When it comes to foldable smartphones, OnePlus currently offers only a book-style foldable phone, the OnePlus Open, which competes directly with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5. However, a new rumor says that the company might soon launch a clamshell foldable smartphone, which means that OnePlus could soon have a competitor for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 or the upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 6 as well.
According to a post from an account that goes by Smart Pickachu on Weibo, OnePlus might launch a foldable smartphone with a clamshell design this year. He claims that this upcoming device might feature a telephoto camera at the rear in addition to the primary and ultrawide (macro) cameras. For your reference, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 has a primary and an ultrawide camera at the rear, and it misses out on a telephoto camera, which is one of the phone’s major drawbacks. So, OnePlus’ upcoming foldable clamshell smartphone might be ahead in the camera department compared to the one from Samsung.
The OnePlus Open is a rebranded variant of the Oppo Find N3. Considering that, the upcoming clamshell foldable smartphone from OnePlus could be a rebranded variant of the Oppo Find N3 Flip. The fact that the one from Oppo has a telephoto camera further strengthens our speculation. Samsung has been offering only two rear cameras (primary and ultrawide) on the Galaxy Z Flip models since the first device in the lineup, and we think it's high time that it offers a third, telephoto camera as well on the next device in the lineup, Galaxy Z Flip 6. Unfortunately, reports suggest that this might not be the case.