Here's why it's called OnePlus 12 and not OnePlus 12 Pro

OnePlus is gearing up to launch the OnePlus 12 next week, and the company is promising some significant upgrades here. In fact, the firm says the phone is poised to surpass all rival Pro handsets. So why is it called the OnePlus 12 and not the OnePlus 12 Pro?

OnePlus China president Li Jie has outlined the company’s reasons for calling it the OnePlus 12 instead of the OnePlus 12 Pro.

“When companies define products, they often first define a ‘Pro version’ with a strong product, and then make various trade-offs on the product to get a so-called ‘standard version’ to hold the price. This obviously cannot meet the needs of flagship users!” the company executive said in a machine-translated Weibo post.

“We believe in ‘product strength first’ and do not want to compromise on any experience that is important to users,” Jie asserted. The executive also claimed that areas of the OnePlus 12 such as performance, display, signal, imaging, haptic feedback, and battery life have all been “done to the extreme.”

There will have to be cutbacks somewhere, right?

It’s an interesting justification, but the company will have to make a few cutbacks if the OnePlus 12 has a very aggressive price tag. For example, the $699 OnePlus 11 lacked full-blown water resistance, wireless charging, and a periscope camera. 

The upcoming flagship is indeed bringing a 64MP periscope camera, while OnePlus has quietly confirmed wireless charging support too. So we’re keen to see whether an IP67 or IP68 rating will be on board too.

However, it’s theoretically possible that the OnePlus 12 will see a price hike to accommodate some of these new additions. So we’ll just have to wait for pricing at the Chinese and global launches.

Then again, if the OnePlus 12 is a no-compromise flagship phone and brings a significant price hike, you have to wonder why it isn’t just called the OnePlus 12 Pro in the first place.