Back in January, OnePlus released its flagship smartphone for 2024 (our review here) at a starting price of Rs 65,000. Released alongside the flagship was the OnePlus 12R, a powerful mid-ranger that punches well above its weight. The 12R continues OnePlus’ tradition of offering flagship-level performance at a relatively affordable price. In true R Series fashion, it gets rid of the bell and whistles to appeal to an audience that wants a powerhouse in their hands without splurging an exorbitant amount of money. In India, the smartphone is priced at Rs 40,000. Unlike the OnePlus 11R, its successor gets a US release this year, where it costs $500. We’ve been using the smartphone for a week and have been really impressed by it. Could it be the flagship killer of the year? Find out in our OnePlus 12R review.
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In This Article
OnePlus 12R review: Design and Display
One of the better things about buying a OnePlus smartphone is the set of accessories you get inside the box. The OnePlus 12R retail package contains the smartphone, a 100W power adapter, a USB Type-A to Type-C charging cable, a body-coloured silicone cover, a SIM ejector tool, some stickers, a Red Cable Club membership card, phone hole seal stickers (for installing the screen protector), a safety guide, and a quick start guide. The smartphone is available in two colour variants – Cool Blue and Iron Gray.
Our ‘Cool Blue’ OnePlus 12R review unit came with a blue silicone cover, which we used quite a bit to prevent the glossy back panel from accumulating fingerprints. If you don’t prefer using a case with your phone, we’d suggest getting the Iron Gray colour variant for its frosted glass back panel with a matte-like finish. It needs to be said that the quality of the silicone case provided in the box was very good, something you don’t see quite often in this price category.
The design language of the OnePlus 12R is similar to its flagship counterpart. The two-step camera module at the back is aligned to the left and blends into the frame of the smartphone. The ‘Hasselblad’ tuning is reserved for the flagship device, which is why you won’t find its branding on 12R’s camera island. The OnePlus branding is present in the familiar central position on the curved glass back panel.
The aluminium frame of the smartphone holds the volume rocker keys and the power button on its right edge. On the left lies the iconic alert slider. The SIM card tray, USB Type-C port, primary microphone, and speaker grille are positioned at the bottom edge of the frame. Up top, lie the secondary speaker, IR blaster, and the secondary microphone.
The 6.78-inch LTPO4 AMOLED display on this smartphone can go as bright as 4,500 nits, which is simply astounding. The display doesn’t lose any legibility under direct sunlight. Being a curved panel, the bezels along the sides of the display are minimal and OnePlus has kept a good job of keeping their size in check along the vertical borders too. The smartphone has a 90.9% screen-to-body ratio. A refresh rate of 120Hz ensures a smooth browsing and gaming experience (more on that later). The touch response is snappy and fun. OnePlus has also fixed the position of the in-display fingerprint scanner. The OnePlus 11R (our review here) had it at the bottom of the screen. It is now aligned with the natural movement of the thumb.
The colours produced by this LTPO4 AMOLED panel are punchy and vivid. There are 4 colour modes on offer – Vivid, Natural, Cinematic, and Brilliant. On top of that, you can use the Image Sharpner and Video Colour Boost to enhance the quality of the images on the screen. Watching video content on the OnePlus 12R is a delightful experience. The smartphone has Widevine L1 support, which means you can play HD content across all streaming platforms. The stereo speaker is loud but produces a slightly boxy output.
OnePlus needs to pull up its socks when it comes to dust and water resistance. The OnePlus 12R has an IP64 rating which protects it against minor water splashes. Even the flagship OnePlus 12 does not offer flagship-grade water resistance with its limited IP65 rating.
OnePlus 12R review: Performance and Cameras
Powering the OnePlus 12R is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, which was the flagship chipset from Qualcomm last year. The smartphone is available in two RAM and storage variants – 8GB + 128GB (Rs 40,000) and 16GB + 256GB (Rs 46,000). On the Geekbench 6 app, the 12R scored 1,560 points in the single-core test and 4,533 points in the multi-core test.
