Steve Kovach/Business Insider
Now, we're hearing that it will come with a fingerprint sensor, according to a person familiar with the matter.
This person described the fingerprint sensor as being "better than Touch ID," but didn't reveal any additional details.
We also heard that the company's next phone would be more expensive than the One, but still less costly than other flagship smartphones.
A main reason the One became so popular is because it's cheap - it only costs $300 unlocked, and it comes with a 5.5-inch high resolution screen and some of the same internal components you'd find in a $500 smartphone. It also ships with Cyanogen, which is a version of Android that's cleaner and adds more features than Google's version. Most high-end smartphones cost between $500 and $700 unlocked.
You can't buy the phone unless you get an invite from someone who already has it, except for on Tuesdays. The phone proved to be so popular last year that after my colleague Steve Kovach reviewed it, he received tons of emails from readers asking how to get an invite.
The next OnePlus phone will be different than the One in several ways, though. Other than its new fingerprint sensor, a person familiar with the situation previously told us it will come with a metal frame and that there are "surprises" in store when it comes to hardware. It'll be more customizable, too, as a person familiar with OnePlus' plans also said the company is trying to produce more StyleSwap back covers to coincide with the second phone's launch.
Based on what we've heard, it sounds like OnePlus is making improvements that will help its next phone better compete with high-end phones like the Galaxy S6 and the iPhone.