Beebom
Rating7
The OnePlus N6 sets the tone for new budget phones amidst the ongoing price hikes. It offers exceptional endurance, a clean design with a large footprint, and acceptable performance alongside OxygenOS. However, the cameras and display are huge letdowns. If battery life peaks on your priority list, then this is a phone to look out for in this price segment.
Pros
- Excellent battery life
- Decent design and build quality
- Comes with 45W charger
- Good everyday performance
Cons
- Cameras are mediocre
- Poor display resolution
- Software needs optimisation
The OnePlus N6 is the latest budget phone that OnePlus has launched under the new "N" series. It undercuts the Nord phones in pricing, providing some relief to the customers after the ruthless smartphone price hikes. But does it stand out as a value-for-money option? I spent a week with the phone to figure it out, and in this OnePlus N6 review, I will tell you whether you should buy it or not.
OnePlus N6 Box Contents
I have to give it to OnePlus on this one for not cutting down any of the necessities from the box contents. Here is everything you get with the OnePlus N6:
- OnePlus N6 smartphone
- Silicon case
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- 45W charger
- SIM ejector tool
- Pre-applied screen protector
- Paperwork
Before moving further, take a look at the OnePlus N6 key specs to get a better idea about the phone.
OnePlus N6 Key Details
Note: Our testing, opinion, and rating for this review are based on the phone's launch price. We recommend checking the current price before making a purchase decision.
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Build and Design
- 8.9 mm thickness, 224 grams weight
- Plastic frame and back, MIL-STD-810H compliant
- IP 64 dust and splash resistance
The OnePlus N6 might be the company's budget phone, but it looks anything but. Starting with the design, it carries a clean tone with a camera bump that shares a resemblance to the OnePlus 13s. But unlike the 13s, this is the exact opposite of compact. The OnePlus N6 stretches out to 6.8 inches in screen size, has a thick frame at 8.9 mm, and certainly feels bulky at 224 grams.
Just for comparison, the Nothing Phone 4a is 20 grams lighter than this device. This healthy design makes the device a little uncomfortable to carry, especially when the phone is in my pockets, as I can feel its heft while walking.
Given its massive footprint, carrying the phone was a hassle, as I kept constantly shifting it in my hands during my OnePlus N6 review period.
However, the overall in-hand feel of the phone is satisfactory. It has the same flat sides that I complained about in my Nothing Phone 4b review, but with chamfered edges to soften the effect. The back is made of plastic with a matte finish and protrudes a little bit from the phone's frame. I could feel it every time I grabbed the device, constantly being reminded that this is a budget phone.
Before you ask, the phone sports an IP65 rating. It doesn’t offer complete water protection, but it is enough to survive a surprise monsoon shower on my commute to the office.
So, the OnePlus N6 will surprise you with its bulky aesthetics, but it is still built like a brick for its price.
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Display and Audio Quality
- 6.8-inch HD+ (720 x 1570 pixels) LCD display
- 120Hz refresh rate, Panda glass protection
- 1,200 nits high brightness, 800 nits standard brightness
The OnePlus N6 comes with a 720p LCD screen and a 120 Hz refresh rate. This marks the first OnePlus phone to come with a resolution less than 1080p. Not even in the Nord series. The drop in resolution became obvious when I turned on the screen and spotted individual pixels here and there.
Watching content is a decent experience. The videos do look clean, and the audio from the speaker is loud enough, albeit there’s a lack of depth in the sound.
Since this is an LCD screen, the colours don't look punchy or vibrant like that of an AMOLED panel, nor does it get as bright outdoors, something I also pointed out in my OnePlus Nord CE 6 Lite review. It has a serviceable screen that should be enough for any basic content consumption.
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Performance Tested
- MediaTek Dimensity 6360 Apex Processor
- Up to 6 GB LPDDR4X RAM and 256 GB UFS 2.2 storage
In terms of performance, the OnePlus N6 comes with the MediaTek Dimensity 6360 Apex processor. This is a budget chipset that we have also seen on the Realme P4R. I have been using the 4GB RAM variant of the phone for this review, and here are the benchmark results.
In everyday use, it works well for basic tasks like running WhatsApp or Instagram, taking calls, replying to messages, or clicking some photos here and there. But I did notice regular stutters and hiccups during my OnePlus N6 review period.
The phone takes a second before launching an app and pauses while scrolling. The experience isn’t as smooth as that of similarly priced phones like the Realme P4X.
