Playing Europa Universalis 5 as a long-time fan of Paradox grand strategy games is like going into the star gate in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Everywhere you look, whirling past you, you see influences from its predecessors and contemporaries. "Oh, look, you can change production methods like in Victoria 3, the rulers are like they are in Imperator, and the levy system feels like Crusader Kings 2!"
Review info
Platform reviewed: PC Available on: PC Release date: November 4, 2025
If you have yet to play any of the Europa Universalis series, they have always been one of Paradox's beefier offerings, focused on early modern history. This fifth instalment has effectively cranked up the scale and given you a microscope with which to observe the minutiae of your nation.
Let's begin with the time period that it covers – your game starts in 1337, a year that saw the start of the Hundred Years War, Petrarch visiting Rome for the first time, and, apparently, the founding of Berkshire's Bisham Priory. The next few centuries are yours to seize control of, one way or another, and you can do this on an hour by hour basis, should you choose.
It starts more than a century before games in Europa Universalis 4, allowing for some extra time in the late Middle Ages, before knights give way to hussars. This also neatly allows the game to introduce situations, a new feature in EU5 that makes certain events play center stage, more than they did in its predecessor.
For example, when the Hundred Years' War kicks off (pessimistically still named that in 1337), it's easy to, at a glance, see the strength of each side and who is in whose alliance, which lets you check whether you can tip the balance. Situations spring up throughout the game and include such historical moments as the struggle between the Guelphs and Ghibellines and the Reformation.
(Image credit: Paradox Interactive)
This new starting point also comes with a price – the Black Death will start raging its way around the world after a few years. In both of my campaigns as Castille and as Holland, my population was halved by the pandemic. In EU4, a plague meant losing income or autonomy; here, it actually matters on a much greater scale. The game models your nation's population whether you are a one-province minor or a great power, and each dead subject means one less job, one less soldier, one less bit of productivity for your nation. It's my favorite change in the game, and represents a trend away from abstractions and towards more concrete, important measurements of a nation's abilities.
Best bit
(Image credit: Paradox Interactive)
Fighting for new colonies in North America with the English. They thought that they had me, but they didn't bank on me being allies with France, who promptly stomped them.
Abstractions were everywhere in EU4. Your provinces could be developed, but that didn't really mean much beyond being slightly richer and the province having a few more buildings. Administrative, diplomatic, and military points, known as mana, functioned as your ability to develop provinces, to promote generals, and to research new technologies, which were very limited in number. Mana doesn't exist here, beyond some ratings that allow you to see what your rulers and courtiers are best at. You develop provinces by directing a minister to do so, while research is now based on more concrete factors like your people's literacy.
The tech tree is a genuine delight, too – the number of techs is boosted by a ridiculous degree, with each of the game's ages, bar the very first, having more than 100 techs. It's much more like a tech tree that you might find in Civilization than the, once again, abstracted variant encountered in EU4.
Choosing a national focus at the start of a new age also unlocks certain specific techs, and you can focus on administrative, diplomatic, or military techs. As you progress along the techs, you'll unlock new laws to codify, new government reforms to shape your state, and more. States are more fluid than in previous instalments, too – gone are national missions that could railroad your progress.
Here, you can shape your nation however you like along various axes representing things like centralization vs decentralization, aristocracy vs plutocracy, and traditionalist vs innovative. These can be changed at any point by assigning one of your cabinet members to influence the nation, while government reforms represent powerful ways to change your nation's central ethoses.
Call of Ducats: Early Modern Warfare
(Image credit: Paradox Interactive)
The genre EU5 occupies is often referred to as map painting games, and, as you'd expect of a game that kicks off with the Hundred Years' War, waging wars is integral. You can't just let your neighbors have that tasty trade good, after all. The military aspect of the game feels like a mesh of EU4 and the Crusader Kings series.
As mentioned, you can call up levies, but you can also (and should) build a professional military, too. Capturing forts and cities gives you a zone of control, so focusing on those rather than individual provinces is the order of the day. It's far from exhilarating, but it does interweave wonderfully with the game's systems.
Soldiers and sailors are people, so calling up either land or naval levies reduces the population in their home area. This means that for each levy called up, local food production and raw materials output drop, and troopers lost from your levies are lost from your wider population. If your military is professionalized, you won't be calling up big Bjorn the farmer anymore, so he can keep tilling his land, making them a potentially better value proposition.
War is more expensive than it's ever been in the series, and not only because of the effects on population. You also need to factor in upkeep costs and the ability for your soldiers to find food, a new resource, while doing their grim duty. How you do this isn't particularly well-explained (one of the game's few pain points), so until you figure it out you can expect to wind up with quite a few of your men dropping dead from attrition. The Clausewitz quote that "War is the continuation of policy with other means" is made very plain here, and it affects your country to a massive degree.
A map that's truly off the charts
(Image credit: Paradox Interactive)
What a map it is to paint, though. Just staggeringly enormous, with a dizzying number of countries to play as, from the Aak'u to Zutphen. Everywhere you look, you notice little touches. Some are obvious, such as the way that all but the smallest nations will be made up of multiple locations, allowing for more development options for small countries, with each area having a good that you extract with a Resource Gathering Operation (RGO).
Others are more subtle, such as the increase in the size of the Holy Roman Empire, which is made up of many more states than it was previously, or that zooming in on a location shows individual buildings that you've built, and hovering over them will tell you what they are.
The only problem that I've noticed is that native peoples seem to be underrepresented; there's really not that many of them, particularly in North America, and that's a real shame. I imagine it will improve over time with DLC, but at the moment, they're thin on the ground.
