They look exactly the same, save for the new darker "gunmetal" color that's replacing the "graphite" option.
The OnePlus 3T has better performance than the 3, but only slightly.
Apps sometimes open slightly faster on the OnePlus 3T than they do on the OnePlus 3 from the moment you tap them, but it's nothing to write home about. It certainly doesn't warrant the effort of selling/ditching your OnePlus 3 for the 3T.
I didn't really notice better battery life during my testing.
The OnePlus 3T boasts a slightly bigger battery than the 3, but it won't change your charging habits. You'd still plug the 3T in to charge at the same times as you did with the 3.
The improved video stabilization isn't all that much better.
I had to strain to find much of a difference between the two videos I took with the OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T.
In the end, the 3T's video was slightly smoother, but it doesn't make a strong case to make the upgrade worth it.
In my tests with it, the front camera of the OnePlus 3T is actually worse than the 3.
Here's a closeup of a selfie taken with the OnePlus 3 on the left, and the 3T on the right. Despite the 3T having twice the megapixels, it's noticeably less sharp than the photo taken with the 3.
This might have been a good feature to update for the chronic selfie-takers out there. Unfortunately, the 3T's new front camera falls flat. The 3's front camera is actually suprisingly good.
OnePlus also claims the 3T's front camera does better in low light, and I didn't really find much difference.
The 3T's low-light selfie was less grainy, but it was also less sharp and actually slightly darker than the low-light selfie taken with the 3.
The 3T's rear camera is otherwise identical to the 3.
You'll be disappointed if you were hoping to find a better camera on the 3T. This picture taken with the OnePlus 3 and 3T are pretty much identical. I'm actually not entirely sure which of the two phones took which photo!
Still, while a better rear camera would have made a greater difference than the "improved" video stabilization and front camera, it wouldn't have been a good enough reason to upgrade from the 3.
The new sapphire glass that protects the camera doesn't fix anything unless you take poor care of your phone.
OnePlus upgraded the sapphire glass protecting the camera from a hardness level of seven on the OnePlus 3 with sapphire glass with a hardness level of 9 on the 3T.
The sapphire glass on the OnePlus 3 didn't seem to upset anyone, as few complained of scratches or cracks. If you take particularly bad care of your devices, it's nice to have better protection for the camera, but again, it doesn't warrant a full upgrade, especially if you bought a OnePlus 3 within the last five months that it was released.
