Confirmed: The OnePlus 12R will join the OnePlus 12 at a January 2024 event

The OnePlus 12 isn’t really a secret at this point – it was fully revealed in China in early December. The only unknown was when, not if, the flagship would be launched internationally. Well, we now have an answer.

OnePlus today published a 10th anniversary video celebrating its various milestones and discussing the company’s future.

This, of course, focused on the OnePlus 12, with the company confirming that the flagship will see an international launch on 23 January 2024. The event, taking place in India, will kick off at 19:30 IST, translating to 14:00 in the UK and 9:00am EST for those in the US.

Thanks to the China launch, we already know that the OnePlus 12 will sport the top-end Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset – one of the first in the Western market to do so – along with key features like a new 64MP 3x periscope lens, 50W wireless charging capabilities and a slightly larger 6.82-inch 120Hz AMOLED display to name just a few.

In fact, we’ve already covered the OnePlus 12’s China launch in detail if you want to learn more about the upcoming phone ahead of its international debut. 

What we’ll likely find out in January is precisely how much this will cost in the UK, US and Europe, and when we can buy it locally. It’ll likely also focus more on OxygenOS 14, a feature not present on the China-focused model.

However, unlike the OnePlus 11, which was the only flagship release for OnePlus in 2023, the OnePlus 12 won’t be alone at the January 2024 reveal.

Instead, it’ll be joined by the OnePlus 12R – and it’s not your usual Pro variant of the regular flagship either. OnePlus claims these are separate devices with totally different focuses, though the company hasn’t divulged further on what that focus might be.

“The two devices, the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R, are designed to prove that a smartphone doesn’t need to be “Plus” “Pro” or “Ultra” to provide the best hardware specs and software experience”, OnePlus said in a press release. “Instead, the dual flagship OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 12R each have their own unique attributes that give users the choice to pick what’s important for them on their next smartphone.”

What we do know is that it’s the first time the ‘R’ variant has been released outside of its usual Chinese and Indian markets. In those markets, the OnePlus 11R was framed as a more budget-friendly alternative to the flagship with a slightly older processor and downgraded camera specs. 

Whether OnePlus will take the same approach with the 12R is unknown, however. OnePlus’ claims of differing focuses certainly suggest a different tactic could be employed with this year’s variant.   

But, with the launch event scheduled for late January 2024 and an almost guaranteed series of teasers leading up to the big day, we don’t have that long to find out.