In addition to the traditional fare of grand strategy games, that is, landed powers, you can also play as landless nations for the first time. You can, for example, play as the Bank of Peruzzi or the Hanseatic League and be a kingmaker without ever actually owning any land directly. Landless nations are pretty sparse in terms of options at the moment, but I still appreciate it, as playing a bank seems like ‘playing tall’ (developing your nation rather than conquering others' lands) taken to its logical conclusion.
(Image credit: Paradox Interactive)
Whichever type of nation you play as, you'll be up against AI that feels more aggressive than in previous games. In multiple games, I saw France (and it is always France) conquer chunks of Aragon or gobble up German provinces by the pfund. Whether I was fighting them as Spain or allying with them like a remora fish allies to a shark as Holland, they were a major force to be reckoned with. I was at one point able to break EU4 over my knee, but the same strategies don't seem to work here, so be prepared to learn it all over again.
Speaking of learning, EU5 is both the most accessible and most complex that the series has ever been. New automation features allow you to hand off control over taxes and trade to the AI, should you choose, and it's pretty darn good at it, too. This is pretty necessary, as until you've paid your deposit, measured in, conservatively, tens of hours, you're going to have some trouble reading the UI.
It's often not particularly clear how to do certain things or which menu you need to open to do them (I'm looking at you, RGO construction menu). The tutorial is noticeably better than in earlier Paradox titles, but still leaves some things unexplained, which is frustrating.
The only other small nitpick that I have with the game is that it recycles a good number of events and achievements from EU4. I appreciate that completing, say, the Lion of the North achievement is going to be different in this game, but I'd have preferred some fresh challenges. Similarly, as you roll from month to month as an experienced EU4, you'll recognise some of the event pop-ups and their options.
Despite these small issues, Europa Universalis 5 represents a huge leap forward for the series. While writing this review, I've been pondering who I would like to play as next, which economic approaches to use, and what other parts of the world I want to see. Monumentally complex but more accessible than ever before, it is already a grand strategy classic and already a worthy replacement for its predecessor.
Should you play Europa Universalis 5?
(Image credit: Paradox Interactive)
Play it if...
You want a game that takes a deep dive into both politics and economics This is a game that has a ridiculously in-depth economic system and the ability to shape your nation's politics in radically different ways.
You've ever enjoyed a grand strategy title or would like to give them a try This is an essential title for those who are experienced with grand strategy games, but the automation features make it ideal for newcomers.
You're a history buff Covering nearly 500 years of history, you'll experience some of the world's most important moments.
Don't play it if...
You don't want to invest significant time into learning a game This is a game that you have to invest a decent amount of time in before really understanding how it all works. Expect your first few games to be very sub-optimal.
You want to play as native peoples, particularly in North America Native peoples are sadly quite lacking in EU5 at release, with North America being particularly empty.
Accessibility
Accessibility features are pretty lacking in Europa Universalis 5, but there is a colorblind mode, which is likely the most important accessibility feature for a game like this. A high-contrast map mode would be a great addition, as would the ability to change the game's font.
How I reviewed Europa Universalis 5
I played as both Castille and the Netherlands, and also tried playing as the Bank of Bardi, giving me a good look at several different nation types. In addition to this, I took part in colonisation and exploration, the Reformation, and several other key events throughout the game. I played the game on my PC, which has an Intel i7 12700f CPU, 32GB of RAM, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 graphics card.
My first thought as soon as I took the InkPad Eo out of its packaging was, “Ooh, that’s different.” It’s physically unlike any PocketBook device I’ve tried before, with a premium and hefty build that it’s borrowed from Bigme – made possible after the Chinese brand became a co-owner.
This was a good move as the metal-bound chassis feels nice to hold and, despite an 8MP rear camera, there’s no bump, so it lies completely flat on a table. However, the use of metal edges and the camera could be what’s made the InkPad Eo heavier (at 470g) than some of its competition, like the Onyx Boox Go 10.3 (375g), and uncomfortable to hold for long sessions. I've tested other 10-inch E Ink writing tablets and most of them are more comfortable to hold than the InkPad Eo.
Other than its design, there’s just a couple of other positives I appreciate about the PocketBook InkPad Eo. One is the adoption of the global handwriting feature – aka the ability to write on third-party apps – which is not always supported in other epaper note-taking tablets and could well sway some potential buyers. The other is the color palette – while not as well optimized as the Kobo Colour Libra's screen, book covers on the InkPad Eo look lovely in color. However, this has not quite translated to the ink colors when writing or drawing and those look far more washed out.
(Image credit: Sharmishta Sarkar / TechRadar)
And that's where my positives for this device stop. While I commend the attempt at giving the Onyx Boox devices competition, the Eo is unable to hold its own in other areas.
For starters, it’s very easy to lose the stylus as it doesn’t secure magnetically to the side of the tablet itself. Moreover, the eraser on the top of the pen doesn’t quite behave as expected – it’s more a selector, and the erasing happens after you’ve selected something in the notes app. It’s not a massive lag, but I much prefer the way the Kindle Scribe’s Premium Pen or the Kobo Stylus 2 behaves – erasing as you move along the writing (or drawing), much like an actual pencil eraser would do. Even the reMarkable’s Marker and the Boox pens erase in real time.
The camera, despite being a nice touch, isn’t worth having at all. It doesn’t actually ‘scan’ a document as your phone might do – instead it takes a photo. And the quality of the image isn’t great either, much like the Onyx Boox Palma 2.
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The one thing you expect to do easily with any ereader is transfer files, but even that basic task was frustrating with the InkPad Eo. While there’s Dropbox support (and I’m not a user of this cloud service), there’s no cable transfer possible from a MacBook (I’m not a Windows user either). All possible solutions recommended by PocketBook that I found online to move ebooks to the library application didn’t work and I had to resort to using a microSD card instead. That worked well, along with allowing me to add custom fonts, and a restart enabled the latter easily enough. Even Boox devices don’t have Apple support, but it’s still a lot easier to transfer files without resorting to using a microSD card, and that's thanks to BooxDrop and Google Drive support.
