Smaller, cheaper OnePlus X
From the moment you pick up the OnePlus X, it's hard not to think about the iPhones of yesteryear. There's no denying it: there's a whiff of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5 to this new handset. But that's not necessarily a criticism. It's been a while since those phones were Apple's crème de la crème, and there's a certain sophistication to the X's glass back and rounded corners. Turning it over in my hands, it certainly doesn't feel like a $249 phone. OnePlus has paid attention to the details: the metal frame, for instance, has 17 "micro-cuts" to make it a little grippier. The alert slider, which lets you switch between three notification profiles, has a different finish so you can find it in your pocket without looking.
That's not to say the phone's industrial design is without its faults. The glass back is a fingerprint magnet and, after barely 10 minutes with a handful of journalists, I spotted some scratches on the front and back of a few handsets. Phones like the iPhone 4 and Nexus 4 were prone to this too; if you're the type that regularly knocks their smartphone off the kitchen table, you might want to consider slightly more rugged alternatives. There's little difference between the glass and limited-edition ceramic models of the OnePlus X. In terms of look and feel, they are practically identical, with the ceramic version only distinguishable by its more chamfered edge and slightly lighter hue.