OnePlus, as a company, has a history when it comes to experimenting with different materials or testing concept phones. The recent water-cooled variant of the OnePlus 11 is easily one of the coolest (no pun intended) concepts that I have had a look at, and now, it seems that the company is working on another variant of the phone that will be utilizing a material that has never been used in the industry before.
A new OnePlus 11 could launch with a marble back
Now, when it comes to materials, glass or plastic are the obvious choice, as far as the back materials are concerned. There was a time when we would get metal unibody phones such as the HTC One and a lot more, but things have changed ever since. Ceramic is another material that comes to mind, but that has already been used in several smartphones in the market. I would bet my money on sapphire, but there was an HTC phone in the past with the entire screen made out of sapphire. So, this makes us wonder what the material could be.
OnePlus president Li Jie talked on Chinese social media Weibo about how the new phone will be made with “unprecedented materials and craftsmanship.” He also talks about how each unit will be different – this statement hints that it could be marble or wood, considering how marble and wood tend to display different matters, and no two blocks have the same patterns.
Digital chat station, another tipster, has claimed that the new OnePlus 11 material is cold and cool to the touch. Considering marble’s thermal properties, we assume it will be made from the said material. However, if OnePlus decides to go for marble, it will have to consider the drawbacks as well. Marble is often susceptible to wear and tear and even cracking. Marble is also softer than glass, allowing the material to scratch easily.
Currently, we cannot say what the material will be and whether OnePlus 11 with this material will be a concept or an actual, available smartphone. I guess time will tell, but I am really excited to see what the company has planned. Do let us know what your thoughts are about OnePlus using new material. Is it something you are looking forward to, or do you think the glass is still the safest, most obvious choice?