Verizon skips the OnePlus 8T as T-Mobile gets a special variant

Ben Schoon | Oct 15 2020 - 7:03 am PT

The OnePlus 8T arrived yesterday as the successor to the OnePlus 8 from earlier this year. However, this latest launch won’t be sold quite as widely. Verizon has confirmed it won’t be selling the OnePlus 8T, but T-Mobile is enhancing its version.

Speaking to Android Authority, Verizon Wireless confirmed that it would be skipping over the OnePlus 8T despite selling a mmWave-capable version of the OnePlus 8 earlier this year.

Why? Sales back at launch weren’t stellar, but it seems unlikely that Verizon would give up on the company after just one launch. It seems more likely that Verizon doesn’t want to confuse potential buyers with the basically-identical sequel, or that it doesn’t want to go through the trouble of creating another mmWave version. Whatever the case, it doesn’t change the fact that the unlocked OnePlus 8T sold in the US will work just fine with Verizon.

Meanwhile, T-Mobile is keeping up with OnePlus’ release schedule and will be selling the 8T. However, T-Mobile’s OnePlus 8T is coming with different branding. The “OnePlus 8T+ 5G” has the same specs and physical design as the unlocked models, but it’s optimized for the Magenta carrier’s 600 MHz and 2.5 GHz 5G networks as well as supporting typical LTE.

Today, T-Mobile announced that the Un-carrier will be the exclusive U.S. wireless provider for the new OnePlus 8T+ 5G. The new 5G smartphone taps into T-Mobile’s 600 MHz 5G and 2.5 GHz 5G spectrum on America’s first and largest 5G network—and all that 5G coverage is on top of T-Mobile’s advanced LTE network, which covers 99% of Americans. Plus, both new and existing T-Mobile customers get it for half off via 24 monthly bill credits when adding a new line. The new 5G smartphone will be available for pre-order Friday, October 16, and in stores on October 23.