The OnePlus 16 looks like an interesting new phone – shame you won't be able to buy it
There's an addition to this future phone that we haven't seen before
Quick summary
The OnePlus 16 is expected to come with an interesting model that integrates lighting into the back of the phone.
This seems to extend beyond simple notifications, while the design itself is unique. Unfortunately the phone won't be coming to the US or Europe.
OnePlus has officially shown off the OnePlus 16 as it prepares to launch the device in China, with an interesting detail on the back of the phone.
The phone has been shared in three colours, which translate to Tomorrow's Starlight, The Dark Forest and A Martian Masterpiece. On the back of the Tomorrow's Starlight model there's something called Interstellar Lighting Effect.
This, it seems, is a custom lighting arrangement, a bit like the Glyph Matrix from a Nothing phone, allowing an additional notification panel on the rear of the device.
This goes a little further than Google's Hi-Light feature, offering notifications about incoming calls, text, game highlights and more. In the images, it says Area 16 and includes some coordinates.
It appears that the lighting will be in two places on the back of the phone, down towards the bottom and up at the top next to the camera array. The Tomorrow's Starlight model isn't a flat colour, it appears to be more like a map, with contour lines.
The new device was officially shared on Weibo (via Android Authority), but the sad news is that you won't actually be able to buy it: OnePlus has officially withdrawn from Europe and the US, so it's likely only to see the light of day in China.
The lighting effect is an interesting addition to the phone, which from the rest of the design looks like the OnePlus 15. Exactly how much customisation it will offer and what the gaming features will be, we just don't know.
It's thought that the OnePlus 16 will run on the Snapdragon Elite Extreme Gen 6, soon to be announced, and there could be a 9000mAh battery with 100W charging.
A 200-megapxiel camera could lead the charge, with a 50-megapixel ultrawide and 50-megapixel telephoto in support. It will run on ColorOS.
The phone will come in 12 and 16GB options, with storage up to 1TB. Reservations are open in China, although the phone hasn't officially been launched yet. It's likely that it's one of the devices that we'll see announced more formally after Qualcomm's next-gen Snapdragon announcement expected on 22 September.
