OnePlus has had something of a hit on its hands with the OnePlus One, especially among smartphone fans. Limited availability added an air of exclusivity to device that offered great value for money. The OnePlus One is now available to buy without an invite, but OnePlus has already confirmed the invite system will be returning for the OnePlus 2.

The OnePlus 2 is expected today and while we don't know exactly what it will feature just yet, Pocket-lint has rounded up everything you need to know about the new device, with the purpose of helping you figure out what to expect when the announcement takes place later.

Confused by all the "ones"? Keep reading and let us explain.

READ: OnePlus One review

What is OnePlus?

OnePlus is a smartphone manufacturer based in China. It's best known for a slightly viral approach to marketing its smartphone, using an invite-only system to make availability slightly more exclusive. Offering affordable handsets is one thing, but making them desirable by making them hard to get is another.

What is OnePlus 2?

OnePlus 2 is the confirmed successor to OnePlus One. Although OnePlus One wasn't even available to most people, rumours began surfacing in mid-2014 about a second smartphone from OnePlus.

OnePlus announced through the AMA that it planned to release OnePlus 2 in the second or third quarter of 2015, with the launch event now confirmed for 27 July. Shortly after opening sales of the OnePlus One globally, OnePlus once again confirmed it would soon launch the OnePlus 2, but through an invite-only system, just as it did with the OnePlus One:

"We're committed to maintaining razor-thin margins in order to give as much value as possible back to our users, and this drastically increases our risk," explained the company. "The OnePlus 2 will bring the challenges that come along with a brand new product, and initially, our invite system will help us to manage that risk."

OnePlus has detailed, however, that there will be more stock and a reservation list, so it's going to be much easier to get your hands on an invite than last time around.

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Phone Arena

What might OnePlus 2 feature?

OnePlus 2 build

Of all the things we know about the OnePlus 2, it's the design and build that's the least certain. There have beem some images appearing, claiming to be the new handset, but there's little to go on that's set in stone.

There's been talk of a metal build, but again, there's some doubt as to the context of those comments and whether they actually refer to the OnePlus 2, of just parts of it. We've see sketches, talk of metals, but also a bamboo rear that's claiming to be the OnePlus 2.

Come launch day on 27 July, the design will probably be the only remaining surprise. Oh, wait - nevermind. China's official communications regulator, TENAA, has posted images and details of the device. Like the FCC in the states, TENAA requires manufacturers to submit devices for approval before they are allowed to be sold.

Smartphones need to be filly tested by regulators in some regions to ensure their wireless communications technologies comply with set standards. Some manufacturers don't include images of their devices during this testing phase in order to prevent leaks, but it seems that OnePlus has submitted the new handset in all its glory.

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TENAA

The leaked images show a new device with a physical home button - one of the features that can be clearly ascertained by the pics. Some believe it might house a fingerprint sensor. Other than that, the images simply show a phone that looks nice enough from the outside.

OnePlus 2 display

According to a leak from CooliCool the OnePlus 2 was tipped to feature a 5.5-inch display, which will be 1080p (like the current OnePlus One) or an upgraded Quad HD display. Pocketnow even said the phone might even have a whopping 6-inch display with QHD resolution and 2.5D glass, but a leaked spec sheet from Chinese tipster with some regard in the industry favours the CooliCool suggestion.

It says that the basic A2001 version will come with a 1080p 5.5-inch display.

OnePlus 2 size

OnePlus teased through an AMA that OnePlus planned to release OnePlus 2 in the second or third quarter of 2015 and that the company was considering making a smaller device. GizmoChina also claimed a OnePlus 2 compact model was in the works, building upon rumours of a OnePlus One Mini.

It's not yet clear if this smaller device will be the OnePlus 2 or an entirely different device altogether, but more recent images claiming to be the OnePlus 2 suggest it won't be much different in size to the OnePlus One.

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Business Insider

We've seen some very blurry pictures of what could be the OnePlus 2, as well as some skteches appear via Business Insider. Obviously the sketches may be some way in advance of what actually gets manufactured, but they detail a fusion of materials - including the wood back seen on one of the leaked photos.

These sketches incorporate some of the confirmed elements of the OnePlus 2 hardware (as detailed below), but does raise some other questions, especially relating to the camera.

OnePlus 2 specs

According to CooliCool, the OnePlus 2 will feature a 16-megapixel camera, 5-megapixel selfie snapper, 32GB storage, and a 3,300mAh battery. The leaked sketches, however, show a double rear camera and talk about a front 8-megapixel camera. It's not clear what the combination of cameras will be.

That said, Marques Brownlee, who is also known as YouTube personality MKBHD, has uploaded a camera review to his channel, revealing the phone features a 13MP f/2.0 rear camera with laser autofocus.

Another leak coming out of China, from @Kjuma on Weibo who also revealed the 5.5-inch 1080p screen, claims that storage space will be double the CooliCool quoted capacity, offering 64GB instead of 32GB.

Bigger in this case is definitely better, although the same source claims the phone will weigh in at a fairly hefty 166g - less good news.

OnePlus has officially announced the 2 will come running a 64-bit 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 v2.1 processor. This means Adreno 430 graphics and fine-tuning to deal with that overheating issue.

OnePlus has also officially confirmed that the OnePlus 2 will have a USB Type-C connector. That means it will be reversable for easy connection, but that's not all. OnePlus has teased that it will be enhancing the USB C connector or make give it additional powers. There's no telling what that might be, just yet.

OnePlus 2 will boast a fancy fingerprint scanner for unlocking the device. OnePlus said the OnePlus 2's fingerprint scanner will actually be a useful feature and not just something "tacked on to a phone". It has described the scanner as "refined and lightning quick", emphasising that it'll be able to unlock your device faster than "TouchID". It'll also store up to five fingerprint profiles.

More recently, a Bluetooth SIG certification claimed that the OnePlus 2 will have 4GB of RAM, making it one of the more powerful handsets out there.

OnePlus 2 software

The OnePlus 2 will officially come running the OxygenOS. This is based on pure Android 5.0.2 Lollipop. The result should be a buttery smooth experience with all the positives of running pure Android.

OnePlus 2 release date

OnePlus will officially debut the OnePlus 2 on 27 July at 7PM PST.

To get you pumped for the event, OnePlus has announced you'll be able to experience it in virtual reality. It developed a virtual reality headset. The company said it loves existing cardboard VR headsets but decided to design a custom headset tailored to the One phone. It admitted to losing money on the project but apparently thinks the experience will be worth it.

The OnePlus Cardboard page has more details about the headset, and the company will soon announce how you'll be able to get your hands on it for the launch. That said, OnePlus 2 will supposedly be the first to offer USB Type-C.

READ: OnePlus 2 will unveil in July, tune in with the OnePlus Cardboard VR headset

OnePlus 2 price

The CEO of OnePlus also discussed pricing in May over Weibo. He said that 2499.99 Yuan would be a reasonable price for the OnePlus 2, which converts to £260. More recently, OnePlus has taken to Twitter to reassure fans that it won't be expensive, despite the seemingly premium loadout.

Through a Tweet, OnePlus confirmed that the OnePlus 2 price would be under $450.

Let us know in the comments what you think OnePlus 2 will feature, in addition to what you want it to feature.