From the Editor's Desk: If you can't beat 'em ...

I'm throwing in the towel. I'm crying "uncle." In fact, I'll go so far as to say I'm flat-out giving up the fight. I'm changing my tune. If you need me, I'll be over there with everybody else.

All aboard the OnePlus Hype Train!

That's not to say that I'm not annoyed by a long, drawn-out announcement process in which we get a predictable spec a day. (It has a screen? RAM? Genius!) And that's not to say I think having to wait for an invitation to spend money on something is a particularly good thing. And that's not to say I in any way agree with some of the ham-handed contests and marketing messages we've seen come from OnePlus. (And as the occasional victim of my own ham-handedness, I do understand how it happens.)

But there's no denying this simple fact: It's worked.

Ask anyone who publishes in this space and they'll tell you of the (often annoying) popularity of OnePlus. It's more than a cult following at this point. And to be clear, the OnePlus One was a more-than capable — though definitely imperfect — Android smartphone, especially at that price.

But in the scheme of things, at least as far as the unscientific Google Trends is concerned, there's a big difference between making a little ripple in a big pond and doing something that changes the body of water.

OK, so maybe I'm not totally on board the OnePlus hype train. But this year I'm not just going to watch it go by, either.