It’s also not easy to check if a file import (in my case via the microSD card) has been successfully completed on the InkPad Eo. There’s no progress bar and the files don’t uncheck when the import is done. Strangely, there is a greyed-out Import button with a check mark, but it’s barely visible.
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Even ghosting is a massive issue. Nearly every app and every page turn results in a light overlay of the previous screen, which can get distracting after a while because you keep expecting it to happen. And that’s despite PocketBook adopting the multiple refresh rate options that Boox devices also have, and yet the latter does it better. I found that the best refresh rate setting to successfully minimize ghosting on the Inkpad Eo is the Regal option, but the only way to select that is to choose Custom Mode, otherwise it’s greyed out. It’s a simple thing and should be available as one of the default options.
The InkPad Eo is the first epaper writing tablet from PocketBook that I’ve tested, but the user interface was instantly familiar. It’s like a love child of reMarkable and Boox, inheriting more from the latter. And, of course, that means the Eo struggles with similar issues that I’ve previously complained about with Boox. The interface is clunky and not very streamlined, with important submenus tucked away when they should be easier to access.
I’m also not too chuffed about a tablet released in April 2025 running Android 11. That’s outdated now and, even though I don’t expect security to be an issue on a device like an E Ink note-taking tablet, surely it’s time to move on – even Boox has adopted Android 13.
(Image credit: Sharmishta Sarkar / TechRadar)
There are a whole lot of other little bugs which can be fixed via a firmware update, but are, at present, rather annoying. For example, tapping on the Home icon doesn’t take you to a home screen at all – it just refreshes the screen you’re already on or takes you to the home page of the app you were using.
Another example is that even though PocketBook has thought about adding a Night and Bedtime frontlight setting, they’re both very bright by default and require manual adjusting anyway. So having those presets was of no use, at least to me who prefers dim screen light when reading at night.
Long story short, PocketBook needs to do better. The InkPad Eo has the makings of a good epaper writing tablet but, as it is now, it’s hard to recommend when there are other brands that do a far superior job at the same or lower price.
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PocketBook InkPad Eo review: specs
Display type:
E Ink Kaleido 3
Screen size:
10.3 inches
Screen resolution:
300ppi grayscale; 150ppi color
Processor:
Mediatek MT8768 (octa core 2.3GHz)
Frontlight:
Yes (SMARTlight)
Storage:
64GB (expandable via microSD)
Battery:
4,000mAh
Speaker:
Yes (stereo)
Water protection:
None
Software:
Android 11
Connectivity:
USB-C, Wi-Fi (dual band), Bluetooth 5.0
File support:
14 document, 3 image, 2 audio
Dimensions:
226 х 191 х 7 mm
Weight:
470g
PocketBook InkPad Eo review: price & availability
Announced March 2025
Available now in North America and Europe from authorized sellers
List price: $550 / £449 (about AU$850)
The PocketBook InkPad Eo was announced at the end of March 2025 and has been available to buy in select markets from third-party sellers since April. With a price tag of $550 / £449 (about AU$850), it’s an expensive E Ink note-taking tablet, but then so is the Bigme InkNoteX from which it takes its cues, as are other color 10-inch E Ink writing tablets.
For example, the reMarkable Paper Pro will set you back $579 / £559 / AU$929 at the very least. For that kind of money, you’re getting a much better device too – an e-paper screen that displays color better and a very streamlined, minimal user interface. That said, it’s not the best for using as an ereader as well – its sole purpose is to be a writing tablet.
While we haven’t tested the Boox Note Air4 C, we’ve liked the previous generations and, for a color e-note taker of the same size as the InkPad Eo, with the same screen tech and very similar UX, it could be the better buy at $529.99 / AU$874 (ships to the UK via the EU warehouse for about £465).
PocketBook devices aren’t officially available in Australia, but imports are listed on Amazon AU and eBay, but at high markups.
Should I buy the PocketBook InkPad Eo?
Buy it if...
Global handwriting is an important feature you need
Not all epaper writing tablets support handwriting in third-party apps. In fact, it's pretty rare. But PocketBook has enabled it on the InkPad Eo, which gives it a major edge over the competition.
You're a PocketBook or Bigme loyalist
There's no denying that PocketBook or Bigme fans will appreciate this tablet – it's well made and inherts Bigme's global handwriting feature. For everyone else, it might be worth looking elsewhere for an alternative.
Don't buy it if...
You don't have the patience to deal with bugs
There's a heck of a lot that's not executed well with the PocketBook InkPad Eo, and it's more than just bugs. If things like ghosting and a clunky interface are going to annoy you, you're better off spending your money elsewhere.
You want value for money
For what it offers, the InkPad Eo is expensive. You'll find far more value for money by opting for a similar tablet from another brand. And if it's an Android one you're after, the Boox devices should be top of your list.
Also consider
Onyx Boox Go 10.3
It looks lovely and it's arguably the thinnest and lightest 10-inch E Ink writing tablet I've used. It doesn't have a color display, but its feature packed and runs Android 12. It's my pick for being the best E Ink writing tablet as its more versatile than the reMarkable 2. Read my in-depth Onyx Boox Go 10.3 review for more information.
reMarkable Paper Pro
If money is no object and you want a color epaper writing tablet, there's none better than the reMarkable Paper Pro. Instead of using the standard E Ink Kaleido 3 screen tech, it uses a customized version of the Gallery 3 display, so colors are more saturated in comparison. And as a reMarkable, it's a creator's tablet through and through. Read our full reMarkable Paper Pro reviewto learn more.
