In a blog post, OnePlus CEO, Pete Lau, announced that OnePlus is building a new product: the OnePlus TV. This is OnePlus’ first time to move beyond mobile devices and accessories.
Update 9/18, 10:00 AM/CT: In a recent interview with PCMag, Pete Lau revealed more information about the TV and his vision for it.
We don’t know anything about the actual product, however. All we do know is that it’s going to be called “OnePlus TV.” We don’t know whether it is an Android TV set-top box, a Chromecast-like dongle, or an actual TV unit. OnePlus hasn’t spoken about the launch date either.
Back in 2014, OnePlus shook the smartphone industry with a $300 USD phone that had great performance, quality, and price. It’s the first time OnePlus is diving into a different segment and we’re interested to see what it produces.
Update 9/18, 10:00 AM/CT: Pete Lau has confirmed that the OnePlus TV is going to be a 4K LED TV. The TV will be announced next year. Lau didn’t give us a price range but did specify that it’s going to be a premium product. However, he said that they are willing to keep a small profit margin to start building a user base.
Lau also shared that it’s not going to be an ordinary TV that just plays TV shows or movies. His vision is to make something that’s even beyond a smart TV and similar to a smart speaker or smart display. It will be a home automation hub to control your home’s climate and entertainment system. It’ll also have far-field microphones to answer questions from anywhere in the house.
The TV will connect well with smartphones. It’ll also get software updates for a long period of time. Since OnePlus doesn’t make LCD panels, it will purchase the panels from a third party. However, OnePlus will develop the image processing chipsets and algorithms themselves. OnePlus is building it with help from its community and is already holding a contest to name it.
Source: OnePlus Forums, PCMag
