OnePlus N6x: a new budget phone, but we will never see it

While the rumors about the abandonment of Europe and the USA are becoming more and more insistent, OnePlus continues on its path and announces a new budget phone. Unfortunately it will once again be a smartphone that we will never get to know up close, since the debut will be limited to the Indian market.

Not bad, actually, given the new direction of Pete Lau’s company — now reduced to a simple OPPO sub-brand, not immune to the classic rebranding policies of Asian manufacturers.

OnePlus N6x incoming: confirmation, along with the first official teaser

The announcement arrived through official channels: the OnePlus N6x is coming despite only a few days having passed since the unveiling of the first chapter of the new budget series.

In late June, the company announced OnePlus N6 for the Indian market: it’s an affordable device (a little over €200 at the exchange rate), powered by a Dimensity chipset and driven by a large 8,000 mAh battery.

However, the N6 model shares many specifications with Realme P4R, another low-budget phone launched in India. It’s not a precise rebrand: the design is different and there are some details that differentiate them. Still it’s clear that these are reused components, a common practice in the Chinese tech landscape.

Apparently the OnePlus N6x will also be a sort of rebrand: revealed by insider Yogesh Brad in a post on X, but without going into specifics. The leaker has only revealed that the budget device will be equipped with familiar specifications, leaving hints of a possible rebrand (almost certainly of a previous Realme device, since both are OPPO sub-brands).

The new direction of OnePlus

In recent years, with the merger between OPPO and OnePlus, the two brands have begun sharing the R&D division: as a result the practice of rebranding or the near-total sharing of design and components has intensified.

The Nord mid-range series features various models inspired by OPPO phones and in some cases it has involved true rebrands. With Realme returning under OPPO’s wing we have seen another step forward toward creating a single identity and, therefore, toward further realization of OnePlus’s new direction.

The Pete Lau house, born as a rebellious startup, no longer exists: in its place there is an OPPO sub-brand specializing in mid-range and budget devices, mostly rebrands (or almost) of existing models.

Nevertheless the company will not abandon the premium segment: OnePlus 16 should arrive in China in the second half of the year and will surely find space in the Indian market as a flagship choice.

According to the latest rumors, OnePlus should announce the end of its presence in Europe and the United States in the coming days. This does not mean the brand will cease to exist but will continue to operate in India and China, at least according to what has been reported so far.