OnePlus goes back to making affordable smartphones, launch set for July

OnePlus is set to start making affordable smartphones once again. In recent years, the Chinese smartphone maker gradually shifted base to premium segment, leaving the midrange segment it once made mainstream in price conscious Indian smartphone market open for others. Now, the company is set to make cheaper OnePlus smartphones, which would launch in India and Europe in July. The upcoming phone will be a part of company’s new smartphone series, which will coexist with company’s premium smartphone line-up.

The company has not officially named the series or the first product. It has neither revealed the exact India launch date plans. However, it has started a new Instagram account for the upcoming series with the name OnePlusLiteZThing, which hints at the possible naming nomenclature. While the technology enthusiasts are calling the upcoming phone the OnePlus Z and OnePlus Nord, there is nothing official and we might get to hear about the products soon as the company is also launching in India its affordable OnePlus smart TVs on July 2.

“Never Settle has always been at the core of OnePlus. For more than 6 years, that has meant working hard to always deliver the best experience for flagship smartphone users. However, as we’ve grown together with our community, we know that there are many people who want a really solid smartphone that meets their everyday needs, and for a more accessible price,” said Pete Lau in a blogpost on OnePlus official forum.

He added, “As we have always done when we try something new, we are going to start relatively small with this new product line by first introducing it in Europe and India.”

OnePlus is also expanding team to bring affordable products and to expand to more product categories. The affordable OnePlus smartphone will be led by Paul Yu, who has headed product hardware development on previous OnePlus devices.