party apps that not only ate up storage but slowed down performance.) This “clean” software quickly won the devotion of diehard Android fans.
The OnePlus One was a legitimately great value, but it was OnePlus’ marketing stunts that really vaulted the company to massive heights, including the original “Smash the Past” campaign, which asked people to film themselves destroying their existing phone to get a chance to buy a OnePlus One for $1.
With each phone release, OnePlus upped the viral marketing and leaned into teasers and excessive hyping via social media to drum up interest. For example, the OnePlus 2 launched in VR with a 360-degree video announcement.
OnePlus very quickly became a global name, expanding into more regions worldwide. All seemed well. The company’s phones kept getting better—notably, the camera quality improved significantly with the OnePlus 8 Pro—even as prices steadily increased, and the company expanded to accessories like wireless earbuds and smartwatches to build out an ecosystem.
But then things started to fall apart. In the fall of 2020, OnePlus cofounder Carl Pei, the face of the brand, abruptly left the company after reportedly clashing with CEO Pete Lau. Pei and Lau allegedly disagreed on the direction for OnePlus devices.
Pei went on to found Nothing, which started out selling affordable wireless earbuds with a distinct transparent design but now also sells eye-catching phones and retro-inspired wireless over-ear headphones, too.
After his exit, OnePlus struggled to generate the same kind of excitement it previously did. Even with partnerships like Hasselblad for its cameras and the one-off OnePlus Open foldable (a very good device, by the way), new flagship OnePlus phones lacked that je ne sais quoi that made past models so attractive. The OnePlus flame had long been extinguished internally, and new releases felt like repackaged versions of Oppo devices, its parent company.
OnePlus’ exit from North America and Europe isn’t the death of the brand itself. It’ll still release devices in Asia and, perhaps, lean more into mobile gaming. Oppo phones will likely replace OnePlus phones on store shelves in Europe over time. But the blow does hurt us Americans the most. Without a fighter like OnePlus, the iMessage chains we wear only get heavier.
