Perception. This is one thing that matters in life more than anything else. And it matters in everything. It matters when your boss is doing your performance appraisal. It matters when you are out on a date. It matters when you are deciding which breakfast cereal to pick. And it matters when you are buying your next phone. But the perception is exactly one area where the OnePlus 5, the latest "flagship killer" is failing, just weeks after its launch. That is sad because OnePlus 5 is actually, to borrow a phrase I used in the India Today Tech review, is a darn good phone.

Since it arrived in the market in the late June, OnePlus 5 is facing one controversy or other. Every second day there is some not-so-nice news about the device. As the OnePlus 5 reviews went live on June 20, the Android nerds at XDA came out with their report alleging that OnePlus was boosting the OnePlus 5 benchmark scores by recognising the benchmark apps and then ensuring that phone runs without throttling. Several hours later there was another report, this time talking about the second camera in the OnePlus and how that camera actually uses a lens that is just 1.4X bigger in focal length compared to the regular camera. In other words, the optical zoom is not all that significant and nowhere close to what the iPhone 7 Plus offers with its 2X second camera.

Also Read: OnePlus 5 vs Honor 8 Pro: Will the best flagship killer please stand up

Now, there is the report about all things inverted that are inside the OnePlus 5. The display has been mounted upside down and then OnePlus flips the image 180 degrees in the software. This, say the Android nerds, is leading to jelly effect while scrolling on the OnePlus 5. And then there is another report that talks of how OnePlus 5 captures the audio in different channels. This report says that OnePlus records left channel audio in right and the right audio in left when it is held in particular orientation in the landscape mode.

Problems or no problems

All of these "problems" probably exist with the OnePlus 5, although in one way or other, OnePlus has said that these are not the kind of issues that should affect the user experience. And OnePlus is right. Ensuring the maximum processor frequency during benchmarks is sort of standard practice within the phone industry. In other words, everyone cheats. In any case, the benchmarks in the world of the smartphones are so pathetic that they are useless. This is not at all similar to the PC industry, where benchmarks used to matter because hardware and software components were so transparent to users. The phones are just too complex, too tightly integrated and too closed -- companies don't even tell users proper processor frequency let alone finer hardware details -- to be judged with benchmarks.

The reality is that "cheating" in a benchmark doesn't matter. What matters is how fast is the phone while you use it. Does it open apps quickly? Is multitasking smooth? Is there any lag? Does it heat up? On all the counts, the OnePlus 5 aces the tests. It is one of fastest phones you can buy in the market right now.

The bigger problem with the OnePlus 5 are not the minor niggles that Android geeks on XDA and Reddit have discovered. The bigger problem is the hype OnePlus created with it and the expectations that it let run wild among its fans

What about other problems? The "messed up" audio recording is so tough to replicate that it is not a problem for even users with most sensitive ears. It only happens when you hold the phone in landscape orientation with the headphone jack on the right side. And it can only be noticed if you playback the recorded sound with a stereo speaker or headphones (the OnePlus 5 has a mono speaker).

The camera part is more troublesome. But again it is not that serious because the OnePlus 5 "zoom" lens only has a crop factor of 1.4X. It is serious because OnePlus hinted -- but not explicitly said or claimed 2X zoom -- that the camera in its phone is similar to that of the iPhone 7 Plus that has a telephoto lens with around 56mm lens. But instead of using a 2X optical zoom, OnePlus is using 1.4X zoom and compensating for the lack of more focal length by doing the 0.6X zoom through software processing. It is probably not the perfect solution but again it is good enough for most consumers. Anyone who doesn't shoot with a DSLR camera -- to put it in simple words -- will probably find it hard to distinguish between the "zoom" photos clicked with the iPhone 7 Plus and the OnePlus 5.

And what about the "jelly effect"? This "problem" too was so subtle that most people didn't notice it before they heard about. And even when they noticed it, they could barely perceive it. The fact that the OnePlus 5 is a fast phone masks jelly effect very well. On many competing phones people have seen lags. Most of the users, often frustrated with the lags and slow performance on their earlier phones, can barely perceive the something like jelly effect.

Victim of its own hype

The bigger problem with the OnePlus 5 are not the minor niggles that Android geeks on XDA and Reddit have discovered. The bigger problem is the hype OnePlus created with it and the expectations that it let run wild among its fans.

The OnePlus 5 is a fantastic phone. It is fast. It has a very good screen. It has great software. It has a design that looks good. It has a metal body that is sleek, fits well in hands and feels premium. It runs cool, even while running demanding games. It has features like reading mode. It can multitask like a champ. It offers, subtle, but adequate customisation options. It has great battery life. It supports extremely fast charging. It even has a fairly capable camera with -- now much maligned -- zoom lens. It has lots of storage. It supports dual SIM.

And all of that OnePlus 5 offers consumers at a price of Rs 32,999. There is no way to say that the OnePlus 5 is not one darn value for money phone. It is a very good phone for its price. Your everyday experience with a phone is not going to be decided by how well the phone runs benchmarks or whether it shows jelly effect or not on its screen when you hold it under a microscope.

The problem is that -- and OnePlus deserves the blame here -- the OnePlus 5 is not perceived as a good phone for its price. This phone was hyped so much that there was no chance it was going to please OnePlus fans, who are particularly fervent. It was touted as the BESTEST phone ever made, no matter the price. People expected OnePlus to deliver moon (and some stars) with the OnePlus 5.

DxO was working with OnePlus to create the best camera ever in a phone, the company hinted. The OnePlus 5 would have dual-selfie cameras on the front, hinted its celebrity fans. It would be the fastest ever phone, said one of the hardware partners. The OnePlus 5 was supposed to be a phone to kill all other phones, and some cameras, speakers, TVs and computers. It was supposed to click superficially good photos. It was supposed to run faster than Flash Gordon. It was supposed to even do your dishes and laundry.

The OnePlus 5, as good as it is, doesn't kill all flagships. It does make a lot of sense with a price of Rs 32,999 but it doesn't best other phones out there in every area

But it doesn't do all of that. It can't do your dishes. DxO ranks the OnePlus 5 camera with 87 points, which is pretty great but not phenomenal like what Google Pixel can manage. OnePlus 5 is fast but then so are some other phones, although most of them also cost lot more. The Galaxy S8 has better screen and design. The Google Pixel runs the purest Android. The iPhone is iPhone.

The OnePlus 5, as good as it is, doesn't kill all flagship. It does make a lot of sense with prices of Rs 32,999 but it doesn't best other phones out there in every area.

And that would have been fine if only OnePlus had not promised the moon to people. But OnePlus promised, and promised big, it let the imagination run wild, it gave out the impression that OnePlus 5 is going to be the one phone to rule them. And then, expectedly, it failed to meet the high expectation. Ahead of the OnePlus 5 launch, OnePlus let the hype flow. Now it must deal with the hate that is flowing from its most ardent fans.

Also Read: OnePlus 5 review: Crazy good phone for crazy good price