This is what OnePlus still needs to solve with your phones

However, there is a clear problem with OnePlus 13 and it is a long -standing problem that OnePlus has never tried to solve. Well, that is not entirely true, but an internal struggle between the former co -founders and the complex theme of their relationship with the brothers Opto They have made a challenge for OnePlus solve this.

What is the problem? That is easy: bearer relationships. Most customers in the United States buy their phones with their carrier, but despite a brief incursion, OnePlus has moved away from the striking operator associations. For the OnePlus 13, this is detrimental; Here is why operator associations are the final border of the boss that OnePlus must resolve.

Why operator associations are key in the United States and the United Kingdom

Look at the history of successful smartphone brands in the US. And one thing is evident: operator associations are key. This is not a limited phenomenon only to the US, but the associations of operators in the US can literally be the difference between success and failure for a new brand.

I worked on all the operators in the United Kingdom for a race of a decade and one thing was evident as many years ago: customers trusted the operators as the final point of sale. For many years, customers also trusted vendors in the store, but the Galaxy S3 and iPhone 5 In 2012 he marked a particular turning point. For the first time, more customers had investigated which product and cells plan to buy online, as part of a growing change to trust search engines instead of vendors in the store as the first port of scale.

Despite this change, operators still have a huge influence on which the product is sold, especially because buying an online phone is even more challenging in the United States than it should be. Crucially, it also allows sellers to biased the final purchase decisions for their acquired interests, that is, what brand offers the highest commission or represents the easiest general sale.

The success of the iPhone and AT&T / O2 UK

In 2007, I noticed a great change in the role played by carriers. Before the launch of the first iPhone, which was exclusive to AT&T In the USA and the O2 in the United Kingdom: the operators had more control than telephone manufacturers on positioning, marketing and prices. As a result, the price of a telephone would vary dramatically between different operators, and telephone manufacturers had little control over the software brand, preloaded applications and general experience.

The interest of the consumer on the iPhone, together with Apple’s marketing and its willingness to reach an exclusivity agreement with a single carrier, meant a great change in the relationship between the two key parts. The iPhone prevented operators from implementing existing tactics and, as a result, the price of an iPhone was standardized highly independently from where it has bought it. Even when the iPhone became widely available in multiple operators, this phenomenon continued.

Apple’s huge influence on this relationship was finally reduced to its disposal to deploy considerable amounts of marketing. The net effect was to boost the interest of the consumer, which in turn increased consumer demand and facilitated that the operators complete a sale. Blackberry, Nokia and Motorola had not deployed considerable marketing efforts to promote their phones, rather depending on operators to do marketing for them.

Android’s advent as an viable alternative to the iPhone, and the emergence of LG and Samsung meant an additional change in the market. However, unlike the iPhone, the balance was still firmly biased in favor of the operators, so previous Android phones were plagued by tons of preloaded applications; Software updates were implemented in very different schedules and operators, Android phones mostly treated as a lower level of the iPhone.

The only Android manufacturer to change this and develop a relationship similar to Apple was Samsung. As he built his marketing skill, helped considerably by his activities around the Olympic Games, and quickly became the largest smartphone manufacturer in the world, he benefited from developing a relationship similar to Apple with carriers. Less preloaded applications, less personalized telephone variants with slightly different characteristics and a more homogenized experience among carriers. The effects have been surprising: Apple and Samsung constituted 90% of sales in transporters in 2020, provided since selling phones of these two brands is much simpler than selling anything else.

OnePlus has previously tried to solve this problem

It is in this context that OnePlus has to try to solve its carrier problem. He has previously tried to do so associating with T-Mobile in the United States, as well as O2, and then three, in the United Kingdom. In particular, the T-Mobile ratio proved to be challenging, since T-Mobile devices came with some preloaded applications, it was based on T-Mobile for versus OnePlus updates directly and finally it was against the OnePlus product strategy of OnePlus Products A simple, simple, simple, simple, simple, simple, simple software experience.

Nor is it just software. Each device stores a carrier must undergo significant tests, which means that despite the fact that the manufacturer has established a particular standard that considers acceptable, that device may not meet the standards that a carrier has for the performance of the network, The battery life and the general experience.

For example, consider the OnePlus 13. You are establishing the standard for Android phones for me this year, but it is completely possible that T-Mobile, Verizon or AT&T are not willing to certify it for use in your network. Before the change to LTE, Verizon in particular also meant including CDMA network radios, which increased the total cost. With 5G, obtaining the certification of operators for OnePlus 13 would probably be a challenge, since it is not compatible with the MMWAVE 5G standard faster, which is only implemented in some countries of choice.

Then there are the additional resources necessary to successfully manage operators associations. First, OnePlus would need to develop multiple compilations of its software, and each operator has specific requirements. Second, the OnePlus 13 sold in the US Operator in terms of limiting load speeds or adjustment hardware to meet the operator’s own needs, all of which the company’s resources would further pose. Finally, and this is particularly key, OnePlus would probably also have to implement considerable marketing efforts to ensure that the relationship between you and operators was symbiotic, instead of being biased too much in favor of the operator.

OnePlus is too good for not having strong carrier associations

Ultimately, I can understand why the OnePlus devices are not sold directly through carriers, but the OnePlus 13 and Open OnePlus They are so good that it seems that now it should be the time for OnePlus to advance with any plan to develop solid operators associations.

Despite the fantastic hardware and a growing fan base, history has demonstrated again and again that it is impossible to grow significantly in the US. Uu. Without playing the bearer game. It is very likely that the resolution of the certification of the operators and the software parts of the challenges can be attainable, but implementing a considerable marketing budget is probably the greatest obstacle.

OnePlus, and the company Oppo, make incredible smartphones, but none of the companies have the frontline budgets to successfully market devices through traditional means. Apple, Samsung and even Google direct television commercials to promote their products, but do so at a considerable cost. Until OnePlus can successfully build your operator associations, it is unlikely that you can challenge Samsung and Apple in the United States, which is a penalty since OnePlus 13 is one of the best phones you can buy at this time.