The hot new OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro are now certified for Verizon use, 5G included
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The 5G-enabled OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro are here up for pre-order at long last, but unlike 2020's OnePlus 8, which got a Verizon-compatible UW edition, these hot new mobile powerhouses are exclusive to T-Mobile as far as US carrier sales are concerned.
Of course, just because the two ultra-high-end phones cannot be purchased directly from the nation's largest wireless service provider, it doesn't mean you're prohibited from actually using them on Big Red's (4G LTE) network, as explained earlier this week.
Even better, it looks like OnePlus and Verizon have moved rather swiftly in their joint efforts of adding 5G support, which is already a done deal. Both the 9 and 9 Pro are now officially "certified to work" on Verizon and Visible, as highlighted by a carrier rep on Twitter earlier today, who also took the time to stress that the two new handsets "will work great on Verizon 5G" after buying them elsewhere and doing the age-old BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) dance.
Before you get too excited, it's important to point out there are no words on Ultra Wideband 5G compatibility at the moment, which probably means you'll need to settle for the operator's significantly lower "nationwide" 5G DSS speeds, at least until all of that precious C-band spectrum is deployed.
In case you're wondering, Visible is... basically Verizon under a different name (and with no contracts, physical stores, or "foot-long bills"), so that part of today's announcement is certainly not surprising. The network is obviously the same, UW and DSS technology included, and yes, the OnePlus 8 5G is sold directly by Visible as well... at a low price of $432 right now.
Then again, the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro are naturally better from a number of different standpoints, sharing a state-of-the-art Snapdragon 888 processor, up to 12 gigs of RAM, 4,500mAh battery capacity, a primary 48MP rear-facing shooter, and a secondary 50MP ultra-wide-angle lens among others. The 9 Pro is bigger, sharper, and all-around better, not to mention costlier, but of course, you're free to choose whatever you feel suits your usage habits and preferences best, now with full (more or less) support for the two biggest US mobile network operators.
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