How I tested the PocketBook InkPad Eo
Used every day for three weeks as ereader and note taker
Downloaded a few Android apps, including Kindle and Kobo for reading
Listened to some audiobooks and music files to test speaker quality
(Image credit: Sharmishta Sarkar / TechRadar)
I've tested about 30 ereaders in the last eight years, so I've developed a routine when I begin a new review. First, I connect to Wi-Fi to set up the device, then immediately see if I can transfer some ebooks and comic files for testing. And if it's a note-taking tablet like the PocketBook InkPad Eo, I start a new notebook called Scribbles where I test writing, drawing and handwriting recognition.
I did all this for the InkPad Eo, then also signed into the Google Play Store to download some other apps, including some benchmarking ones as I'm always curious to see how the processor performs.
I spent about 30 hours over a period of three weeks reading ebooks, and took all my work-related notes on the InkPad Eo. This gave me plenty of experience with the workings of the tablet. I also tried out the rear camera a few times, plus tested all the refresh rate options and various settings.
Given my experience with different brands of ereaders and E Ink writing tablets, I was able to compare the InkPad Eo as objectively as possible with the competition from Onyx Boox, Kindle, Kobo and reMarkable.
Motorola just unveiled the Edge 2025 for North American markets. It comes with a 6.7-inch "Super HD" pOLED display, with a 120 Hz refresh rate and "vibrant hues with Pantone Validated Color". This is also promised to deliver "13% more resolution than the previous generation", without its actual resolution being revealed.
The phone is powered by MediaTek's Dimensity 7400 SoC, paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. It sports a 50 MP main camera with omni-directional all-pixel autofocus using Sony's Lytia LYT-700C sensor. There's also a 50 MP ultrawide with built-in Macro Vision for...
The OnePlus 13R builds on the winning formula of its predecessor, the OnePlus 12R, by delivering prolonged battery life, a dazzling display, and plenty of power in a slick, premium package.
Its price is not as competitively low as the brand’s earliest ‘flagship killers’, but if you’re after a flagship phone without the quite frankly eye-watering price tags that come with them, the OnePlus 13R delivers plenty while only compromising in a few small areas.
This is only the second time an R-Series handset has launched internationally; the initial ‘R’ branded devices (of series 9, 10, and 11) did not reach European or North American shores.
The OnePlus 13R is a less tricked-out – and thus more affordable – version of the flagship OnePlus 13 which launched alongside it. Think of this phone like Samsung’s ‘FE’ variants of its high-end S series and Google’s ‘A’ line of its Pixel phones.
(Image credit: Future)
The 6.78-inch display is colorful and sufficiently bright, making it easy to use even in direct sunlight. The screen is flat, and flush with the phone’s aluminium frame, which results in a pleasing viewing experience.
Meanwhile, the sizable 6,000mAh battery lasted me two days on a single charge, and even power users will get more than a day’s use from the OnePlus 13R before needing to reach for the charging cable. But reach for the cable you will, as there’s no wireless charging.
There’s plenty of power under the hood, with the previous flagship generation Snapdragon chipset at its heart, ably assisted by 12GB of RAM. It means the 13R can handle pretty much anything you throw at it.
While the trio of cameras on the rear may not have the very latest features of the current-gen flagships, it’s a great point-and-shoot camera that holds its own in most scenarios.
Holding the 13R may be a little tricky for those with smaller hands though, as this is a large phone. And you’ll want to be careful around water, as this handset isn’t protected against submersion. It’s merely splash-proof, which does mean it’ll be okay in the rain.
The OnePlus 13R is an accomplished smartphone that borrows many of the features from the brand's previous flagship phone, while being kept just out of reach of some of the very latest tech which has been reserved for its non-R, numerical twin.
OnePlus 13R review: price and availability
(Image credit: Future)
OnePlus 13R price is $599 / £679
Available with 12GB RAM + 256GB ROM in North America and Europe
India also has the option of a 16GB + 512GB variant
When it comes to buying the OnePlus 13R, things are kept simple with just one storage configuration of 256GB ROM + 12GB RAM available in North America and Europe.
For those in India, there’s a beefier 512GB + 16GB additional configuration, which may have some in Western markets looking enviably over to Asia.
The OnePlus 13R price is $599 / £679, matching the launch price of its predecessor (the OnePlus 12R) in the US, but coming in at £30 more expensive in the UK.
With the same launch price in the US as last year’s 256GB OnePlus 12R, the 13R is well positioned in the market, offering a big screen, big battery, and plenty of performance at a price point that undercuts Apple. Meanwhile, for UK buyers the £30 price increase is a little frustrating, but OnePlus has improved on its predecessor and the 13R still offers a solid all-round experience.
This price point sits the OnePlus 13R towards the top end of the ‘affordable flagship’ market, and unlike the OnePlus 12R, the US only gets the 256GB ROM + 12GB RAM. There’s no cheaper variant with 8GB/128GB of RAM and storage this time round.
That means it’s more expensive than the smaller, more palm-friendly Pixel 8a – Google’s own take on an affordable flagship – yet similarly priced to the AI-loaded Samsung Galaxy S24 FE and alternative Nothing Phone (2), although the latter is now a year and a half old at the time of writing.
One of the big draws of the OnePlus 13R will be its supreme battery life, but if battery life is the most important focus in a big-screened phone for you, then you may want to look at the Honor Magic 7 Lite. It’s a chunk cheaper and boasts an even bigger battery (6,600mAh), although it has less power and storage and isn’t available in North America.
Value score: 4 / 5
OnePlus 13R review: specs
The OnePlus 13R comes with a trio of headline specs. There’s the big, bright, and bold 6.78-inch display boasting a maximum brightness of 4,500 nits, the huge 6,000mAh battery that can keep you going for two days, and slick performance thanks to the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset as the brand’s previous generation flagship, the OnePlus 12.
