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OnePlus CEO says 'there's still a demand' for cheap phones, will deliver soon

In a world of more and more expensive flagship phones, one CEO thinks there's room for a cheap smartphone.
By
May 26, 2020
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In a world where smartphones are going well over $1,000, OnePlus believes there’s still room for cheap phones.

OnePlus founder and CEO Pete Lau was recently interviewed by Fast Company. One of the key takeaways is that OnePlus isn’t ready to give up on affordable devices. Specifically, the company appears to be planning a cheaper device India, with plans to bring it to North America and Europe later. More likely than not, this will be the OnePlus Z, but that’s only speculation for now.

“What we’re seeing is that with current products, there’s still a demand from a large consumer base for a more suitable price that enables more consumers to be able to access OnePlus products,” Lau says. “That’s a really important insight, and it’s something that we’re taking into very serious consideration.”

OnePlus broke into the smartphone market with cheaper devices, so getting back to that would be a return to form of sorts.

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The company didn’t announce any new products as part of this proclamation. Rather, it’s just the CEO talking about plans for the company as time goes on. That means that long-rumored OnePlus Z wasn’t actually announced. In fact, it wasn’t even mentioned.

In the interview, he also said, “We can look at it as having a more affordable product offering. But all products that still remain up to the OnePlus standard … and through this enabling, more people to have access to OnePlus products.”

In the end, it’s all about getting its devices into the hands of more users, and a cheap OnePlus phone could be the way to do that. After all, not everyone can afford to spend more than $1,000 on their phone, and most companies offer budget devices. Even Google has the Pixel 4a on the horizon and the Pixel 3a on the market already.