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is a rock-solid processor. After an impressive showing in last year’s flagship smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, Xiaomi 13 Pro, OnePlus 11, iQOO 11 and more, it upholds its reputation on the OnePlus 12R. We did not experience any lags or delays while using the smartphone. General, everyday tasks like web browsing, instant messaging, video calling, navigation, and media playback were handled expertly. Multitasking on this device is a seamless experience. If you’re looking for a reliable performer, this smartphone is it.
Its versatile performance continues in the gaming department as well. This is where the display’s 120Hz refresh rate came in clutch as the OnePlus 12R managed to run titles like Call of Duty Mobile, BGMI, and Asphalt 9 in high settings. The cooling chamber within the smartphone does a good job of heat dissipation. Even after extended gaming sessions, the smartphone’s internal temperature remained at an acceptable level. There were no jitters or frame drops to be seen either.
Android 14-based Oxygen OS 14 provides a clean software experience on the OnePlus 12R. There is no bloatware on the device apart from the Netflix app, which can be easily uninstalled. We like the range of customisation options offered by OnePlus. You can personalise the AOD screen with your Bitmoji, a canvas of your face, or even a text and image of your choice.
We also like the privacy features offered by Oxygen OS 14. Our favourite is the ‘System Cloner’ which lets you set up a different password for a fresh system interface. The app lock and private safe are easily accessible as well. One of the underrated features of OnePlus smartphones is the ‘IR Remote’ app which lets you control household devices like the TV, AC, and music system with your smartphone.
The battery performance of this smartphone is phenomenal. It packs a massive 5,500 mAh battery, which lasts more than a day on moderate usage. If you use the smartphone conservatively, you can push its battery backup to two days. During the review period, we used the OnePlus 12R for watching video content, instant messaging, video calling, and a range of other tasks. You can get between 6-7 hours of Screen On Time on a single charge. The 100W SuperVOOC power adapter charges the phone in just over 30 minutes. There is no support for wireless charging, which is one of the tradeoffs that OnePlus has made to keep the cost down.
The rear camera module on the 12R comprises a 50MP primary shooter, an 8MP ultrawide lens, and a 2MP macro sensor. The 50MP main camera is delightful to use, no matter the lighting condition. The outdoor shots taken in ample daylight displayed vivid colours and a superb dynamic range. The pictures were detailed and well-exposed. The lack of Hasselblad tuning is visible if you compare the results with the flagship OnePlus 12, but it does not amount to being a dealbreaker.
The 8MP ultrawide lens does a good job of maintaining the colour composition in the images. Granted, it is a step behind its flagship counterparts, but the images taken with it are not soft at all. We found ourselves using this camera a lot. We were even impressed by how well it exposed the sky and maintained the colour richness. You can see the results for yourself down below.
The Night Mode kicks in automatically when you take images in limited lighting conditions. It does a good job of brightening the subject and minimising the grain in the images. OnePlus’ photoprocessing ability deserves all the credit here. We were surprised with how well the Night Mode functioned while taking pictures with the ultrawide camera.
Portrait shots taken with the OnePlus 12R are focused and detailed. The camera does a good job of separating the subject from the background and applying the correct degree of blur. The 2MP macro camera doesn’t find much use in this camera module, and it is baffling that OnePlus continues to shoehorn it in there. An entry-level telephoto lens would have been ideal.
Selfies taken with the 12MP front-facing camera are certainly ‘social media ready’, but don’t come across as overprocessed. This camera can take 1080p videos at 30 fps while the rear camera can record 4K videos at 30/60 fps.
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Verdict
We’re still only a couple of months into 2024, but we can already see the OnePlus 12R being the bargain of the year. At Rs 40,000 you get an excellent processor, a vivid display, delightful cameras, and a clean software experience. The 12R is a solid package that performs well across the board. An IP67 rating and a telephoto lens would certainly have been ideal, but given the price of the smartphone, we aren’t too fussed about missing those premium features. OnePlus 12R is an easy recommendation from us.
OnePlus 12R: Pros
- Super bright display
- Clean software experience
- Great primary camera
- Excellent chipset
- Affordable
OnePlus 12R: Cons
- Macro lens doesn’t need to be there
- Does not have an IP67 rating
