Purported OnePlus 7 images reveal a pop-up camera and no notch

OnePlus might already be moving away from the teardrop notch on the OnePlus 6T for the company’s next flagship phone. A photo posted to Weibo (and republished by Slashleaks) shows a screen with a slim bezel running around it and no notch to be seen. There’s what looks to be a pop-up camera visible at the top left, so it seems OnePlus has chosen that approach instead of a slider mechanism for the entire phone. Think more along the lines of the Vivo Nex and less so Oppo’s Find X.

It’s difficult to assess the image’s authenticity since it’s fairly dark, but it does line up with renders created by OnLeaks. Will a motorized pop-up camera affect the OnePlus 7’s long-term durability or bump up the price of a phone line that keeps getting more expensive each year? Hopefully the answer to both questions is no, but as Gizmodo notes, this is a less traditional and riskier design than the last several OnePlus phones.

OnePlus has already suggested that the OnePlus 7 will not offer wireless charging, one of the last remaining features that the company continues to ignore. CEO Pete Lau claims wireless charging is “far inferior” to OnePlus’ wired charging speeds, which are some of the fastest around on any phone.

According to SlashGear, the OnePlus 7 will feature a 6.5-inch OLED screen with an in-screen fingerprint reader, and on the back will be three rear cameras (including a time-of-flight 3D sensor). The renders also show the company’s signature notification switch, USB-C, and a small earpiece right above the front display.

The OnePlus 6T was the first OnePlus phone to be sold by a major US carrier (T-Mobile) and the first to offer support for Verizon’s network. It’s unclear exactly when the OnePlus 7 will be announced, but the 6 was unveiled last May. So based on the usual pattern, we should see it within the next few months with a OnePlus 7T following later in the year.