OnePlus One Wins Smartphone Madness 2015
You voted, we listened. Your Smartphone Madness 2015 winner is the OnePlus One.
Your votes have been counted, and your decision is clear. The OnePlus One is your pick for the best smartphone.
As it made its way through the bracket this year, it took down the Apple iPhone 6, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge and the HTC One M9. The final battle with the Microsoft Lumia 640 XL brought in thousands more votes than any other match-up, and the OnePlus One took 75 percent of those votes.
MORE: OnePlus One Full Review
This unlocked smartphone hasn't just earned your respect, it's also earned awards from the tech industry, including our Editors' Choice award. In our review of the phone we appreciated its crisp display, sharp camera and affordable $300 price tag. But the epic battery life of 13 hours and 16 minutes is truly remarkable. After all, the smartphone average is just 8 hours and 39 minutes.
Yesterday (April 6), OnePlus rolled out its Android-based OxygenOS for the One handset. The update replaces the original Cyanogen OS and brings Android 5.0 Lollipop to the device. New features include gesture controls, such as double-tap to wake or drawing an O on the screen to start the camera. It also adds customizable lockscreen wallpapers and a reorganized quick settings menu.
In order to get the new OS, you'll need to follow some pretty detailed instructions on the company's site. It involves backing up your device, downloading two files to your Mac or PC, performing a factory reset in recovery mode and installing the new OS.
Currently the only way to buy the OnePlus One is to get an invite from a friend who already owns one. Or, each Tuesday, the company sells its phone for 24 hours, beginning at 8 a.m. GMT. Will you be logging in to buy one?
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Anna Attkisson is the managing editor at Tom's Guide and Laptop Mag. Follow Anna Attkisson @akattkisson. Follow us @TomsGuide, on Facebook.