Why Oneplus Will Become Next the Oppo ?
OnePlus Origins
OnePlus was a revolutionary idea at the time when leading brands like Nokia,Motorola,Samsung and many other were finding it difficult to identify their core identity in the "smartphone" industry. The idea was simple and to the point - create a clean and optimized interface for the user at "reasonable" price. Now, the idea sounds holistic and clear , but what matters is the implementation, right ? That's where the marketing team of this new nascent brand came up with a wonderful idea to trick the human mind. What was this brilliant idea you ask ? Well, it was just an invitation. Yes, that's right! Invitations! BUT, the invitation supply would be limited so as to create a sense of secrecy and eliteness leading to mass hysteria. There was hardly any glamourous advertisements used and the reach was unlimited (so to say). Only people with these invitations could purchase this absolutely brand new phone. This spread like wildfire among the young generation (at the time) and before you know it OnePlus became a sensation. I admit, I myself fell for this strategy as I was "young" and "naive" , but it surely was exciting. I remember when I used to hunt for these invitations online along with my friends with aim of just having one of those invites and had not really thought about going ahead for the purchase! Such was the craze.
Fast forward to 2020, from being such a wonderful company which stood out not by doing something extraordinary but doing the basic thing perfectly, to falling for the corporate hunger for growth , growth and growth, it has been yet another company that has lost its path.
OnePlus - the new X ?
For a brand that is so well established, one can imagine that whatever it does that thing is automatically associated with it, right ? Like - Best Android Software - Oneplus, Best Software Updates - Oneplus, Best Designed Phone - Oneplus(debatable for sure) , Best User Experience - Oneplus, Most Loyal Community - Oneplus ! You get the drift ? Now, imagine this brand getting a title such as " the New X" would be devastating to say the least. Who would want to be associated as the new X when you yourself WERE the X ?
Unfortunately, it looks like Oneplus is entering that territory. Up until 2018, Oneplus would launch just 2-3 models and would focus round the year just to get it perfect. It wouldn't stop just for the product to get launched but also extend the support post launch for at least 2 years. From 2019 onwards started a new strategy wherein they started introducing more models to increase their presence and capture more of the market. In 2020, they introduced a slew of models and 2 new categories for the budget segment. Now, they are launching atleast 5 models per year and it's only increasing. This year it's not even July and they have already launched 4 models. One might think that is a good thing ,right ? Well, it's good for the business but not for the consumer.
The Downfall
Here are some of the reasons why this could be the beginning of the end for the brand Oneplus ( metaphorically speaking ) :
1. Software Quality :
This is one of the least talked subjects in tech community and is heavily under rated. For any smartphone, the software is as important as the hardware. If the software doesn't make the best possible use of the hardware, then it's not offering the user the best possible experience! And to get the software quality upto the mark and high standards set by itself, Oneplus definitely needs more time to invest. The number of people working on it wouldn't matter as much as spending quality time brainstorming upon optimizing the software as a whole. With more number of models being released per year, it's obvious that Oneplus would find it difficult to maintain its software quality.
2. Upgrades!
If the baseline software for the phone itself is unoptimized then the future releases would have to either fix those issues and improve on top of that , or just live with those issues and introduce features anyway. Which one do you thing any company would go for ? The upgrades and UX are already getting worse with so many bugs and issues floating around on the internet.
3. Consumer Fatigue :
With so many models being released, the users will no longer find the product interesting or new or exciting. This is the exact same issue with many other brands and it was something Oneplus had solved in the earlier days. Now, the user won't find a distinction between Oneplus and other brands. It's just another ******* - X?
4. Design :
For any smartphone manufacturer, the design of the phone is one of the top most things to decide and tinker with. It's the first thing the common user would interact with. Over the last couple of years, people have started noticing a sluggishness with respect to the design overhaul and it's no longer a distinct phone. Back in the days, the moment my friend would take out his phone many of us would gasp and immediately understand it was a Oneplus phone. But, now it's just very similar to the many ones floating around in the ocean of smartphones. It definitely needs to reinvent itself.
5. Carl Pei :
Carl Pei left Oneplus in September 2020 and joined a audio accessory startup called "Nothing". The entire community was disappointed to know of this news and many of them started wondering about the direction the company would go in. Imagine if Steve Jobs had left Apple at its peak and joined some other venture ? (Not exactly, but lot less in magnitude) The company still has Pete Lau for heading the company into the future, but Carl Pei's impact could be seen in the last decade of OnePlus.
Will it Survive ?
I'm sure Oneplus would definitely survive and still give a tough competition to other Android brands, but it seriously needs to take a step back and rethink its strategy going forward. Is the sales "numbers" really as important as the quality, relationship with the consumers, loyalty and above all originality of the brand ? I guess we will get our answers in the future! Do let us know if you agree with our analysis or even otherwise!
