OxygenOS 16 hands-on: it’s all about refinements
Ever since the company’s inception, OxygenOS has been OnePlus’ core offering for its fast and smooth nature. With the newly introduced OxygenOS 16, the company not only improves its core strength but also offers an experience that aids users in getting things done in a fluent and burdenless manner, through new transitions and customisation options. With the tagline being “Intelligently Yours”, OxygenOS 16 also emphasises AI functionalities for improved productivity and creativity.
I’ve been using OxygenOS 16 beta on the OnePlus 13s daily for the past three weeks now to check and understand the new additions and improvements. If I had to sum up OxygenOS 16 in one word as a long-term user of OxygenOS, that’d be “refinements”. Let’s take a deep dive into what OxygenOS 15’s successor brings to the table and why I think it offers an enriched software experience to the users.
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Hints of glass effect with emphasis on smoothness and transitions
Right off the bat, you can see a glimpse of glass and light effects on OxygenOS 16. Every screen involving a number pad has undergone a major revamp in which the number keys illuminate when pressed. These effects can be found on the lockscreen PIN input screen, calculator, and OnePlus dialer. Similarly, the “Plus” button in several first-party apps, such as Clock, Notes, Weather, and others, has a light effect on the border, and so do the ‘Close’ and launcher menu buttons. I believe what OnePlus aims to achieve here is to give the elements a sense of depth.
Now, coming to something that Android skins are proud of showcasing lately, the transition effect when closing apps through gestures appears to be more elastic and varies based on the flick. On similar lines, there’s now a soothing animation when summoning or closing the smart sidebar, resizing folders, and even pulling down the notification panel. OnePlus notes this is a result of Parallel Processing 2.0, where animations seamlessly blend when continuously interacting with the UI.
Next up, I really loved the redesigned climate effects within the Weather app and the new charging animation on the lockscreen. The latter animates for a bit longer compared to previous iterations and immerses you into the beautiful liquid effects. That being said, I feel the glass effects on the number keypads in the Calculator app and other areas appear tacky, while the light effects upon interaction are a nice touch. That said, I completely adored the animations and transitions elsewhere.
Takes customisation up a notch
OxygenOS 16 builds upon the already sufficient customisation options by bringing some standout additions. While these may not be unique to OxygenOS, the new options potentially unlock a vast set of customisation possibilities for the lockscreen and homescreen. For starters, you can now convert any app icon on the homescreen to a 2×1 (horizontally and vertically) and 2×2 large layout. I can see many people enlarging their most used or favourite apps to a bigger size, like on Nothing OS. The new skin also offers a couple of more folder layouts, as previously seen on HyperOS.
Coming to widgets, OxygenOS 16 sees a big improvement in this regard. Not only has the widget picker layout been modernised, but all the Shelf widgets now sit within this section, including tons of clock widgets. Furthermore, users can now add certain first-party widgets to the lockscreen, like a step counter, calculator, new text/voice note, etc.
Since we’re talking about the lockscreen, I was mesmerised by the addition of the new large clock styles on OxygenOS 16. As part of Flux Themes 2.0, the latest firmware welcomes clocks with glass, motion, and text effects. While I enjoyed the large left-aligned clock the most, you can now set live photos within the clock text and even add custom texts for a personalised look. The absence of the latter was one of my major gripes with OxygenOS 15, and it’s good to see OnePlus addressing it.
Useful additions, along with addressing key issues
The app that has bagged the biggest revamp on OxygenOS 16 is Photos. Not only did OnePlus give it a UI overhaul, but the editing, sorting, and viewing options have also been changed. Let me explain, the top bar now consists of real-time blur when you scroll through the images, while the bottom tab has ‘Photos’ and ‘Albums’ categories along with sorting and filter buttons. Swiping up on any image reveals the EXIF data neatly, and pressing the ‘Edit’ button reveals refreshed tool designs. There’s also a full-fledged video editor baked into the Photos app.
Following the Photos app revamp, the app drawer has also undergone a design change. The search bar has been relocated to the bottom for easy accessibility, and a ‘Categories’ tab has been added, which automatically creates folders based on app type. However, my personal favourite new addition is the improvements made to Live Alerts – OnePlus’ version of Dynamic Island.
Launched with OxygenOS 14, the Live Alerts didn’t support YouTube Music all this time, but that changes with OxygenOS 16, where you get a subtly designed music player for YouTube Music when tapping on the pill in the status bar. Similarly, the Live Alert pill now supports Google Maps and Google live sports scores. Both of these worked really well in my experience, though I wish the live alert UI displayed more information about a cricket match, such as the runs scored by the batter.
Here are some subtle yet impactful additions to OxygenOS 16 that I feel are worth mentioning:
- Live Alert gets triggered on most media playing apps and not just music streaming apps. These include YouTube, VLC player, and other MP4 player apps.
- OxygenOS 16 has added two new system apps, at least on the OnePlus 13s – Video Player and Compass, both of which can’t be uninstalled.
