It's a green light for Big Red at OnePlus. Sources told us today that the upcoming OnePlus 6T phone has passed Verizon's certification labs, meaning that the unlocked model of the new cult smartphone will be the first OnePlus phone to run on the US's largest wireless carrier.

Last week, we reported that OnePlus was seeking Verizon certification, and it has now, apparently, received the sign-off. Verizon certification helps OnePlus avoid embarrassing missteps like we're seeing with the Razer Phone 2—Razer initially said it would be Verizon-compatible, but at launch it was not; according to Razer's CEO, it might be in the future.

The link-up with Verizon is part of a two-pronged expansion plan for OnePlus in the US. My sources tell me that most of OnePlus's energy is tied up in a major partnership with T-Mobile, which will become clearer when the phone launches on Monday, Oct. 29. Most Americans who aren't phone geeks would become aware of OnePlus through its connection with T-Mobile, and most phones will be sold on T-Mobile payment plans.

Choosier consumers who buy unlocked phones online, though, will now have both Verizon and AT&T as network options. More importantly for OnePlus, this gives the company experience with Verizon's labs and certification processes, meaning that OnePlus may be preparing to sell a future phone with Verizon.

That future Verizon phone may be the 5G device coming in 2019, which OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei mentioned on stage this weekend at Qualcomm's 4G/5G summit in Hong Kong, and which co-founder Pete Lau presaged on stage with me in June at Mobile World Congress Shanghai.

The upcoming OnePlus 6T will have a bunch of changes from the existing OnePlus 6. OnePlus is getting rid of the headphone jack, and including an under-display fingerprint sensor. Rumors say the phone's price may be getting a hike, too, although it will still be at least $200 less expensive than other major manufacturers' flagships. If you're curious about more OnePlus 6T features, 9to5Google has a perfectly good rumor roundup.

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