OnePlus started as a "Flagship Killer" brand that listened to its loyal fan base, and introduced phones that packed features that users demanded—at much lower price than flagship competitors. Slowly, the brand drifted away from being a flagship killer and began introducing phones with premium price tags.
However, one thing that remained was the iconic "Alert Slider" button on each OnePlus phone. This button allowed users to quickly switch between Silent, Vibration, and Sound modes. OnePlus did launch the OnePlus 10T without an alert slider button, but it was brought back with phones that launched later.
But in an official blog, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau has confirmed that future OnePlus phones will no longer feature the alert slider. Upcoming OnePlus devices will come with a customizable button, much like Apple's Action button on newer iPhones. Lau said that, "As iconic as it is, it is a huge piece of hardware just to switch sound profiles. That didn’t sit right with me."
According to Lau, users have been asking for more customizability, but a sliding switch has its limitations being fixed to perform a task that it is programmed to. This hardware switch cannot be reprogrammed or features cannot be added to it with a mere software update.
To address this situation, OnePlus devices will feature a "smart button." OnePlus users will still be able to switch sound profiles without waking up the device, plus users will be able to customize the button to do more.
Lau did not specify which OnePlus model will be the one introducing the smart button, but it could be speculated that the same will be ported over to OPPO devices. Lau also said that the company is open to suggestions and users can share their views and help enhance the button's functionalities.
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