OnePlus announces a Chinese launch for the 9R in April 2021

OnePlus caused intrigue among leakers thanks to hints of a third variant for its flagship 9 series in 2021, whereas the OEM normally launches a maximum of 2 phones at once. The 9R was indeed this predicted departure from the norm, although it debuted in only 1 market - India - on its line's May 2021 launch. Now, however, its maker has announced that it will soon gain a second region to sell in.

OnePlus has indeed set the 9R's introduction to China on April 15, 2021 at 14:00 Beijing time (08:00 CET). Then again, it has yet to drop any hints as to the smartphone's price in its new market. Currently, it costs INR 39,999 (~US$537) for an 8GB RAM SKU, or 43,999 (~$590) for one with 12GB of RAM.

The  9R is the only one of its series to run on the Snapdragon 870 SoC. Otherwise, it is a hotchpotch of premium OnePlus specs and features. It has the 9's flat 120Hz FHD AMOLED flat screen, yet has the rear-camera OIS the vanilla model lacks. 

As for those cameras, the 9R has four where the 9 has three. Then again, the former has the same main shooter as the ex-flagship OnePlus 7. Then again, both have the same 65W wired charging speed that is a major hallmark of its brand. Therefore, it may do well in China, where its OEM has already become quite popular.

The OnePlus 9: now on Amazon