OnePlus 9's First Leak is Already Here: Codename Lemonade, Flat Display in Tow

OnePlus 9 is going to be the company’s flagship smartphone for 2021, and there was hardly ever any doubt about it. However, the nature of the rumour mill is such today that barely a week after the launch of the OnePlus 8T, the first concrete report about the OnePlus 9 is already out. The report comes from credible source Max J on Twitter, who posted a graphic teaser showing a partial outline of a smartphone with a display that sits flush against its edges. The word ‘Lemonade’ is splashed against the backdrop, which according to reports alludes to the OnePlus 9’s working codename.

Given that the outline of the smartphone features an alert slider to the left that is signature to OnePlus, the leak can be taken with considerably more seriousness. The OnePlus 9, which in all likelihood is still in its early stages of development, will allegedly get a flat glass on the top instead of the dual-curved edges that OnePlus equips its flagship smartphones with so far. Edge functionality, even with specific software enhancements, have been limited so far, so we won’t be too unhappy to see the curved edges go.

Nothing else is known about the OnePlus 9 so far. That said, we can make educated guesses regarding the smartphone, and state that it will likely come with Qualcomm’s flagship processor for 2020. The new generation chipset, expected to be called the Snapdragon 875, is slated to be unveiled on December 1, which leaves enough time for OnePlus to source, test and produce the OnePlus 9 based on it.

We may also adjudge that the OnePlus 9 will run on Android 11, thereby including its privacy enhancements and the floating bubbles for compatible apps. As flagship smartphones go today, we may safely expect at least 8GB of memory and 256GB of internal storage to go with the flagship Snapdragon 875 SoC and Android 11. We may also expect faster charging technologies, and a triple (or quad) rear camera module to also be part of the OnePlus 9.

At the moment, though, the OnePlus 9 remains in the shadows, leaving us only with its codename ‘Lemonade’, and the hint of the smartphone switching to flat display panels instead of curved ones.