OnePlus 3 to be launched by June

NEW DELHI: Chinese startup OnePlus will release its 2016 flagship smartphone – likely to be named OnePlus 3 – in the second quarter of the year, co-founder Carl Pei has said.

In an interview with CNET Spain, Pei also said the company is going for a design revamp while developing OnePlus 3, but did not reveal any more critical details.

He added that the company “hopes the new model will captivate users as much as its first smartphone (OnePlus One)” did at launch. Pei acknowledged that OnePlus 2 did not elicit the same captivate feel that its predecessor did.

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The company currently has three smartphones in the market: OnePlus One, OnePlus 2 and OnePlus X.

Pei also said that OnePlus will be focussing on the US market this year with the launch of OnePlus 3 and will use “more traditional” marketing techniques in order to raise awareness about its brands and products in the market. This will be in contrast to the invite-only strategy as well as emphasis on word-of-mouth and social media that the company has engaged in so far.

The OnePlus co-founder said OnePlus 3 will be sold as an unlocked handset in the US, meaning no carrier subsidies for buyers. The company will sell the device directly to consumers. He also spoke of a “better buying process,” but did not say if it would mean the end of the invite-only system.