OnePlus 2 launched in India at Rs. 24,999

Chinese handset maker OnePlus launched the highly-anticipated followup to its OnePlus One phone, the OnePlus 2 today. The launch, in what was largely a marketing gimmick, was livestreamed using an Android app and the OnePlus Cardboard, a cheap virtural reality headset that the company recently started selling.

The OnePlus 2 has two models -- 16 and 64 GB -- and is priced at ₹ 22,999 and ₹ 24,999 respectively.

Hardware

The hardware is powerful. It features a 5.5-inch full HD (1920x1080) IPS LCD in-cell display and runs Oxygen OS, OnePlus' Android variant based on Android Lollipop 5.1, the latest version of Android. It features dual-SIM slots and runs on a v64-bit QWualcomm Snapdragon 810 procesor, one of the fastest mobile processors in the world right now.

There's also a 13 megapixel rear camera and a 5 megapixel front camera. It also packs in a gigantic 3,300mAH battery.

The highlight, however, is a fingerprint sensor, similar to Apple's TouchID system. OnePlus claims that its fingerprint scanner is faster than Apple's but given that Apple's scanner is already pretty snappy, it remains to be seen how much this matters in real world usage.

A brand new connector

The OnePlus 2 also has a USB-C connector, which currently features on Apple's latest MacBook and Google's latest Pixel chromebook, and which is expected to take off as the new connection standard in the next year or so. USB-C is reversible, which means that you can insert it into the phone in any way you want.

'With the OnePlus 2, we're making a bet on the future, and doubling down on a holistic product experience,' said OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei at the launch.

Availability

The 64 OnePlus 2 will be available exclusively on Amazon (by invitation only) starting August 11. The 16 GB model will go on sale later in the year.