It’s been over a month since I switched to the OnePlus 15 as my daily driver and the journey has been pretty exciting so far. It’s not a perfect phone, but it has an undeniable charm that comes from practical conveniences.
The cameras are more of a taste test, and there are a few issues with OnePlus’ approach to performance output. Additionally, the lack of magnetic wireless charging on a flagship phone is another stutter.
But overall it noticeably moves the needle forward. I strongly believe that Apple should borrow a thing or two from this Android star. And here comes the fun part: the company already has the basics ready and could easily implement them on the iPhone 18 series.
A next generation digital safe
I’ve said repeatedly that Space Mind is one of the best AI implementations on a phone. Think of it like a digital vault where you can save a snapshot of your screen activity with just the push of a button. Or more specifically, the plus key. Apple already offers such a button on iPhones.
The whole idea behind Mind Space is to save you the hassle of taking screenshots and organizing them. Or manage bookmarks. Or take manual notes. Or anything else that is deemed worth saving and requires manual effort.
On the OnePlus 15, the screen is captured with a single press of a button and saved as a dedicated card in the Mind Space app. Now the app not only saves snapshots, but also saves them with contextual information.
Each reminder is given an AI-generated title and hashtags to support contextual search. When you take a snapshot of a web page, the URL is also automatically selected and saved. In some cases, the app even creates a one-tap shortcut to save things as a reminder or create a calendar entry.
The best part? It now integrates seamlessly with Gemini. You can run a command like “Hey Gemini, tell me a little about the history of the Statesman Building, saved as an image in Mind Space.” Everything works perfectly.
Apple has already deeply integrated ChatGPT into the iOS 26 framework. When the iPhone 18 series launches, all you have to do is go one step further and build an AI-powered memory bank in the Notes or Journal app.
Take a charging leap, Apple
In recent years, Apple has significantly increased its use of competitive hardware. Featuring some of the brightest displays on the market. Completely large rear camera sensors. Premium video recording benefits. Fantastic battery life.
But one area where Apple has missed the mark is charging speed. And that’s pretty confusing considering Apple is one of the pioneers, at least when it comes to wireless charging. And I’m not just talking about MagSafe, but also that Apple is a member of the Wireless Power Consortium, which developed Qi power transfer technology.
On the other hand, we have the OnePlus 15. This supports 50W wireless charging as long as you have the proprietary AirVOOC chargers. That’s faster than the iPhone 17 Pro’s peak wired charging speed. The charging puck is a pretty impressive piece of kit as it features a built-in fan and side vents to regulate heat during wireless power transfer.
Then there’s the bypass charging system, which only draws power to keep the system on but doesn’t feed any juice into the battery. This is a clever way to keep the phone running without extending the battery cycle or causing heat build-up when using the device.
Apple was already one of the first to introduce battery health management features in mobile phones. Now it needs to take the plunge and enable faster charging on the next wave of flagship phones. A key aspect working in Apple’s favor is that the company already has an ecosystem of brands ready to upgrade and offer fast chargers in all shapes and forms.
Let users optimize performance
Apple’s A-series processors installed in iPhones are usually at the peak of performance. But it’s not just the raw processing power that sets them apart. Rather, it depends on how well they are optimized with the software, so that they can last significantly longer than Android phones despite a smaller battery.
Unfortunately, despite all the firepower available, Apple doesn’t allow it to optimize the performance of its silicon. The situation becomes even more confusing as Apple Arcade is home to a selection of fantastic games and AAA titles like Death Stranding and Resident Evil have found their way to the iOS Store.
On the other hand, there’s the OnePlus 15, which lets you choose between three performance modes and offers granular control over the GPU and other settings. Devices like the Red Magic 10S Pro that put the same Qualcomm chip into overdrive mode.
A key benefit of this performance optimization is that it is usually accompanied by a full dashboard of controls. On the OnePlus 15 you get the Game Assistant. It’s like a launcher where you can customize everything from display sensitivity and touch response rate to network settings and texture filter load on the GPU.
On the more practical side, you also get a dashboard with game-focused controls that are minimized during gameplay. But with a single inward swipe, they provide quick access to a whole host of useful controls.
Given the power of Apple, a new gaming app that launched just a few months ago, and the continued influx of top-notch games in the App Store, the iPhone 18 series should capitalize on these strengths and allow users to get the most out of their phone. It would be interesting if Apple could create something even better than what we already have on the OnePlus 15 or enthusiast-class devices like those from Red Magic and Asus’ ROG division.
