OnePlus 6T – An evolution or a strategic compulsion?

OnePlus, the company made famous by the “Flagship Killer” moniker can be lauded for being the first to truly redefine what one would consider a budget flagship. Right from the inaugural edition launched in 2014, the company has grown by leaps and bounds both from a valuation standpoint as well as how it has made its way into the list of top 3 smartphones one would consider while evaluating their flagship smartphone purchase. OnePlus recently launched its flagship for the second half of 2018, the OnePlus 6T, that really questions the rational of following a 6 month flagship refresh. Is the OnePlus launch strategy a victim of boardroom demands, or does the new flagship actually have a value proposition to justify its existence.

The Whys?

I have always questioned a company’s rational of a 6 month product lifecycle because it leaves customers always contemplating their purchase. The likes of Sony and OnePlus have a strategy which is hazardous to the brand, while what their South Korean rivals viz. LG and Samsung follow is arguably a better approach. Well what do these brands do – they position their products differently. LG G series and LG V series are 2 devices with pretty much identical specifications, but the G line looks to cater to the average consumer, while the V series caters to the media mavericks. Similarly the Galaxy S series caters to the average consumer while the Note series caters to the professionals who do more with their device. While these devices are pretty much identical, each of these devices have an annual upgrade cycle and if you were a well-informed consumer, your preference is very clear.

In case of OnePlus, the question of upgrading now to waiting for the ‘T’ version is catastrophic for a brand. The ‘T’ upgrade is becoming more and more meaningless with every subsequent year since the upgrades are minuscule to justify its price. But why is a brand hell-bent on launching a new product every six months when what it has to offer isn’t noteworthy.

The brand's strategy

While OnePlus would say that technology is getting updated every six months and hence the need for a ‘T’ variant, I think there is more than what meets the eye. Firstly, in Android land, there are a zillion handsets launched with pretty much identical specifications at extremely competitive price points. So the pace at which the retail price crashes is way faster than say a device from Apple, who is the sole device manufacturer for iOS. OnePlus is no exception here and their devices also go through a price crash. But the brand would still be able to maintain reasonable profits as the component costs drop considering its proximity to the end of its lifecycle. This is where the ‘T’ makes absolute strategic sense, since it not only helps OnePlus reset its prices, but it also gets to benefit from the lower component costs, since the hardware is mostly the same as the previous device.

Let us take the most recent example of the OnePlus 6T. The device doesn’t have anything new, but for 4 improvements and 1 pain point. The improvements - bigger display with a smaller notch, an in-display fingerprint scanner, a slightly bigger battery, and an increase in base storage to 128GB. The one pain point – the ironic removal of the headphone jack! But for these, the 6T is the same as the 6, with inflated prices. I definitely think the launch of the 6T is more a strategic compulsion than anything else. The existence of this device is meaningless for everybody other than the brand. Don’t get me wrong the Oneplus devices are undoubtedly the best bang for buck devices that one can buy today, but I do not accept their public reasoning for a ‘T’ launch.

Final thoughts

OnePlus has been one of the beneficiaries of the sudden increase in the flagship smartphone prices since they now are able to swiftly indulge in the same with every subsequent release and still claim that they are more affordable than the $1000 flagships in the market. But what works against them with their 'T' release is that in most markets the flagships launched in the first half of the year from the likes of Samsung and LG, being victims of price crash, now retail for as much as the OnePlus flagship while offering a lot more features. For instance the S9 and LG G7 offers IP68 (ingress protection), a higher resolution quad HD display, better audio solutions, arguably better cameras and the list would go on.

While it is easy to say what OnePlus is doing isn’t ideal from a customer standpoint, the alternatives for a company like OnePlus aren’t too many. The easier and proven approach will be the ones adopted by Samsung and LG, by having 2 flagships that are positioned differently and work towards reducing the effects of cannibalizing one another’s sale, as well as addressing post purchase dissonance of customers. While price drops are inevitable, by opting for this strategy, brands can offer 2 similar products at varying price points and ensure customers stick to their brand, which today is the biggest challenge in Android land. Well, doesn't that lead to unnecessary fragmentation? (That question needs a dedicated blog in itself)

I still go by what I said in my 2013 blog post - Multiple Product cycles- The strategy to revive declining numbers

“Companies should definitely avoid flagship overkill by introducing multiple devices in short bursts and annoy the customer. Brands should also refrain from launching half-baked devices only to improve upon features or flaws and re-launch them in different packages and call it an improved or more capable device in the future. The customers will not continue to fall for such ploys and its high time companies step up and respect the fact that more than one flagship is one too many in the premium smartphone space and that there should be just one that gets the job done!”