There’s also a trio of cameras around the back, fast 80W wired charging, and 256GB of storage which will keep all but the most prolific power users happy.
OnePlus 13R review: design
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Wonderfully premium aluminum and glass frame
A little large for small hands, and can’t be submerged in water
The OnePlus 13R is a slick piece of hardware, with a sleek aluminum frame wrapping around the circumference of the handset, which is sandwiched on either side by glass.
The flat sides are reminiscent of Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro and 16 Pro series, as well as the Oppo Find X8 range – the latter of which shares various design cues with the OnePlus 13 series, as the two brands are part of the same overarching company.
To complete the premium package the screen and rear of the phone are covered in Gorilla Glass 7i, the first OnePlus phone to harness this new glass type, which maker Corning claims is “specifically engineered to address the need for improved drop protection and scratch resistance.”
This means the 13R should be able to resist the odd drop and knock, but during my review time with the phone, I didn’t really put this to the test.
While the aesthetics may not be entirely unique, the OnePlus 13R has a premium look and feel; it’s built solidly and outperforms its price tag.
Those with smaller hands will find the size of the device overbearing – especially for one-handed use – while I’d have liked the power and volume buttons on the right of the 13R placed lower down.
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The volume rocker especially was a stretch for my thumb, resulting in awkward shuffles in the hand to turn the volume up. If OnePlus placed these a few millimeters lower the buttons would fall naturally under the thumb, making for easier manipulation.
OnePlus’ now iconic alert slider is present on the OnePlus 13R, providing an easy way to toggle between silent, vibrate, and ring modes – although it suffers the same placement affliction as the volume and power – it’s placed just a little too high up on the left of the phone for my taste.
While this was a novel addition in the early days of OnePlus, its inclusion now feels a little superfluous as user habits have evolved over the years resulting in fewer people switching regularly between ring states. Former OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei, even tweeted to say “most people never use it” in regards to the alert slider.
The USB-C port sits centrally on the bottom edge of the phone, flanked by the SIM tray (which supports two cards) and the speaker. On the back, the smooth, minimalist finish of my Nebular Noir-colored device is interrupted only by the enormous circular camera housing.
It’s aligned to one side of the handset – providing a small point of differentiation to the centrally placed camera bump on the Find X8 devices – which does displace the weight slightly, but isn’t an issue during daily use. OnePlus has managed to keep the weight of the 13R to a reasonable 206g, which allows it to sit comfortably in the hand.
One disappointing feature is the handset’s IP65 water resistance rating. It’s an improvement over the IP64 rating of its predecessor and protects against jets of water, but an IP68 rating (water resistance for submersion) is not uncommon in this price bracket.
Design score: 4 / 5
OnePlus 13R review: display
(Image credit: Future)
The 6.78-inch display is big, bright and colorful
A peak brightness of 4,500 nits makes it great for use in the sun
OnePlus makes a big deal about the display on this phone, and the good news is it lives up to the billing. It’s big, bright and colorful.
At 6.78 inches, it’s a sizable offering, much larger than the 6.1-inch screen on the Pixel 8a, a hair bigger than the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE (at 6.7 inches), while it’s the same size as the Honor Magic 7 Lite – another big-battery competitor.
There’s plenty of real estate for apps, and the slender uniform bezels all the way around give it a premium appeal. The only interruption on the screen is the circular cutout at the top of the display for the 16MP front-facing camera.
The 1264 x 2780 (1.5K) resolution – which gives you a pixel density of 450 ppi – is par for the course. OnePlus says the 13R can deliver a maximum brightness of 4,500 nits, but you won’t actually see that level of brightness in real-world use.
In my time with the phone, the OnePlus 13R’s screen performed very well in bright light, whether indoors or outdoors. If you’re fortunate enough to find yourself in a particularly sunny climate, you can be confident you’ll be able to see what’s on-screen in direct sunlight.
(Image credit: Future)
And when the weather turns and rain starts to fall, the OnePlus 13R continues to perform thanks to Aqua Touch 2.0. Taking the phone into the rain, the screen continued to respond well when my use was uninterrupted by the conditions – rain can cause issues on other phones, where the screen is confused by water droplets leading to unregistered taps or erroneous inputs.
Another nice inclusion for the OnePlus 13R is Glove Mode, allowing you to interact with the screen while wearing woolen or sheepskin gloves (up to 0.5cm thick). This mode isn’t on by default, you need to dive into the accessibility menus in the Settings apps (you can search “glove” in Settings to find the mode quicker) to enable it.
Once enabled, I was impressed by just how responsive the screen was when wearing a pair of woolen gloves. With the mode switched off, there was zero response from the screen when wearing gloves, so the difference is stark.
Interactions do require a little more force to be applied compared to non-glove use, but that’s not a surprise. OnePlus does note that glove mode does not support gameplay, so if you’re planning to have a round of PUBG while vacationing in Lapland, Finland, you may want to wait until you’re inside and gloveless before parachuting into battle. Opening and closing apps, moving around the interface, scrolling social, and tapping out messages are all easily done, however.
Display score: 4.5 / 5
OnePlus 13R review: software
(Image credit: Future)
OxygenOS 15.0 offers plenty of customization options
OnePlus guarantees four years of OS updates, but rivals offer more
The OnePlus 13R is an Android 15 smartphone, with the latest version of Google’s mobile operating system underpinning the software you see on the screen.
It’s not pure Android, as OnePlus has applied its OxygenOS 15.0 interface on top, providing the handset with a familiar look and feel for users of the brand’s previous generation of devices.
What this gives you is a slightly different look and feel to the stock Android platform (found on Pixel handsets). My OnePlus 13R also arrived pre-loaded with additional apps on top of the default system offerings.
