More signs of a future with budget OnePlus phones surface in a new leak

The smartphone and smart accesory OEM OnePlus normally makes a big deal of the charging technology it has shipped with its mobile devices for years now. This is because it is a proprietary standard called Warp Charge that, with few exceptions, allowed these flagships to power up faster than the competition, thus posing quite a selling point as its maker worked on its brand-recognition in its market.

Warp Charge has arguably become an asset to the company, to the extent that its latest promotional stunt involves a collaboration with the YouTuber Dave2D in which it is giving away special-edition versions of its cables that are finished in a shade that matches this vlogger's typical branding (not to mention its new Nord's colorway). However, it seems the next charger released by this company may not warrant such attention.

This is because it has been reported as certified by TUV Rheinland as supporting very conventional 5V/2A or 9V/2A (10 or 18W, respectively) rates, as opposed to OnePlus' usual atypical rates that add up to 30W in its latest Warp Charge generation.

Therefore, the phone destined for such a power brick may turn out not to be a flagship, or even a premium mid-ranger, but a truly low-tier handset from this company for the first time. This new leak dovetails with earlier indications that OnePlus does truly intend to branch out into what could be an entire range of bargain phones in the near future.