US foldable phones just took a turn for the worse

If you’re a fan of foldable phones and live in the US, I have some bad news to share. Leaker Yogesh Brar recently reported that the long-awaited OnePlus Open 2, which was expected to be released sometime in 2026, is dead.

However, Brar’s report has crushed that hope. Not only is the Open 2 seemingly not launching in 2026, but it appears that the phone may never launch at this point. Given what we know about the OnePlus Open 2 and how the 2026 foldable market is unfolding, that’s devastating news.

Following Brar’s report, SmartPrix revealed a few additional details about the OnePlus Open 2 — painting a clearer picture of the phone we could have had.

According to SmartPrix, the Open 2 was on track to be a significant upgrade over the original OnePlus Open. Some of the most notable specs include a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. The primary, ultrawide, and telephoto cameras were all reportedly 50MP sensors, and the 6,000mAh battery would support 80W wired and 50W wireless charging.

The 7.82-inch inner display on the original OnePlus Open would have been upgraded to an 8.12-inch panel on the Open 2, along with a 2K resolution. The cover screen was also getting bigger (going from 6.31 inches to 6.6 inches), and both displays would have featured 165Hz refresh rates.

Finally, the Open 2 prototype viewed by SmartPrix’s source reportedly resembled the Huawei Mate X7 and featured a faux-leather finish, similar to the original Open. The production version of the Open 2 would also apparently come in a new “industrial titanium” finish.

It should go without saying that this all sounds phenomenal. OnePlus already got so much right with the first Open — namely, its hardware, cameras, battery life, and performance. From what we know, the OnePlus Open 2 would have excelled in those areas again, but at a level appropriate for 2026.

If the OnePlus Open 2 launched with these specs (which it was originally supposed to do in Q3 2026), it would be a strong contender for one of the best foldables of the year. But with the phone reportedly canceled, that’s all theoretical now.

Missing out on a phone this promising is enough of a punch to the gut on its own. However, the feeling is only exacerbated when you look at the absence of the OnePlus Open 2 in the broader context of US foldables.

While companies like HONOR, OPPO, vivo, and others have continually pushed the foldable market forward in Europe and Asia, North America has largely remained stagnant. Samsung has the Galaxy Z Fold lineup, Google has its Pixel Pro Fold series, and … well, that’s about it.

When the OnePlus Open launched in October 2023, it added a much-needed third option in the US foldable space. The phone itself was outstanding, and it gave Samsung and Google a legitimate reason to step up their game — which they did with the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Pixel 9 Pro Fold the following year.

The OnePlus Open 2 could have been that third phone once more, but now it’ll never have the chance to. And as we’ve seen time and time again, less competition is never a good thing.

The upside for 2026 that we didn’t have in 2023 is that other brands are finally throwing their hat into the US foldable ring. The Motorola Razr Fold is launching this summer, and it’s widely believed this is the year Apple finally launches the long-rumored iPhone Fold.

In that context, you could argue that a OnePlus Open 2 is less important. But I don’t think that’s true. Imagine a world where, in 2026, we have five mainstream foldables to choose from — including options from Samsung, Google, Motorola, OnePlus, and Apple. Coming off a year in which we only had the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Pixel 10 Pro Fold, that would be a monumental change.

2026 will still be a better year for foldable phones even without the OnePlus Open 2, but the degree to which it will improve shrinks significantly in the absence of OnePlus — especially now that we know just how good the Open 2 could have been.

Furthermore, now that we’re facing two consecutive years of OnePlus delaying or canceling a foldable, it raises concerns about whether the company will ever release a new folding phone. And if we can’t rely on OnePlus to be a thorn in the side of Samsung and Google, we have to hope that Motorola and Apple stick with book-style foldables long-term rather than treat them as a one-off side project.

The foldable space is better with OnePlus in it, and whatever’s happening that’s preventing OnePlus from releasing the Open 2, I hope it ends soon so we can get back to a world with OnePlus foldables.