Gaming-centric Black Shark or OnePlus 7 Pro: Which is better?
Xiaomi-backed Black Shark will launch its latest gaming smartphone, the Black Shark 2, in India on May 27. The phone features a pressure-sensitive AMOLED display, dedicated liquid cooling technology, and top-end internals including Snapdragon 855 chipset. However, it will face tough competition from the headline maker OnePlus 7 Pro which is no slouch in the gaming department. So, which one is better?
OnePlus 7 Pro v/s Black Shark 2: At a glance
The Black Shark 2 offers a conventional rectangular display with prominent bezels, a backlit company logo on the rear panel, and a dedicated Liquid Cool 3.0 technology for enhanced heat dissipation. In comparison, the OnePlus 7 Pro offers a notch-less, bezel-less all-screen design with curved edges, a metal-glass sandwiched body, and a 10-layer liquid cooling system. Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro.
All about the screen
The Black Shark 2 offers a 6.39-inch full-HD+ AMOLED display with Magic Press technology that lets you configure pressure sensitivity on the display - a handy feature for playing games. The OnePlus 7 Pro, on the other hand, has an HDR10+ compatible display with a QHD+ (1440x3120 pixels) resolution and 90Hz refresh rate which makes everything fluid and seamlessly smooth. Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro.
For the gamers turned shutterbugs
The Black Shark 2 sports a dual-lens rear camera comprising a 48MP (f/1.75) primary sensor and a 12MP (f/2.2) secondary sensor with 2x optical zoom. The OnePlus flagship offers a Multi Autofocus (PDAF+LAF+CAF) triple-lens rear camera featuring a 48MP (f/1.7, OIS) main lens, an 8MP (f/2.4, OIS) telephoto lens which offers 3x optical zoom, and a 16MP (f/2.2) wide-angle lens. Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro.
For the selfie lovers
Up front, the Black Shark 2 comes with a 20MP selfie camera with an f/2.0 aperture whereas the OnePlus 7 gets a decent 16MP (f/2.0) sensor housed in a motorized pop-up camera module. Winner: Black Shark 2 for its slightly better optics.
Under the hood
The Black Shark 2 is powered by Snapdragon 855 chipset, paired with Adreno 640 GPU, offers upto 12GB RAM and 128GB/256GB of internal storage. Under the hood, the OnePlus 7 Pro also has Snapdragon 855 chipset, Adreno 640 GPU, upto 12GB RAM and upto 256GB of storage. However, the OnePlus flagship has an upper hand, thanks to its much faster UFS 3.0 storage format.
Battery, biometric authentication and other features
The Black Shark 2 comes with a 4,000mAh battery, stereo speakers, an in-screen fingerprint sensor and all the latest sensors and connectivity options. In comparison, the OnePlus 7 Pro also gets the same features. However, it has advantages of a faster 30W charging, an improved in-screen fingerprint sensor, RAM Boost feature, and a dedicated FNATIC gaming mode. Winner: OnePlus 7 Pro.
Pricing: The key factor
The OnePlus 7 Pro starts at Rs. 48,999 for the 6GB/128GB model and goes upto Rs. 57,999 for the 12GB/256GB variant. And while the pricing details of Black Shark 2 will be revealed on May 27, we expect it to arrive at around Rs. 40,000. In China, it starts at around Rs. 32,700 for 6GB/128GB model and goes upto Rs. 42,900 for 12GB/256GB variant.
How things stack up?
The Black Shark 2 is a solid performer with a good built quality and flagship performance. However, its success will largely depend on the pricing because at around Rs. 50,000, the OnePlus 7 Pro is unbeatable. Its screen is amazing, the design is second to none, cameras are respectable, performance is top-of-the-line, and the software is clean and smooth. One word: OnePlus 7 Pro.
