OnePlus 16 12GB+256GB Silver

OnePlus officially unveiled the design of the OnePlus 16, built around what it calls an interstellar exploration theme. Three colours were confirmed: Tomorrow Starlight, Dark Forest and Martian Masterpiece. Reservations opened the same day across OnePlus's retail channels in China, and the Tomorrow Starlight unit went on display in OPPO stores nationwide. Pricing was not announced.

The headline colour uses a new nano-grating texture under a silk-glass finish, so the back shifts like a drifting starfield as the light angle changes. Hidden in the panel is a star map with the number 16 and a set of galactic coordinates, and the edition introduces OnePlus's first breathing light: it can glow steadily, breathe, flow or flash for calls, notifications, charging, startup and gaming. Martian Masterpiece takes its look from hematite on the Martian surface — matte with a faint metallic sheen — and Dark Forest completes the range.

OnePlus China president Li Jie confirmed the OnePlus 16 will be the first phone to ship with ColorOS 17, and the first to deliver a system-wide 165Hz refresh rate rather than limiting it to selected apps. The phone is positioned as OnePlus's peak performance flagship.

OnePlus confirmed an October 2026 launch and named the headline specifications: a 9000mAh battery with 50W wireless charging, a 2nm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 platform, a custom display reaching up to 185Hz, and a full-focal-length triple camera led by a 200MP main sensor. The design carries over the square metal camera deco, large rounded corners and the customisable AI key.

Chinese media report the OnePlus 16 debuts BOE's next-generation panel, co-developed with OnePlus using a new X4 emissive material said to improve both colour and power efficiency over the previous generation. A flat 6.78-inch 1.5K panel with very narrow four-sided bezels is expected. OnePlus has confirmed the 165Hz and 185Hz figures but not the panel details.

Reservation listings point to configurations running from 12GB of memory with 256GB of storage up to 16GB with 1TB, with LPDDR6 memory and UFS 4.1 storage. OnePlus has not confirmed the configurations or which memory type is used.

Leaks describe a 200MP main camera joined by a 50MP periscope telephoto and a 50MP ultra-wide, with a 50MP front camera. Some reports instead point to a second 200MP sensor on the telephoto. OnePlus has confirmed only that the triple camera covers the full focal range and is led by a 200MP main sensor.

Reports put wired charging somewhere between 100W and 120W alongside the confirmed 50W wireless. Store staff have also indicated that Dark Forest and Tomorrow Starlight use glass backs while Martian Masterpiece uses fibreglass. Neither has been confirmed by OnePlus.

For reference, the OnePlus 15 launched in China in October 2025 at 3,999 yuan for 12GB+256GB, rising to 5,399 yuan for 16GB+1TB, though memory costs have pushed prices up across the industry since. Nothing is official until the October launch event.