These included Netflix, Amazon Music, Booking.com, LinkedIn, Facebook, Lyft, and AliExpress. You may find some of these pre-installed apps useful, but if you don’t the good news is they can be uninstalled entirely from the phone – leaving you with more of the apps you want.
I have seen phone manufacturers pre-install many more apps than on the OnePlus 13R, and also forbid users from uninstalling them, so what OnePlus has done isn’t cause for concern.
OnePlus says it has reduced the overall size of OxygenOS 15 by 40%, meaning it takes up less of the 256GB of internal storage space, leaving you more room for apps, games, photos, videos, and more.
OnePlus’ overlay also provides a wide range of customization features, allowing you to make the OnePlus 13R personal to you. From a range of home screen widgets and the ability to tweak the size, shape, and design of app icons, to different options from the drag-down motion to access the notifications bar and quick settings – there’s plenty to explore.
The Open Canvas feature from the OnePlus Open and OnePlus Pad 2 is present here, so I could have two apps side-by-side on screen. A horizontal bar divides the screen, and I could drag it up and down to resize the two apps.
There’s also the option to open an app in a floating window, and I could move around the rest of the phone’s interface while keeping the selected app open in a small area of the screen. Useful if you’re watching a video or part of a busy group chat and want to look up information in other apps.
I could even drag and ‘pin’ up to two of these floating windows to the edge of the screen, minimizing them to a transparent app logo tucked off the side of the display. A quick tap on the logo opened it back up as a floating window.
These multitasking features work well on the OnePlus 13R, and while it’s a little fiddly to enable split screen or floating window (and to pin these), it’s impressive when you get multiple apps all working at once – especially if you have two apps on split screen and then a third in a floating window.
The OnePlus 13R comes future-proofed too, with OnePlus committing to four years of software updates and six years of security updates for the device. While this is a good offering, it’s not industry-leading. Apple has offered five years of updates for some time, while Google and Samsung offer seven years of software and security updates on their latest devices.
And this wouldn’t be a 2025 smartphone without a mention of AI. In the Photos app (the OnePlus version, not Google’s Photos app) you’ll find the AI Editor option with four tools for you to use. More on these in the camera section.
Google’s Gemini AI assistant also comes pre-loaded on the OnePlus 13R, giving you access to features such as Circle to Search and Magic Compose (for help writing text messages).
Software score: 4 / 5
OnePlus 13R review: cameras
(Image credit: Future)
A capable all-round camera delivers great images in most conditions
Plenty of modes and settings for avid photographers
The OnePlus 13R packs a trio of cameras in the sizable, circular camera housing, headlined by a 50MP Sony LYT-700 main sensor alongside a 50MP telephoto sensor, providing support for the 2x zoom. The sensor array is completed by an 8MP ultra-wide sensor with a 112-degree field of view. There’s also an LED flash to help illuminate dark scenes.
On the front, you get a 16MP selfie camera, but there’s no wide-angle lens to expand the view to fit more faces. You’ll either have to press cheeks together or live with the fact some people may not make it in the frame.
The OnePlus 13R camera app loads swiftly and comes packed with features, with quick access icons for Google Lens, exposure, retouch (beautification mode), and filters ensuring you’re Instagram-ready in no time.
You can move between different camera modes by swiping horizontally above the shutter button – with smartphone staples ‘Video’ and ‘Portrait’ quickly accessible on either side of the default ‘Photo’ mode.
For those who like to fine-tune their shooting experience, ‘Pro’ mode gives granular controls for ISO, Shutter speed, exposure, focus, and white balance – plus there’s the option to shoot in RAW rather than JPG for greater editing flexibility in programs such as Photoshop.
Dive into the ‘More’ section and you’ll find further modes to choose from including night, panorama, slo-mo video, and time-lapse.
In short, the OnePlus 13R camera app gives you plenty of choice and customization options, but the good news is it takes good photos in the default setting – for those who don’t want to have to mess with settings.
In most conditions, the 13R is a very capable smartphone camera. It’s not at the same level as the best camera phones on the market, but that’s to be expected given it sits a tier below the true premium flagship offerings.
Camera score: 4 / 5
OnePlus 13R review: camera samples
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Portrait mode does an excellent job of keeping the cat in focus while blurring the sofa behind (Image credit: Future)
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Macro mode is automatically enabled when you get close to your subject (Image credit: Future)
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In bright daylight, the OnePlus 13R is a great point-and-shoot camera (Image credit: Future)
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The default 1x zoom (Image credit: Future)
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Tap to the 2x optical zoom and you’ll get closer to your subject while maintaining image quality (Image credit: Future)
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The 13R can zoom all the way to 20x digitally (Image credit: Future)
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At night, the OnePlus 13R captures detailed shots (Image credit: Future)
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And does impressively well close-up in lowlight (default shooting mode) (Image credit: Future)
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The selfie camera produces bright, clear shots – although they can be a little overexposed (Image credit: Future)
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Switch to Portrait mode when using the selfie camera and you get a more natural result and decent blurring around the subject (Image credit: Future)
As with its predecessor, the advice for those who want to take their smartphone photography seriously on the OnePlus 13R is to stick to the main 50MP camera. It benefits from both EIS (electronic image stabilization) and OIS (optical image stabilization) to improve results.
You can use the phone as a reliable point-and-shoot to capture outdoor and indoor shots, both during the day and at night. The OnePlus 13R camera particularly impressed me during a nighttime walk through a light trail, with the default settings handling the variable lighting conditions very well.
I was able to take a series of striking low-light images with minimum effort as I walked through the trail, and this is exactly what I want from a smartphone camera. Something that can quickly and easily generate great results for social and group chats.
