OnePlus could be preparing a major change to its performance-focused, sub-flagship Ace lineup, which launches under the ‘R’ branding outside of China. A leaked schematic of the rumoured Ace 7 shows a built-in cooling fan, while a separate leak suggests Realme could launch a phone with similar hardware under its own branding. The Ace 7 is expected to arrive in India as the OnePlus 16R, although neither phone has been officially announced.
Both brands belong to the OPPO group, making the hardware overlap a real possibility. Built-in cooling fans have started appearing beyond dedicated gaming phones, with brands looking for ways to manage the heat generated by heavy-duty chipsets and demanding workloads.
OnePlus Ace 7 / OnePlus 16R cooling fan and specifications
Tipster Digital Chat Station claims OnePlus will launch a smartphone with an active cooling fan and dual-airflow architecture in China later this month, without explicitly naming the device. The leaked schematic appears to show airflow directed towards both the processor and rear panel, with hot air pushed sideways and cooler air released downwards, away from the user’s hands. The system is also said to feature an AI temperature sensor, proprietary cooling technology and measures to reduce fan noise and dust ingress. This would be a first for OnePlus, which has relied on passive cooling in its production smartphones so far.
Built-in fans have traditionally been associated with dedicated gaming phones such as Nubia’s RedMagic series and the now archival ASUS ROG phones. However, the concept has spread to other performance devices, with OPPO introducing it in its K13 Turbo series in late 2025, while iQOO launched the iQOO 15 Ultra with one and is now bringing it to the elevated mid-range segment the Neo 12 this month.
Other reported specifications of the OnePlus Ace 7 / 16R include a 6.78-inch flat LTPS OLED display with 1.5K resolution and a 185Hz refresh rate. The phone is tipped to use the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, with a 200MP primary camera, a 50MP periscope telephoto camera offering 3.5x optical zoom, a 16MP selfie camera and a 9,000mAh battery. Charging could be rated at 100W or 120W, depending on which leak proves accurate. Two OnePlus devices, PMS110 and PYF110, have appeared on Geekbench with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, 16GB of RAM and Android 17. At least one could be the Ace 7, but that connection remains unconfirmed.
Realme could launch a similar phone under a different name
Separately, tipster GadgetsData claims Realme is developing a phone with a built-in cooling fan, a flat 1.5K OLED display with an 185Hz refresh rate and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8-series chipset. The camera setup could include a 200MP primary sensor and a 50MP telephoto camera with 3.5x optical zoom, without an ultrawide camera. Other reported features include a battery with a typical capacity of 8,700mAh that could be marketed as 9,000mAh, a metal frame, a flat glass back and a circular RGB light on the rear. The tipster also claims the phone could support gaming at up to 120fps in Battlegrounds Mobile India and 165fps in Call of Duty.
It remains unclear whether this is a separate Realme flagship or the Indian version of the OnePlus 16R coming with Realme branding. The reported camera setup also conflicts with earlier leaks about the two phones.
For buyers, the cooling fan could be a meaningful addition if it helps sustain performance during long gaming sessions. But fan noise, dust protection and actual thermal performance will matter as much as the other specifications. Until OnePlus and Realme clarify their plans, it’s too early to know whether these phones will offer meaningfully different experiences or compete with each other.
