The OnePlus Pad is the very unoriginal name for the company’s first tablet

By Rahul Srinivas December 13, 2021

For a really long time, Apple and Samsung have pretty much dominated the tablet space with a combined market share of more than 50%. Now, Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus seems to be keen on entering the space as well. A recent report by Indian tipster Mukul Sharma and 91 Mobiles indicates that OnePlus could launch its first-ever tablet next year. Unsurprisingly, OnePlus is likely to give this device a very unoriginal name: The OnePlus Pad.

According to Mukul, the OnePlus Pad is likely to be launched first in China, followed by India by the second half of 2022. However, this also means that we should not expect OnePlus to launch the OnePlus Pad along with the company’s OnePlus 10 lineup, which is expected in the first quarter of 2022. There is also no word on if the OnePlus Pad refers to just a single device or if we’d see an entire lineup of OnePlus Pad tablets being simultaneously launched.

Interestingly, this development comes nearly five months after a certification document granted by the European Union Intellectual Property Office revealed that OnePlus owns the rights for the name “OnePlus Pad.” This could also be an indication that OnePlus has global plans for the OnePlus Pad and that we will see these tablets make it to Europe and, possibly, North America.

Even if the OnePlus Pad does make it to Europe and the U.S., there is no denying that it will be an uphill task for the company to have any sizable impact on the market, at least in the first few years of its existence. This becomes painfully evident when you realize that the third biggest tablet maker in the world — Lenovo — has been around for a really long time and still only has about 9% of the market.

In comparison, Apple is pretty much the behemoth here with a massive 32% of the global tablet market captured by its comprehensive lineup of iPads. Samsung gets by with a decent 20% of the market. The only other sizable player in this segment are Lenovo and Amazon — with the latter garnering 6.8% of the tablet space in 2021.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Rahul is a smartphone buff turned tech journalist who has been tinkering with all things mobile since the early 2000s. He has…

Mobile

Is this our first look at the OnePlus 12?

Leaked OnePlus 12 render

The next flagship from OnePlus might not serve much of an aesthetic surprise, but it just might win over mobile photography enthusiasts. SmartPrix (in collaboration with @OnLeaks) has shared purported renders of the upcoming OnePlus 12 "based on real-life pictures of a testing unit prototype."

Now, before we dig further into the juicy details, here's the standard disclaimer. The leak comes from a reputed source, but the renders depict a testing stage device, of which there could be multiple iterations. That means the final device hitting the shelves could look slightly – or much – different.

Mobile

Is this our first look at the OnePlus Fold? I sure hope so

Purported front and rear view of the OnePlus V Fold

OnePlus recently gave a teasing glimpse of its first foldable phone. Well, that glimpse was actually turned into a high-resolution view of the upcoming device, thanks to leaker @OnLeaks (via SmartPrix). The leaked renders of the upcoming OnePlus Fold show a device that is unmistakably OnePlus, with some standout design touches and a promising camera perk.

But a word of caution before you start digging into your wallet. The leaked renders are reportedly based on “a prototype unit in the testing stage,” which means the final version hitting the shelves later this year might look a tad -- or maybe entirely -- different.

Mobile

New OnePlus budget phone comes packing 2 super-rare features

OnePlus Nord N30 5G rear face.

OnePlus has introduced a new budget-priced phone for the U.S. market that includes some compelling hardware -- and a couple of rare conveniences. The OnePlus Nord N30 5G will set you back by $300 and is already up for preorders in the U.S., with a free pair of earbuds in tow.
Starting with the standout tricks, this phone comes with a microSD slot for storage expansion. It supports cards with up to 1TB storage capacity, which should be plenty if you are into capturing a lot of videos and high-resolution videos. Just keep in mind that microSD cards of 1TB capacity from reputed brands could cost as much as the phone itself.

Another notable perk is the presence of a 3.5mm headphone jack on the OnePlus Nord N30 5G. You don’t have to fork out extra cash on a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter or splurge on a Bluetooth audio wearable. However, there is more to this OnePlus phone than meets the eye, as some of its hardware perks defy its asking price by a huge margin.
You are greeted by a 6.7-inch Full HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels) display with a 120Hz refresh rate. For comparison, Apple will charge you $800 for the iPhone 14 Plus, but it still keeps you limited to a slow 60Hz LCD screen. And there is no ugly notch to be seen here, as the selfie camera is neatly housed inside a dot-shaped cutout at the top.
Qualcomm’s octa-core Snapdragon 695 chipset powers this phone, paired with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage. The battery capacity is also fairly generous at 5,000 mAh. Plus, you get support for 50-watt fast charging. OnePlus ships the fast charger in the retail package, just in case you’re irked by the bad precedent set by the thousand-dollar phones from Apple and Samsung.