OnePlus launches Android 15 update and it’s smoother than ever

OnePlus just announced its Android 15 update, OxygenOS 15, which brings new features and other upgrades, and it’s sure to be remarkably smooth.

Within OxygenOS 15, which is based heavily on Oppo’s ColorOS 15 that was announced last week, there are three key areas that have changed, starting with the “fast and seamless experience.” Oppo has gone heavily into animation improvements to make ColorOS, and thus OxygenOS, look faster and smoother than ever before. One key point made was the addition of “parallel processing” for animations, which allows one animation to start even if another animation is still running, all without cutting any of the animations short.

The clear focus of this – which OnePlus and Oppo have used in examples – is on the test made popular by Ice Universe, a frequent mobile tipster. Testing sees users opening and closing apps quickly and observing animations that are cut off or delayed. “Parallel processing” eliminates this He does Leads to a smoother experience. But realistically, this is a change that is difficult to notice. That would defeat the purpose anyway, as this is quite a change that works best when you’re not aware of it in the first place.

There are also changes through the system to the design. OxygenOS still looks a lot like ColorOS as it always has, with a bit more iOS influence throughout the system.

The most notable is the change found in the notification tray, where Quick Settings and Notifications have been divided. This is optional, with a pop-up appearing on our OnePlus 12 immediately after setup asking which style is preferred. The experience using the split layout isn’t too bad, as notifications can still be swiped away in any direction, and swipes in the empty space allow users to switch between the two halves. However, it is not as fast or intuitive as current behavior.

You’ll also find some tweaked designs across OxygenOS, with several first-party apps incorporating some beautiful gradients.

There are also new features, like “One-Take” that can capture a subject in a photo and use it across your home screen wallpapers, lock screen wallpaper, and always-on display with some fun patterns.

Most impactful is the arrival of Open Canvas on the smaller display, allowing for faster split-screen multitasking on the smaller display of the OnePlus 12 we were trying to update to. First appearing on the OnePlus Open and later on the OnePlus Pad 2, Open Canvas is easily the best software feature OnePlus has put out. This expansion into traditional smartphones seems strange at first, but the ability to switch back and forth between apps so quickly makes split-screen multitasking seem useful. It’s much faster than traditional multitasking, and allows more flexibility in what you’re trying to do.

Of course, you will also find a lot From artificial intelligence.

Like everyone else, OnePlus (and Oppo) has packed this update full of new AI features. There’s an AI Assistant in the Notes app, an AI-powered Google Wallet integration in the Photos app (not Google Photos) to turn photos into swipes (which is pretty cool), and an AI Reflection Eraser in the Photos app, both of which have AI-powered anti-blurring and upscaling features. The reversal tool works well, but don’t expect miracles.

There’s also Smart Search, which combines on-device and online search into one feature, allowing searches to reference things on the Internet and things stored on your device, like photos or documents. I haven’t had much time to try out these features yet, but Smart Search seems very useful if it works as well as OnePlus says it does.

There’s also a new “Share with iPhone” shortcut… well, no one’s going to use it.

OnePlus also introduced Circle to Search in the Android 15 update, which is a feature I hope we’ll see in other OnePlus devices soon. Likewise, Gemini will become the default assistant on OnePlus devices from now on, although Google Assistant remains on the OnePlus 12 until you change it manually.

I was wary of this update before trying it, but it doesn’t feel all that different from what came before. It’s a little sleeker, has some extra features, and offers at least one big update when Open Canvas arrives on feature phones. I’d call that an overall win in my book.

OxygenOS 15 will be available for the OnePlus 12 starting October 30 (in open beta) and other devices in due course.

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