Does The OnePlus 5 Feature An IR Blaster?

Does the OnePlus 5 Feature an IR Blaster?

BY Ben Patterson

Ben Patterson

...

All Articles by Ben Patterson

Published 20 Jun 2017

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OnePlus has never really included an IR blaster on its devices starting right from the OnePlus One. But has the company made an exception with the OnePlus 5 this year?

Sadly, the answer is no. While OnePlus is known to listen and incorporate community feedback in its devices, it decided against including an IR blaster on the OnePlus 5. While an Infrared blaster is an incredibly handy tool to have on a smartphone, it is not particularly a popular feature in smartphones in markets like Europe and the US.

An IR blaster on a smartphone allows users to control electronic appliances like their TV, music system, and other devices right from their smartphone.

With even big OEMs like Samsung, HTC and LG ditching the IR blaster from their flagship handsets over the last couple of years, the chances of OnePlus including an IR blaster on the OnePlus 5 were slim to begin with.

However, since previous OnePlus owners have never really experienced how incredibly handy it is to have an IR blaster on a smartphone, I doubt future OnePlus 5 owners will even miss having an IR blaster on their smartphone.