What Are The Differences Between The Oppo R11 And OnePlus 5? Hands on.

You might have looked at the recently launched Oppo R11 and OnePlus 5 and simply thought they are the same physical product but with different specs. This is not the case!

I've been quite fortunate this week as my OnePlus 5 has arrived (no thanks to DHL) and it has finally given me the opportunity to answer one of my biggest questions about it. "Is the OnePlus 5 just a renamed and differently specced Oppo R11?".

Since even before the OnePlus 5 launched there has been a lot of online discussion about the similarities between the Oppo R11 and OnePlus 5, with many commenters simply believing that the two BBK owned companies have used the same physical design and just upped the specifications on the OP5.

With both phones in my hand, I can finally report that this is not the case.

Before both phones launched, I was fairly certain that the OnePlus 5 was just a rebranded Oppo R11. Photos of the phones online show that they are very similar in design, the R11 fits the OP5 case, some of the specs are identical (the camera specs are very similar) and it's not like OnePlus hasn't rebadged an Oppo before is it?

However, now that I have both phones I can confirm that while they are very similar and likely designed by the same person, they are in fact not the same phone internally or externally.

What are the physical differences between the Oppo R11 and OnePlus 5?

If you were to give both phones a quick glance, even with them both in your hand you could easily think that they are the same physical body and design, but on closer inspection, you'll come across plenty of physical differences;

The Oppo R11 is a thinner phone with a much rounder body. The edges and sides of the phone feature a round finish whereas the OnePlus 5 appears thicker and more angular.

The OnePlus 5 has a single, thick antenna on the rear of its shell while the Oppo R11 has a dual-line antenna design.

While the dual camera module on each phone appears identical, the OP5's doesn't protrude as much from the body (probably due to the thicker physical size).

The actual position of the main cameras units is slightly different too, which is only really noticeable when you use an Oppo R11 case on the OP5.

Between the cameras and flash on the rear of the OnePlus 5 is a microphone, the Oppo R11 doesn't have this.

The OnePlus 5 uses a Micro USB for DASH charge, while the Oppo R11 uses an older micro USB interface for VOOC charging. Oppo has drilled smaller speaker/microphone holes in the base of the R11 (again likely due to the thickness of the phone) the holes on the OP5 are physically larger.

In addition to the physical size, the speaker holes are also drilled in a different position. This is easy to see if you try to use the R11 case on the OP5.

While both phones have the power and volume rockers in similar locations the OnePlus 5 also has OnePlus' signature notification slider switch.

Micro SIM trays on both phones are completely different in design. The R11's is longer and can either use dual SIM or a single SIM and Micro SD while the OnePlus 5's is shorter has the SIM positioned differently and will only accept dual sims.

On top of these physical differences, there are also major differences in the hardware too. The OnePlus 5 comes with up to 8GB RAM, 128GB memory and a powerful Snapdragon 835 while the Oppo R11 has a mid-range Snapdragon 660, just 4GB RAM and 64GB internal memory.

When it comes to using each phone though it's the OS that comes loaded on each phone that really makes a huge difference. While my version of the Oppo R11 is a model designed for Singapore and does come with Google services, I have found the ColorOS to lag and be quite buggy (more details in my upcoming review). On the other hand, the OP5's Oxygen OS is snappy, responsive and so far bug-free (I don't even have the dreaded screen wobble).

I'm sure I'll come across more differences between each phone, but I think I've answered my own question to a satisfactory standard.

"Is the OnePlus 5 just a renamed and differently specced Oppo R11?" "No, it isn't"

All that remains to be seen is which of these phones is the better device, and I'll have the answer to that question in my upcoming reviews.