Let me state the obvious: this is not a gaming phone! Still, I tried Call of Duty: Mobile and BGMI, and both games surprisingly ran at 60 FPS on the lowest graphics settings. Both games are playable, even though the phone constantly dropped frames.
I also did not come across any heating issues, and the phone barely got warm while running 3DMark's Extreme Wildlife Stress test, which is great news.
But if your motive is gaming, I would highly recommend getting the 6 GB RAM variant of the OnePlus N6 or spending more to get the Motorola Edge 70 Fusion instead.
| Game | Settings |
|---|---|
| BGMI | Smooth + Extreme (60fps) |
| CoD Mobile | Low + Max (60fps) |
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Software and Updates
- OxygenOS 16 based on Android 16
- 2 years of Android updates and 3 years of security patches
The OnePlus N6 comes with OxygenOS 16 based on Android 16, and it will get 2 major Android updates and 3 years of security patches, which is pretty good for a phone at this price.
But talking about the OS itself, as soon as I set up the phone, I could tell it was not running the OxygenOS I’m so used to. Instead, it is running a watered-down version without any transparent backgrounds or enhanced animations that we love. In fact, there are no animations here, probably removed given the limitations of the chipset.
As a result, the phone ran fine, and you would get the fundamental OxygenOS experience. But there were stutters, hiccups and lags that became a constant annoyance during my OnePlus N6 review period.
The phone would not register my fingerprint, or there would be a second of delay, and the same would happen when opening apps, going back in said apps or doing anything else. I couldn't help but wish Android Go was still alive because the current batch of budget phones would heavily benefit from it.
The OnePlus N6 also comes with a bunch of bloatware apps that can be easily removed. So while you are getting OxygenOS with the phone, it is not the fluid experience that we have seen on the likes of the OnePlus 15 or the OnePlus Nord 6.
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Camera Review
- 50 MP main camera with GalaxyCore GC50F6 sensor
- 8 MP selfie camera
- 1080p @ 30 FPS recording from front and back cameras
As for cameras, the OnePlus N6 packs a humble setup with a 50 MP main camera and an 8 MP front-facing shooter. These are entry-level optics, and here's how they perform in everyday use.
Main Camera
The main camera takes good photos during the day when there is plenty of light in the surroundings. The images have a punchy look, especially if you look at the greenery. It seems like the saturation has been dialled up to 11, and it seems good for sharing on social media apps.
However, the details are severely absent from the image, and the quality looks visibly compressed even in daylight shots. During night or low-light scenarios, the images turn out soft, blurry and with blown-out exposure, as is evident from the Beebom logo in the shots above. There is not much depth or detail to discuss here, given the poor image output.
Front Camera
Selfie camera photos look decent, as it captures a natural tone pretty well, and the bokeh effect is okay-ish. It blurs out the background pretty well but often fumbles around the hair of the subject, blurring it out too. But it does not make much difference when the rest of the image also looks blurry.
Video Quality
The OnePlus N6 can record 1080p @ 30 FPS videos from both the front and the main cameras. However, the 6 GB RAM variant does offer 1080p @ 60 FPS recording from the main camera.
The quality is average at best, but it gets the job done. However, since there is no stabilisation to speak of, the footage does come out looking shaky and unstable.
Battery Life and Charging
- 8,000mAh battery capacity
- 45W SuperVOOC charging
The battery is the strongest argument this phone has compared to the rest of the spec sheet. It packs a massive 8,000 mAh battery capacity, which can trump its competitors easily. OnePlus claims it can last 3 days, and while that may vary from person to person, during my OnePlus N6 review period, I got about 11 hours of screen-on time.
This is insane and almost on par with the Realme P4 Power. The screen time is enough to finish 5 movies back to back and still have some juice left in the tank.
But the bigger battery comes with a longer charging time. The device comes with a 45W charger in the box, and it took me around 1 hour and 10 minutes to go from 9–100%, which is not bad at all.
OnePlus N6 Review Verdict: Should You Buy It?
The OnePlus N6 sets the standard for the new generation of budget phones as a result of the ongoing price hikes. The huge battery is a highlight, and it finds itself among the best battery backup phones under Rs 20,000.
It makes necessary compromises to keep the prices low, but at the cost of a satisfying user experience that was once the staple of OnePlus. But given the dwindling nature of the smartphone market and the company itself, it is not a bad offering, just bad timing.
You can check out its competitors like the aforementioned Realme P4X or even the 6GB variant of the Realme P4R. But they might get hit with a price hike soon. So, if battery is your main concern and you are looking for a phone on a budget, then I can recommend the OnePlus N6, but only the 6GB RAM variant.