The OnePlus 13R also offers solid editing tools, allowing you to tinker with pictures way after you’ve taken them. As mentioned earlier in this review, OnePlus has included a number of AI-powered editing tools in its own gallery (the 13R has two photo galleries, the default OnePlus app, and the Google Photos app – the latter of which has its own editing tools as well).
AI Unblur, as the name suggests, can take your blurry photographs and reduce the lack of focus. It can be applied to any image, not just ones taken on the 13R, although I found the difference made – while an improvement – was minimal.
What I found more useful was AI Detail Boost. This enhances busy images to provide better clarity and contrast throughout your shots – again, working on any image.
Then there’s AI Eraser and AI Reflection Eraser. The former you’ll likely be familiar with as it’s a tool most smartphones offer, allowing you to remove people/animals/objects from your shots. It works well here, although it can struggle with busier scenes and complex backgrounds.
Reflection Eraser takes things a step further by, yup you’ve guessed it, attempting to remove reflections on windows, glass, or screens. I tried this on a number of images, with varying success. Generally, improvements were made, but I didn’t manage to completely remove reflections in any of the images I tested it on.
In all, the AI tools are a nice addition to the OnePlus 13R, but they don’t deliver an experience that stands out over similar tools available on other phones.
Hyperboost performance settings are great for mobile gamers
The OnePlus 13R comes packed with power, ensuring it keeps up with pretty much anything you can toss its way.
While the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset isn’t the latest top-tier Snapdragon 8 Elite offering from Qualcomm, it’s the same flagship chipset that featured in the OnePlus 12. What this means is the 13R still packs a punch, backed up by a capable 12GB of RAM.
The interface flows well, and the performance along with the 120Hz displays makes for slick, smooth scrolling on social media. Apps load quickly, although for more demanding titles the OnePlus 13R doesn’t feel quite as fast under the finger as the true flagships on the market.
That’s not really an issue, and considering the price point of this phone I was more than happy with the performance I was getting, whether that was browsing social, streaming video, checking emails, doing work (including writing parts of this very review) or taking a well-earned gaming break.
I ran a number of benchmark tests from 3DMark, Geekbench, CrossMark, JetStream, and WebXPRT 4 to really push the capabilities of the OnePlus 13R. It performed admirably with flagship-level (or close to flagship) results, reinforcing the fact there’s plenty of power available in this phone.
Fire up a game and you’ll notice the handset’s Hyperboost performance settings are automatically engaged, giving you live data on the phone’s condition during your gaming session.
From the drop-down panel, you can easily keep an eye on your fps (frames per second), latency, and how hot the OnePlus 13R is getting thanks to a temperature sensor embedded under the display.
There are three modes to choose from, with ‘Balanced’ being the default setting. You can alternatively switch to ‘Low power’ which will help extend your gaming session when the battery is running low by reducing screen refresh and lowering touch response.
(Image credit: Future)
Then there’s ‘Pro Gamer’ which channels all power to your game resulting in increased temperature and battery drain. A pop-up even warns you to consider only using this mode during ambient temperatures.
There are even more tools to play around with in the Hyperboost menu, including tweaking the GPU settings, toggling key features on and off, and screen recording controls to capture epic battles. In short, if you’re big into mobile gaming, the OnePlus 13R has plenty to offer.
The OnePlus 13R comfortably handled Genshin Impact at 60fps and its highest graphics setting (at 30fps). Load screens took a beat longer to process compared to the high-end flagship phones, but it didn’t detract from gameplay. While the handset did get warm it never reached an uncomfortable temperature.
Something else that impressed me during testing was the performance of the biometric scanners. Located under the display close to the bottom of the screen, the fingerprint scanner is well placed for your thumb to land on it every time when unlocking.
It performs well too, with great responsiveness and no read failures experienced during my time with the phone.
You can also choose to enable face unlock. It’s quick to register your face, and in daylight, the OnePlus 13R is able to instantly recognize you and unlock, even from awkward angles such as sneakily looking at your phone from under a desk.
Performance score: 4 / 5
OnePlus 13R review: battery
(Image credit: Future)
TA huge 6,000mAh battery delivers two-day use on a single charge
80W charging sees 1%-100% in 52 minutes, but no wireless charging
One of the biggest selling points for the OnePlus 13R is its huge 6,000mAh battery, providing the handset with excellent longevity and giving you the peace of mind of truly all-day battery life without the need to even consider reaching for a charger.
During our heavy-usage days, we found we’d still be getting into bed at the end of the day with the battery at least 20%, and on days where we curbed our gaming and video watching, we could easily unplug at 7am and then plug in at 11pm with 50% still left in the tank.
With slightly more thoughtful use (i.e. no gaming and videos and limited social media) the OnePlus 13R is capable of delivering two days of battery life from a single charge without the need to switch to a battery-saving mode.
The SUPERVOOC charging speed has been reduced from 100W on the OnePlus 12R to 80W on the new OnePlus 13R, as the firm looks to preserve the overall life of the mammoth power pack inside.
(Image credit: Future)
The 80W charging still delivers a good amount of juice in a short amount of time, and with the right fast-charging plug adapter (you only get a USB-C cable in the box in the UK) the OnePlus 13R can go from 1% to 100% in as little as 52 minutes.
Using a fast 60W charging block, the OnePlus 13R replenished from 15% to 31% in 15 minutes, and the battery got back to 48% after 30 minutes (increasing 33 percentage points in half an hour). Respectable top-up times, especially if you need to swiftly add charge before stepping out of the house.
These charging times will improve if you have an 80W charging block to take advantage of the maximum supported charging speed.
The only blemish in the OnePlus 13R’s battery story is the fact it doesn’t have wireless charging. This feature has been reserved for its pricier sibling – the OnePlus 13, so you’ll need a cable to top up the 13R.
