The outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in China has impacted the lives of tens of thousands, but also directly affected many technology companies. The latest company that will be affected, apparently, will be OnePlus as we’re hearing from multiple sources that the OnePlus 8 won’t launch at a physical event.
To date, concerns and measures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus have directly affected quite a lot of Android manufacturers. From shipping delays to closed offices to the entirety of Mobile World Congress being canceled, fears of this virus have had a huge effect.
OnePlus, traditionally, launches its first phone of the new year sometime in spring and, for the past few years, that’s come with a launch event somewhere in the world. Last year for the OnePlus 7 Pro, that event took place in New York City.
Now, though, we’re hearing that the OnePlus 8 launch won’t take place at any physical location. Rather, due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus outbreak, OnePlus will opt to launch the device through an online event only. We’ve been able to confirm this with multiple reliable sources familiar with OnePlus’ plans. A Weibo post also backs up what our sources mention.
This wouldn’t be the first time OnePlus would host a launch event entirely online. The OnePlus 2 launch, for example, was hosted over a VR livestream. The OnePlus 5 launch event was hosted live online, though we’d hope OnePlus will make things just a bit more lively if they follow this same format.
However, given the fact the launch is a full month away — if not longer — it’s possible these plans could change. Though, it sounds like the virus outbreak may be affecting more than just OnePlus’ launch event plans for its next lineup of smartphones.
More on OnePlus:
- OnePlus tipped to improve water resistance w/ IP68-rated OnePlus 8 Pro
- Hands-on with Google Assistant Ambient mode for OnePlus devices [Video]
- OnePlus vows to improve video on all of its smartphones in 2020
Author: Ben Schoon.
Source: 9TO5Google
