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OnePlus 5 and 5T cannot play HD content from the main online streaming services, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play Music, and most other services, according to the OnePlus official forum. The problem is exclusively linked to the DRM used by the HD streaming content, which requires the presence of the Widevine Level 1 certification, while at the moment both devices integrate Widevine Level 3.
The absence of the highest level certification prevents smartphones to play movies with resolutions higher than SD, if a streaming service that requires Level 1 DRM. A OnePlus spokesperson has confirmed to The Verge that such support will be introduced in the next software update, however, the reason for the absence of this certification still remains a mystery. For example, other services like YouTube do not require the same level of DRM and can play FullHD video without problems.
However, it seems that the two recent flagship devices are not the only ones without this certification. Thanks to the use of DRM Info, an app that you can find on the PlayStore, it emerged that even OnePlus 3T updated to Oreo – at this point is likely the same even on OnePlus 3 which does not include the Widevine Level 1 certification, but only Level 3.
Obviously, this is not a hardware limit, given that the equipment offered by OnePlus 5 and 5T, but also that on OnePlus 3 and 3T, is able to offer all necessary power to play movies even at higher resolutions. All that remains is to wait for the arrival of a new software update that goes to fill this important gap in the arsenal of multimedia features of the top Chinese flagships.
