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Two months after OnePlus officially unveiled its anticipated Android smartphone in May, Sina Tech reports that OnePlus is working on building its own ROM out of Taiwan to replace its current Color OS ROM (that’s used in its phones in China).
This in-house ROM will be exclusively for the China market — international models will still use CyanogenMod.
In talking with Sina Tech, Pete Lau, CEO of OnePlus, explains the decision to move its design and engineering teams to Taiwan is the result of recognizing the abundance of user-interface design and ROM engineering talent within the country. He adds that OnePlus plans on offering a China-focused ROM that’s built in-house in time for OnePlus’s second generation flagship phone.
Typically, Chinese mobile manufacturers like Oppo, Xiaomi, and Coolpad use forked versions of Android in China, as stock Android ROMs don’t offer much functionality due to China’s firewall limiting the functionality of Google products most of the time.
And despite what you might have heard around the web, OnePlus isn’t splitting up with CyanogenMod, as that OS isn’t on OnePlus devices in China in the first place.
In fact, OnePlus’s partnership with CyanogenMod was a strategic play for international markets, and the partnership has met Zuohu’s expectations according to his interview. He isn’t about to let CyanogenMod go.
According to Zuohu, the North American market is in many respects the catalyst that’s launching and nurturing globally recognized brands — take Apple, Uber, Facebook, and Google.
Based on the same premise, Zuohu says that CyanogenMod played a critical role in OnePlus’s global ambitions — particularly at launch. OnePlus’s association off the bat with an internationally recognized ROM like Cyanogen helped establish OnePlus’s authority as an internationally competitive brand.
But the question of why OnePlus has decided to wean itself off of Oppo’s ROM in the China market isn’t clear. We’ve reached out to OnePlus for answers and we’ll update this article with its response.