Battery score: 4.5 /5
Should you buy the OnePlus 13R?
Buy it if...
You want a brilliant balance of battery power and performance With a 6,000mAh battery and punchy Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, the OnePlus 13R delivers excellent battery life along with flagship-level performance (even though the chipset is a year old).
You’re after a big screen that won’t break the bank Forget the Pro Max and Ultra devices, the OnePlus 13R delivers a big screen experience at a lower price point, and it does it really well. The 6.78-inch display is brilliantly bright and colorful, making whatever you do on it look great.
You want a slick mobile gaming machine Add together the battery life, performance, and display, and the OnePlus 13R has all the hallmarks of a fantastic gaming device. The Hyperboost performance settings are the icing on the cake.
Don't buy it if...
You’re looking for the best update longevity OnePlus has made positive strides by announcing its OnePlus 13 series handsets will receive four years of OS updates and six years of security updates, but it still lags behind the competition. Apple, Google, and Samsung all offer more years of OS updates.
You want the biggest battery for your buck If battery life is your core focus for buying a new phone, the OnePlus 13R and its 6,000mAh power pack certainly makes a good case, but the Honor Magic 7 Lite has a bigger battery (6,600mAh) at a lower price – although it’s not as powerful, and not available in North America.
You’re after proper water resistance The OnePlus 13R carries an IP65 dust and water resistance rating, which translates to the phone being able to cope with droplets and jets of water (such as rain), but isn’t protected if you were to accidentally drop it in the bath/sink/swimming pool.
OnePlus 13R review: also consider
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE The Galaxy S24 FE isn’t the cheapest of the rivals, but it comes stuffed to the brim with Galaxy AI features, excellent battery life, and decent performance.
Google Pixel 8a This Galaxy is about to be replaced, but it still hits hard with amazing cameras, the water-resistant S Pen camera remote, and tons of other features.
I used the OnePlus 13R as my daily device for more than two weeks, testing it in a wide range of daily scenarios.
From night-time photography walks around illuminated festive trails and trips to live sporting events, to hours spent playing games (including Pokemon Go, Clash Royale, and Genshin Impact) and streaming videos (via Netflix, DAZN, YouTube, and Disney+), the 13R experienced high-usage and demanding applications to push the screen, chipset and battery to their limits. I braved the storms, taking the phone outside during heavy downpours to test the screen resistance, while also chasing the sun to put the 4,500 nits display through its paces.
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There were quieter days too, where I was checking emails, scrolling social media, and listening to music without the demands of gaming or video, to get a true feeling of how the battery and interface work. I even wrote some of this very review on the OnePlus 13R, to see how it coped as a work device – as life isn’t all pleasure. At least, not for me.
Alongside daily use, I ran numerous benchmarking tests from the likes of Geekbench, CrossMark, 3DMark, and more, to find out if the OnePlus 13R lived up to its performance billing – which it certainly did.
Motorola's mid-range stylus-carrying smartphone range has a new member starting today. Meet the aptly named Moto G Stylus 5G (2024). This phone got leaked all the way back in January, and it's now official for North America.
It comes with an improved stylus, which has a new design, a larger contact area, and improved software to make using it faster and easier. Latency has been reduced, note-taking simplified, and there's also a new UI for accessing stylus-related features. You can choose from any number of apps and your favorites will appear the moment you pop out the stylus.
With...
The OnePlus 12R, unveiled last month, went on sale in India a week ago and is now available in North America, Europe, and the UK through OnePlus' official website.
The OnePlus 12R comes in Iron Gray and Cool Blue colors in the US and Canada with two memory options - 8GB/128GB and 16GB/256GB. In Europe and the UK, you only get the 16GB model, with the latter only having the Iron Gray version. You can check the table below for the prices.
Model
US
Canada
Europe
UK
8GB/128GB
USD499.99
CAD669.99
-
-
...
Samsung is expected to introduce the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra on January 17 with a similar design but improved chipset performance, leaks revealed earlier this month.
The latest report from the Netherlands revealed the S24 and S24+ will be slightly cheaper. At the same time, an allegedly leaked specs sheet suggested the two non-Ultra flagships will come with Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 only in the US and Canada, all the other markets are getting the Exynos 2400 treatment.
The image above could be a presentation slide prepared by Samsung's marketing department for...
Samsung is expected to introduce the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and Galaxy S24 Ultra on January 17 with a similar design but improved chipset performance, leaks revealed earlier this month.
The latest report from the Netherlands revealed the S24 and S24+ will be slightly cheaper. At the same time, an allegedly leaked specs sheet suggested the two non-Ultra flagships will come with Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 only in the US and Canada, all the other markets are getting the Exynos 2400 treatment.
The image above could be a presentation slide prepared by Samsung's marketing department for...
Samsung has confirmed that it's holding its next Unpacked unveiling event in its home of Korea, in the last week of July. However, the plot now thickens, as a new report claims there will be a separate Unpacked event for the North American markets (the US and Canada), which will take place in August.
Or rather, on August 11, to be precise. That would be a bit over two weeks after July 26, which is when the initial Unpacked is rumored to happen in Korea (Samsung still hasn't confirmed the actual date, for whatever reason).
Unfortunately the source of this information hasn't shared...
Mere hours ago Motorola unveiled the Razr 40 and Razr 40 Ultra foldable smartphones in parent company Lenovo's home market, China. Now the duo has also been announced for global markets, with a twist - the Razr 40 will be called Razr, and the Razr 40 Ultra will go by Razr+ in North America.
The phones are the same that we've already introduced in our initial announcement post. Over in the Eurozone, the Razr 40 will go for €799, while the Razr 40 Ultra is priced at €1,199.
The Razr 40 Ultra is available today in Europe, and will roll out across Latin America and Asia in the coming...
