Apple Releases the Latest Smartphone With This Feature
The great “iPhone vs. Android” debate could very well rage on forever, with neither side claiming an outright victory. Both platforms have their pros and cons, as well as the companies that make the hardware and software. However, there is one feature that Apple can claim exclusivity for now that its sole competitor has left the arena.
OnePlus 10T won’t ship with a warning slider
While the official keynote is still more than a week away, OnePlus has revealed that its upcoming 10T will not feature the famous “alert slider” or mute switch. In an interview with The Verge , OnePlus chief designer Hope Liu stated that the switch had to go to make room inside the phone for “high power charging, large battery capacity and better antenna signal.”
While Liu’s design explanation may be true, this omission is disappointing: OnePlus was the only Android OEM to include a hardware switch designed to turn audible alerts on or off, and was well known for doing so. The OnePlus version allows you to move the slider to three different positions: one turns on alerts, another turns on silent mode, and a third switches to vibration. Now OnePlus 10T users will need to rely on software controls to set the phone to mute or vibrate like most Android devices on the market.
This is not the first time OnePlus has left a warning slider on one of its smartphones: many devices in the OnePlus Nord series lack a toggle, so customers with one of these devices will no doubt find the drama around this “news” confusing. . However, Nord is OnePlus’ “budget” line; The 10T marks the first full-featured flagship smartphone from OnePlus to omit the alert slider, and it feels like a big deal.
iPhone is the only new smartphone with a mute feature
This makes Apple the only smartphone manufacturer to include such a hardware switch in their devices, which obviously means it no longer appears on new Android phones. If you want to be able to mute your phone without looking at it or taking it out of your pocket, your only option is to grab an iPhone or buy an older OnePlus device. It won’t be too difficult since OnePlus launched the 10 Pro in March of this year. However, unless OnePlus changes course, this phone will be the last Android with a mute switch.
However, let’s be realistic: no one buys a phone just because the sound is off. Apple likely won’t run ads showing a customer muting their iPhone slightly before an important meeting (even if that’s a good selling point). However, it is worth emphasizing as it is a major milestone in Android smartphones and OnePlus as a company. We will miss the warning slider and we hope that it will return. Until then, we will be muting our smartphones using software.
Fun fact: While Apple has never shipped an iPhone without a mute switch, it has dropped the feature from another product line. Apple used the switch on the iPad, all the way back to the iPad Air 2. You could use it either as a sound toggle or to turn rotation lock on or off. Both options have now been moved to the Control Center .