OnePlus 15 vs OnePlus 13: Two numbers, one year apart

The OnePlus 15 is finally here! This latest flagship smartphone is a real powerhouse and a threat to all the big boys. The phone features the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 silicon, a fast and bright screen, and some tweaks to the camera system, plus one of the largest batteries in the industry.How does it compare to the previous model, which is oddly two numbers behind, and are there any reasons to upgrade if you already have the OnePlus 13? We’ll try to answer these questions in this comparison. There are benchmarks, display tests, camera samples, and everything you need to help you make a decision.

OnePlus 15 vs OnePlus 13 differences:

Table of Contents:

The OnePlus 15 marks a bold redesign for the company, with a move toward the modern flat smartphone design and a completely new camera bump. 

While the OnePlus 13 relies on a circular camera housing, the new phone takes cues from the Pixel 10 Pro Fold (or at least the square camera bump on the back looks oddly familiar to the one on Google’s latest foldable).

The new phone is also more rounded when it comes to the corner radius, giving off Galaxy and iPhone vibes, while the OnePlus 13 is still more of a rectangle when viewed from the front.

The new model also features the same IP69 dust and water resistance rating as its predecessor. Check out our IP69 explainer article to learn more about the current highest IP protection in smartphones. In terms of materials, the OnePlus 15 comes with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front, while the old model features the company’s proprietary Ceramic Shield material.

The display of the OnePlus 15 features a couple of upgrades compared to its predecessor. For starters, the diagonal is slightly smaller at 6.78 inches, and the refresh rate can go up to 165 Hz. It’s a Super AMOLED panel made by BOE using X3 material, capable of shining with 1800 nits of typical brightness, and featuring 1.5K resolution. 

For comparison, the OnePlus 13 comes equipped with a 6.82-inch LTPO panel with a 1-120 Hz refresh rate and a resolution of 1440 x 3168 pixels. The brightness should not be all that different; in our display test, the OnePlus 13 managed 2326 nits at 20% APL, which is one of the best results we’ve ever had. Let’s see how the new phone fares in our display test.

The peak brightness of the new OnePlus 15 is amazing, indeed! We measured almost 3,500 nits at 20% APL, much better than the previous model. The other metrics are almost identical; the minimum brightness is the same, and the color accuracy too, so it’s almost like the same screen but much brighter. It’s a gorgeous display to look at.

Speaking of gorgeous, the bezels around the screen of the OnePlus 15 are quite narrow—just 1.15 mm all around, which looks amazing in person. The phone features the same ultrasonic under-display fingerprint as its predecessor—the OnePlus 13—and both phones unlock fast and reliably.

The OnePlus 13 features the first iteration of the Snapdragon Elite silicon, which was a benchmark for Android phones last year, so it will be very interesting to see the new Qualcomm chip next to its predecessor.

CPU Performance Benchmarks:

GPU Performance:

The OnePlus 15 comes running OxygenOS 16 out of the box, based on Android 16, and offers the same 4-year software support cycle as we’ve seen on the previous two generations. 

The redesigned camera system of the OnePlus 15 houses a different main camera from the one inside the OnePlus 13. We have a new Sony IMX-906 sensor, while the OnePlus 13 relies on a Sony LYT-700. Both are 50MP sensors but the aperture of the lens on the new one is also different at f/1.8. The ultra-wide camera looks similar on paper—it’s another 50MP sensor (the OmniVision OV50D this time), the focal length is 16 mm, and the aperture is f/2.0. 

Telephoto duties are given to yet another 50MP sensor (a variant of the Samsung JN5) under a lens with an optical zoom of 3.5x.

Zoom Quality

Zoom pictures look much better on the OnePlus 15, with more resolved details, better exposure and also wider dynamic range. The OnePlus 13 sample, on the other hand, looks smeared and highly processed.

Ultrawide camera

The ultrawide camera samples are much closer, although we would argue that the OnePlus 15 does a better job with exposure and the colors look a tad more real. The OnePlus 13 produces warmer images with a yellowish tint to them.

Selfie

Selfies in low light conditions look a bit uninspiring, but again, the OnePlus 15 was able to catch more details (take a look at the letters on the T-shirt, and also Vic’s beard). The OnePlus 13 is no slouch, and gets the job done as well.

The battery race is on, and it seems that the silicon-carbon tech is winning at the moment (check out our explainer article on the subject). The OnePlus 13 brought the Glacier battery (the company’s own version of the tech) to the States with the impressive 6,000 mAh capacity. Well, guess what? The OnePlus 15 comes with a massive 7,300 mAh battery inside.

PhoneArena Battery and Charging Test Results:

Hail our new battery champion (the RedMagic 11 Pro was de-throned quite quickly). The OnePlus 15 ranks number one with a battery score of 10 hours and 44 minutes. The 30-hour browsing score is quite impressive, as is the gaming result. The OnePlus 13 can’t compete despite having a pretty hefty 6,000 mAh battery too, so if you want the best battery phone out there, the OnePlus 15 is your device.

OnePlus is at the forefront when it comes to charging, up there with Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, and Honor. The speeds the company offers are pushing 100W. The OnePlus 15 features 120W wired charging support in China, but the global version is capped at 80W (up to 100W), whatever that means. Our test showed that you can charge the OnePlus 15 to full in less than one hour, and the charging time is similar to what you get on the OnePlus 13.

The OnePlus 15 is an absolute beast of a phone. The real question here, however, is are there enough reasons to upgrade if you already have the OnePlus 13? There’s a new and faster chipset on board of the latest flagship, a bigger battery, and a better main camera. The display is brighter, and the design has now stepped into the modern, flat smartphone world.

The OnePlus 15 rivals the best flagships in the business, namely the iPhone 17 Pro Max and the Galaxy S25 Ultra, when it comes to final scores, and it’s absolutely worthy to be an alternative to either of those. Compared to the OnePlus 13, it’s undoubtedly better, but we don’t think you need to upgrade if you already own the previous model.

One thing worth noting is that the OnePlus 15 is currently not available in the US due to the government shutdown and certification issues, and its official debut will be postponed.