We still consider the original OnePlus Open to be the best foldable phone you can buy right now, but some new leaks suggest a successor isn't far away and could soon eclipse the impending Honor Magic V3.
According to prominent leaker Digital Chat Station on Weibo (via Android Authority), the OnePlus Open 2 will feature an “unprecedented level of thinness” alongside a host of other improvements. As before, it’s expected to be a rebranded Oppo phone, this time the Oppo Find N5.
The main spec upgrade will apparently be a Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 chipset (up from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2), and the Open 2 will also pack a triple camera setup with a 50MP main camera. It’s not yet clear how those cameras will differ from the current model, which already has a 64MP periscope telephoto.
Previous rumors from the same source have also hinted at a new 6,000mAh battery for the new foldable, which would be a big upgrade from the 4,805mAh cell in the current OnePlus Open.
While that battery rumor is more speculative, these new design rumors seem more plausible. Foldable phones are currently struggling to shrink in size to closer to that of non-foldable phones, with Honor gearing up to launch the Magic V3 at IFA 2024, and that phone has been confirmed to measure just 4.35mm when unfolded and 9.2mm when folded. The current OnePlus Open measures a comparatively beefy 11.9mm when folded.
The only problem for OnePlus Open 2 fans is that previous rumors pointed to an early 2025 launch rather than a year after the current model (which landed in October 2023).
Superficial longing
While this new battle for thinness between traditional phones (like the rumored iPhone Air) seems like a slightly unnecessary throwback to the early 2010s, it makes a lot more sense for foldable phones, which are naturally a bit thicker than the phones we've grown accustomed to.
This OnePlus Open 2 leak suggests the phone will be less than 10mm thick when closed. That would make it significantly thinner than the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, which is a comparatively thick 12.1mm when folded (and 5.6mm when unfolded). The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, meanwhile, is 10.5mm thick when folded, or 5.1mm when unfolded.
Still, it remains to be seen who will take the “thinnest foldable” crown between the Honor Magic V3 and the OnePlus Open 2. The Magic V3 measures just 4.35mm when unfolded and 9.2mm when folded.
The most important thing will be the phones' overall user experience, and our review of the OnePlus Open described it as “the only large foldable phone that doesn't feel like a compromise.” If the OnePlus Open 2 can fix its weaknesses (namely battery life, features, and its sizeable camera bump), then it will remain the frontrunner and retain the top spot overall in our foldable phone guide.