- The media player on the lockscreen is the same as the one displayed on Live Alerts. A much-needed change, as the previous player started showing its age and didn’t even have a seekbar.
- The Games app has been rebadged into Games Assistant and now features a brand new gamery UX.
- Lockscreen shortcuts on the bottom support more options; however, there’s still no way to add third-party apps or shortcuts.
- The 1×1 folders on the homescreen now adapt to the shape of the icons for a more cohesive look. A welcome change since previously the folders only appeared in squarish form.
An enhanced AI suite
While OxygenOS 15 brought a new wave of AI features and functionalities, I didn’t like how the skin didn’t combine the features in one place, like Galaxy AI or Infinix AI. Fortunately, this has changed with OxygenOS 16, where most AI features (apart from AI imaging) on the device sit under one umbrella in the Settings app for easy access.
OnePlus’ AI content curator – Mind Space, which was introduced with OnePlus 13s and later rolled out to more models, can now be linked with Google Gemini. While we weren’t able to test this on our OnePlus 13s running on OxygenOS 16 beta, OnePlus’ collaboration with Gemini will allow users to get results that are curated based on the content they save in Mind Space. So if you’re planning trips, events, or anything that requires ideation, and have texts, screenshots, or images saved in Mind Space related to all that, just type ‘@Mind Space’ followed by your query in Gemini for a personalised plan.
Similarly, in previous OxygenOS versions, you couldn’t summon the AI Writing pop-up everywhere, but only in specific apps like Notes, WhatsApp, Chrome, etc. With OxygenOS 16, it appears that AI Writing can be triggered on any text field. The update has also added two AI features to the Photos app: AI Portrait Glow, which identifies faces in dimly lit images and applies an exposure leveller that affects only the face, and AI Perfect Shot, which rectifies blinked eyes or undesired facial expressions in photos.
One area where AI functionality has seen significant improvement is in the sound recording and transcription department. The Sound Recorder app now generates a transcription of the recording in real-time, and the best part is that it doesn’t rely on the Notes app to do so, which was the case on OxygenOS 15. Everything happens right on the Sound Recorder app. I can see people using the sound recorder now more often for its advanced transcription abilities.
Better connectivity and integration with non-OnePlus devices
OxygenOS 16 also introduces some new ways to interact with other devices using your OnePlus phone. For instance, the O+ Connect app for Windows and macOS previously allowed users to transfer files, media, and clipboard data between a OnePlus phone and a PC, or vice versa. While it still allows that, OnePlus has cracked a way to control your PC from your phone using the ‘Remote control’ feature within the Device Connect settings.
All you have to do is install the O+ Connect app on your Windows or macOS device, provide the necessary permissions, and select the Remote control option to initiate screen casting of the computer’s screen on your OnePlus phone. In my experience, the casting experience was fairly smooth without any instances of lag. However, do ensure you have a strong and stable internet connection to carry out remote control. The control screen also offers several options for navigation and input, such as mouse, gestures, and keyboard.
There’s something for Apple Watch users too, for those who rock a OnePlus phone. Starting with OxygenOS 16, the Apple Watch can be linked with a OnePlus phone through the OHealth app, which enables receiving notifications and reminders, answering incoming calls, and even turning the watch into a camera control for clicking images. In my opinion, this is a great move as it allows Apple Watch users to not solely rely on an iPhone for accessing key features.
Areas of improvement
When exploring the UI after updating my OnePlus 13s to OxygenOS 16, I couldn’t find the setting to enable Shelf. In one of the OxygenOS 15 updates, you could replace Google Discover with Shelf, but that option appears to be missing. Hope it makes a comeback down the line. The OnePlus Dialer, which comes preinstalled on OnePlus 13s and Nord 5 series, hasn’t been rolled out for the OnePlus 13 and 12 series, as they came pre-installed with Google Dialer. It remains to be seen whether OxygenOS 16 will bring OnePlus’ dialer app to older phones, as the app is supported by summary and transcription features.
A major gripe I’ve always had with OxygenOS 15 and prior versions is that it doesn’t completely block app notifications from coming through when DND mode is enabled. It appears that this issue hasn’t been addressed on OxygenOS 16 either. Furthermore, I feel that the new lockscreen widgets could be refined, as they are currently set up to require a passcode for accessing the ‘Calculator’ or ‘New text note’ widget. While this has been done keeping privacy in mind, I feel that quickly accessing utility features shouldn’t require a passcode.
With OxygenOS 16, OnePlus continues to live up to its “fast and smooth” ethos while layering it with meaningful AI and connectivity upgrades. The new version feels less like a drastic overhaul and more like a confident evolution, one that blends refinement with real utility. If you’re someone who values personalisation, AI-driven convenience, and tighter ecosystem integration, this is an update worth anticipating. For those still on older OxygenOS builds, waiting for the stable rollout will ensure a more polished experience. More importantly, OxygenOS 16 also reflects OnePlus’ broader strategy – building a cohesive, AI-optimised ecosystem that bridges its smartphones, tablets, and even PCs, pushing the brand deeper into the premium, productivity-focused segment it’s steadily targeting.
