OnePlus 6T launch rescheduled to avoid being 'overshadowed' by Apple
OnePlus has rescheduled the launch of its latest flagship, the OnePlus 6T, in New York. The phone, initially scheduled to launch on October 30, will now be unveiled a day earlier at 11:00 am ET. The move comes in a bid to avoid being "overshadowed" by Apple, which had also scheduled a product event on the same day, in the same city. Here's more.
Change to avoid clash with Apple
On October 8, OnePlus had scheduled ticketed launch events in Delhi and New York, with over 1,000 confirmed attendees. However, the company faced a tough situation when Apple also announced the same date (October 30) for the launch of new iPad and Mac models. This spurred a series of discussions (internal, with press and OnePlus community), ultimately leading to the launch date being changed.
Here's what OnePlus CEO Pete Lau said
"We have to remain realistic. We have only just begun our journey and cannot afford to let one of the most important products in our history be affected by another great product launch," CEO Lau said while announcing the difficult decision on the OnePlus forum.
OnePlus offering refunds, covering ticket expenses
Understanding the seriousness of the last-minute change, Lau stated the company would be doing everything it can to compensate the affected attendees. As part of this, it will be providing full ticket refunds to those who won't be able to attend as well as cover travel expenses (flight, hotel) for those who'll change their arrangements to be there on the new date.
However, the India event remains unchanged
Having said that, it is worth noting these changes are only for the event in New York. The event scheduled in New Delhi remains unaffected from the change in the US and will happen on the same date - October 30, at 8:30 p.m. The hype for the phone, which is expected to pack an in-display fingerprint scanner, is extremely high at the moment.
