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Is the OnePlus 3’s 6GB RAM really all that?

A new video test suggests that one of the OnePlus 3’s key specs isn’t operating quite as it should be.

The OnePlus 3 is out now, and initial reports seem to suggest that it’s a hot smartphone that could carry the fight to the flagships.

One of its headline specs is 6GB of RAM, which is a more generous amount than any other phone we’ve seen to date. However, a video test published on YouTube seems to suggest that this extra RAM isn’t being put to good use at present.

The test pitches the OnePlus 3 against the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge (which has 4GB RAM) to see how they perform in key areas like opening apps and games, and managing memory – all RAM-intensive tasks.

Related: OnePlus 3 vs Samsung Galaxy S7

One of the tests establishes how well each device holds apps in memory. Being able to snap straight back into apps and web tabs is one of the advantages of a decent amount of RAM.

It took the OnePlus 3 more than twice as long as the Galaxy S7 Edge to run through its app allotment. It appeared to be reloading each app, suggesting they weren’t being held in memory.

As Phandroid notes, this is likely to be an issue with the OnePlus 3’s memory management software, so can likely be corrected by a OnePlus engineer. But right now, you might not see a benefit from that extra RAM.

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