The compact OnePlus 13T has a huge battery – and one small problem
OnePlus is breaking new ground with the 13T. The firm's first compact flagship smartphone has just been officially revealed in China, with top-tier hardware, a brand new look, and an absolutely gigantic battery. Thought small phones couldn't hold high capacity cells? Think again: the 6.32in OnePlus 13T has a mammoth 6260mAh on tap, which should give it epic staying power.
The firm's silicon-carbide battery tech has let it squeeze more capacity than any Samsung, Apple or Google smartphone on sale today. The 13T even manages to eclipse the considerably bigger OnePlus 13. 80W wired charging means you won't be waiting ages to refuel it when you eventually run low, either.
As well as shrinking the dimensions, OnePlus has mixed things up on the styling front. The 13T gets the flat sides and flat glass that are all the rage right now, but swaps the circular rear camera bump for an offset square one that looks similar to the one on Google's Pixel 9 Pro Fold. It holds two 50MP rear snappers: one wide-angle and a 2x telephoto.
The 13T also becomes the first OnePlus to swap its signature alert slider for a customisable button. It can still switch sound modes, but can also be set to launch the camera app, record a voice note, take a screenshot or activate do not disturb.
Up front you're getting a 2640×1216 resolution, 1-120Hz LTPO AMOLED display with Dolby Vision and HDR10+ support. Underneath, power comes from a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, either 12GB or 16GB of RAM, and as much as 1TB of on-board storage. It will arrive running ColorOS 15, OnePlus' streamlined take on Android 15, and come bundled with a bunch of AI functions that are seemingly obligatory for all new phones to have.
The 13T is now live on the OnePlus China website and available to order from the Chinese Oppo web store. Prices start at CNY3,399 (around $460/£350) with a pre-release discount. The phone will start shipping from the 30th of April – though as of right now, OnePlus has no plans to sell it anywhere outside of China.
That colossal battery could be the reason why. Shipping laws in the EU governing the size of an individual battery cell forced the firm to use smaller capacities in its previous phones, and the 13T's compact dimensions might not have enough room for a multi-cell arrangement like the larger OnePlus 13.
Pocket-friendly rivals like the Samsung Galaxy S25, Apple iPhone 16 Pro and Google Pixel 9 Pro all make do with considerably smaller batteries, so I'll keep my fingers crossed OnePlus finds a workaround.
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Zoom is handled entirely by cropping and enhancing the main snapper, up to 10x. With both sensors being largely known quantities, the S25 Edge didn't throw up any surprised during my testing. It's a very capable cameraphone, with shots that lean towards vibrant colours and a strong HDR effect to maximise how much of a scene is exposed. You get a little more control through the camera app than you did in previous years, with a set of highly customisable filters for those who prefer a more high contrast look. Samsung's image processing remains high grade, putting it on par with Apple and Google in most lighting situations. If you want even more definition or a filmic feel to your shots, you'll have to head for the best cameraphones from Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi. While the cropped zoom shots can't compete with a dedicated telephoto lens, 2x images are pretty much lossless, and 4x pics hold up very well indeed. I wouldn't reach for the 10x setting unless I really had no way of getting closer to my subject, so I respect Samsung for not offering an even wilder digital zoom figure for the sake of it. It's where you're making the biggest sacrifice by buying the Edge over the Ultra, in my opinion. Consistency between the main and ultrawide lenses isn't quite as good as I've seen from Samsung in the past, and the 12MP pixel count means the secondary snapper shows a noticeable drop-off in detail – particularly in low light. The colours it captures are still vivd enough and exposure is well-judged. It also doubles as an effective macro shooter, swapping automatically from the main sensor when you get to around 5cm from a subject. Of course there are plenty of generative image editing tools to choose from, including generative expand that convincingly fills the gaps of tightly-cropped pics, and an AI eraser that's still leagues ahead of what Apple Intelligence can manage. Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge verdict Being first on the scene with any new tech counts for a lot, so Samsung gets a big thumbs up for redefining 'thin phones' before the likes of Apple could. The Galaxy S25 Edge is fantastically slim and light, yet still packs in flagship-grade power beneath its big, beautiful screen. The OneUI interface is as slick as ever, and that lead lens can take some particularly pleasing photos. Battery life is the elephant in the room. Barely being able to scrape through a single day of moderate use is a disappointment, no two ways about it, and charging speeds are properly pedestrian. The sooner Samsung steps up its game here, the better. That puts the Galaxy S25 Edge in an awkward position. The cheaper S25 Plus isn't exactly a porker, yet it lasts considerably longer per charge; and if photography matters most, the flagship S25 Ultra isn't an awful lot more cash. The line-up will make more sense when Edge inevitably replaces Plus, but right now you're paying a premium for diminutive dimensions – and getting a shorter lifespan to boot. Still, I'm betting plenty of people will be willing to break out the credit card while the S25 Edge remains a unique proposition. Stuff Says… Score: 4/5 The gloriously thin and light Galaxy S25 Edge will surely usher in a new breed of skinny smartphones. It's powerful and takes a great snap, though poor battery life does let the side down. Pros Sets the standard for thin phones going forward Flagship-grade performance and screen High quality main camera Cons Battery life and charging speeds disappointing Can't match thicker camera phones for zoom ability Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge technical specifications Screen 6.7in, 3120×1440 AMOLED w/ 120Hz CPU Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy Memory 12GB RAM Cameras 200MP, f/1.7 w/ PDAF, OIS + 12MP, f/2.2 ultrawide w/ PDAF rear 12MP, f/2.2 front Storage 256/512GB Operating system Android 15 w/ OneUI 7 Battery 3900mAh w/ 25W wired, 15W wireless charging Dimensions 158x76x5.8mm / 6.23×2.98×0.23in 163g / 5.75oz
