The OnePlus Open was well received on its release in October 2023 (we described it as “the only foldable phone that does not compromise” in our review OnePlus Open), so it was more than a little disappointing to hear that a very reducing Open 2 will not hit the shelves from soon.
In a press release published on the ONEPLUS community forum in February, OnePlus announced that he had “made the decision not to publish a foldable” in 2025, noting that Oppo – OnePlus “Sister Company -” now takes the lead in the foldable segment “with the Oppo Find N5 (which, moreover, is still not available outside China at the time of the editorial).
“It’s not a step back, it’s a recalibration,” said OnePlus at the time – but what exactly does that mean? We asked the company to develop its reasoning during a recent sponsored visit to OnePlus HQ in Guangdong, China. Rudolf Xu, principal director of product marketing for OnePlus, had this to say:
“In the foldable industry, the common challenge for each smartphone manufacturer is [working out] How to make the phone thinner, lighter and the fold less visible, while not sacrificing other key specifications when you try to resolve these challenges, “XU told Techradar.
“At OnePlus, we want to bring the best possible experience [to the user]. If you are looking at the Open Open, even until today, it still has very competitive specifications, honestly. This is more of a synchronization situation. We think of the way we want to solve these [aforementioned] challenges in a better way. This is why we decided not to launch a foldable this year. »»
The OnePlus Open, even until today, always has very competitive specifications.
Rudolf XU, OnePlus
It is therefore clear that the desire to provide significant innovation (that is to say non-iterative) on the foldable market is at the heart of OnePlus’ decision to delay its foldable plans-but there are also economic factors at stake here.
Xu explained: “There is also a figure that I can share [that will help justify our decision]. If you check the latest counterpoint searches, foldable shipments increased by 2.9% in annual sliding in 2024, which was actually lower than expected. The foldable market increases, for sure, but it will always take time to the foldable to become current and to really, say, cross the abyss and become a product for the majority [of people]. “”
In other words, the foldable market is simply not yet large enough for regular products to launch economically viable – at least for OnePlus.
Samsung continues to publish book and style foldables on an annual basis (the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and the Galaxy Z Flip 7 are the next on the agenda), but it is true that the South Korean giant has more resources at its disposal, not to mention a much larger user base.
The good news is that the Open 2 OnePlus is not only a pipe dream. OnePlus has confirmed in its aforementioned declaration that it does not completely withdraw from the foldable market – “our decision to take a break from the foldable for this generation does not mean a gap in the category,” said the brand. And since we do not expect a new model in 2025, it is prudent to assume that the Open 2 OnePlus, when it will eventually arrive, will not only be an Oppo Rebadged Find N5 (although we are huge fans of this particular device).
What do you think of the decision of OnePlus and the state of foldable phones in 2025 more generally? Let us know in the comments.
