CyanogenMod partners with OnePlus to release its first official phone

OnePlus, the smartphone startup founded by a former Oppo executive, announced that it will release the first official CyanogenMod phone later this year.

CyanogenMod recently saw its first device hit store shelves in the form of the CyanogenMod edition of the Oppo N1. But it has found a more permanent device partner to move forward with in smartphone startup OnePlus. The company announced that it will be releasing the first official CyanogenMod phone the OnePlus One later this year.

The pairing isn’t that surprising. OnePlus was founded by CEO Pete Lau, who was previously an executive at Oppo, the maker of CyanogenMod’s first phone. But unlike the Cyanogen-equipped N1, which was released after a standard version came out, the OnePlus One will be built completely around CyanogenMod. The company is developing a custom version of the software with special features and tweaks.

CyanogenMod is a customized version of Google’s Android operating system, and updates come directly from CyanogenMod itself, which makes the process significantly faster than it is for most other devices. You can install the software yourself on any Android phone, through a process that is becoming increasingly easier.

OnePlus doesn’t have any products yet to show us what to expect from the OnePlus One. But Oppo places an emphasis on high-end hardware, so it’ll be interesting to see if OnePlus follows that trend. No other details are available, but OnePlus expect the phone to become available within the first half of this year.


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