OnePlus Nord will ship with Google's iMessage and Facetime replacements

Oneplus Nord MKBHD Video Closer (Image credit: MKBHD)

What you need to know

OnePlus is replacing its native communication apps with Google's equivalents on the upcoming Nord.
The OnePlus Nord is set to launch Tuesday, July 21.
OnePlus will likely use Google's apps as defaults on its flagship going forward.

OnePlus this week announced on Instagram that they would be replacing the stock messaging and calling apps with Google's alternatives. The OnePlus Nord will ship with Google Messages and Google Phone in place of OnePlus' dialer and messaging apps, it'll also have Duo on board as part of the company's continued integration with that video calling app.

For OnePlus customers, the benefit is clear. Buyers will keep all the basic features they are used to, and they now gain access to Google's smarter features. Although the firm didn't say it during its announcement, it's probable that OnePlus will probably start shipping Google's apps on its flagship phones going forward to preserve a unified experience.

The OnePlus Nord is pretty much here, and it's expected to be powered by a Snapdragon 765G, ship with an ultra-wide front-facing camera set-up paired with a rear quad-camera. As all phones this day tend to be a little on the large size, you'll be looking at a 6.55-inch 90Hz display. It'll be launching this Tuesday in what the company bills as the first AR launch event.

Commenting on the nature of the upcoming launch, OnePlus's Paul Yu said:

OnePlus Nord represents a new beginning for OnePlus, giving us an opportunity to share our technology with more people around the world. For this launch, we want everyone to sit back, relax, and experience our new phone for the first time right in the comfort of their living room.We feel that introducing Nord in a more personal and intimate way perfectly reflects our ambition to make the OnePlus experience more accessible to users.

3 Comments

GOOD!! Maybe ALL Android phone makers should do the same ... so Android can have a common, unified messaging experience across the platform and quit wasting developer resources on recreating the bleemin' wheel! Then, maybe Google can integrate Messages and Duo and the dialler for an integrated iMessage-like experience. They could call it ... Hangouts or something.
Google has demonstrated ZERO interest in creating a genuine, SINGLE unified messaging platform across all devices/platforms that is required software. What Google has successfully done is make half ***ed attempts or start projects they lose interest in 12-18 months in and decide to start over from scratch. THIS IS WHY THERE IS NO ANDROID EQUIVALENT TO iMessage 10 YEARS IN. It is 100% Google's fault.
And hopefully OnePlus will dump their useless shelf and replace it with the Google feed instead going forward. Personally I liked OnePlus' messages app but overall I think Google's is better and is probably for the best that OnePlus is shipping Google's own apps as default starting with the OnePlus Noord and on their future flagships. But even then, Google messages isn't as good as iMessage.