After weeks of teasing, the OnePlus Ace is finally here. This is a mid-range Android phone with 150W superfast charging as its main feature, but otherwise mediocre specs.
Admittedly, it’s nearly identical to the Realme GT Neo 3, which was launched by OnePlus’ sibling brand less than a month ago — but that’s not why we’re not going to test this phone.
No, usability issues mean we may never get our hands on this new OnePlus phone.
Can you buy a OnePlus Ace?
The OnePlus Ace was unveiled at a launch event in China, and when we see phones being unveiled in China, they’re rarely available globally.
In fact, a OnePlus spokesperson told us: “We currently have no plans to share a European release. However, OnePlus has been carefully tracking the market and working closely with our community, which may be in the future.”
We asked for comment in the US but have heard nothing there. So, at least for now, it sounds like the OnePlus Ace will be hard to come by outside of China.
Why can’t you buy OnePlus Ace outside of China?
OnePlus isn’t the only company launching a phone exclusive to the Chinese market. Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei, Honor, Vivo, Realme, Oppo, etc. have all done this in the past – in fact, it’s a pretty standard practice.
but why? Well, brands don’t usually make comprehensive statements about the market like that, but the reason could be a mix of factors, including market preferences and trends – all but those we listed above are based in the country Keep in mind that outside of the West, Apple’s iPhone has a much lower market share, while other brands rule the roost.
We’ve seen enough devices gain Chinese exclusivity (and sometimes India too) that this will become the norm. But in the case of the OnePlus Ace, it’s a little annoying.
(Image source: OnePlus)
Why OnePlus Ace exclusivity is a surprise
The OnePlus Ace debuted at MWC 2022 (annual smartphone conference) in February. At the end of Oppo’s keynote (Oppo and OnePlus merge in 2021), the company teased its 150W charging solution, which will debut in OnePlus phones.
This is clearly a plus trump card. So why is exclusivity a surprise? Well, because MWC 2022 is in Barcelona. in Spain. This is definitely not in China.
MWC is often used as a venue for Chinese brands to launch phones in the West that have debuted in China. So when we hear about tech here, it’s almost certainly coming to Europe and sometimes the US.
So the China-only launch of the OnePlus Ace is a surprise bucking the trend.
a shame
China exclusivity is commonplace in the mobile phone industry, which is a shame because it’s usually a cool and fun phone locked in China.
The OnePlus Ace is a good example, as are foldables like the Oppo Find N and Honor Magic V.
Hopefully OnePlus will change our minds on the OnePlus ace so we can test its 150W superfast charging in real life. Maybe Realme will light up the competition under OnePlus, as the aforementioned GT Neo 3 has a much better chance of eventually reaching Europe (as the Neo 2 did).
One of the reasons why Apple’s launch is so exciting is because you know the iPhone will be available in many parts of the world. This is not the case for most other brands. You can only get excited about Xiaomi’s releases before you start to realize that most of their releases are only for China.
Hopefully we won’t see too many China-only launches. Otherwise, OnePlus buyers may lose interest in all of the company’s launch events.
