The OnePlus Nord review. Is he the best mid-range smartphone?

OnePlus Nord review

OnePlus North is the first smartphone of the homonymous brand, born with a double purpose: on the one hand to conquer new users, those who are not willing to spend astronomical sums for a mobile device, on the other hand to capture again those who had fallen in love with OnePlus at the beginning . In fact, the Chinese company was originally able to catalyze the attention of enthusiasts by offering extremely valid devices at affordable prices. Then things changed. The company has grown and with it the desire to bring consumers the best that the market could offer. Therefore smartphones with important prices arrived, up to the recent OnePlus 8 Pro with its 919 euros. 

OnePlus Nord therefore represents a bit of a return to the past, without however disavowing what has been done. On the contrary, the company takes the best of its technology and puts it in a compact, high-performance device with a particularly attractive price: 399 euros. 

Not sure yet whether to buy it or not? Let's try to help you with this review.

OnePlus Nord vs OnePlus 8 vs OnePlus 8 Pro

Before diving into the OnePlus Nord review, let's try to answer the most popular question of the moment: what changes compared to the 8 and 8 Pro?

Basically we have a slightly smaller display which, however, proposes the same refresh rate as OnePlus 8, ie 90 Hz. Then the processor changes: no super top of the range but still a Snapdragon 765G that does its job excellently. 
Some news also for the photographic sector which yes, looks a lot like that of the 8 but with some differences. The ultra-wide angle goes from 16 to 8 megapixels and a 5 megapixel camera is added that takes care of the depth of field.

On the connectivity front, however, we would like to point out the presence of 5G. OnePlus Nord is in fact compatible with the latest generation networks, ready for when you decide to take out a subscription that includes it or, simply, for when your home will be covered by this technology.

A little nondescript but top build quality

Aesthetically it made its way into our hearts only thanks to Blue Marble coloring. The lines in fact do not help him to stand out too much from the crowd but on the other hand just choose the right shade to capture the gaze of those around you. If, on the other hand, it is precisely anonymity that you are looking for, know that there is the Gray Onyx variant.

The feeling of dejà-vù that accompanies the body of the device does not reappear once rotated. The front part in fact proposes a 6,44-inch Fluid AMOLED display with two holes on the side. Yes, OnePlus Nord boasts two front-facing cameras, which results in a double hole that not everyone might like. But know that you get used to it quickly and, in the end, you won't even remember its presence. 
The screen has some other pleasant surprises in store for us: there is a refresh rate of 90 Hz, for a truly smooth user experience, plus we have 2048 levels of brightness, that allow it to adapt to any lighting condition in an excellent way.

Let's not forget then the fingerprint reader under the display, really lightning-fast, and water resistance, which however is not accompanied by the IP68 certification. As happened in the past, OnePlus has tried to contain the price of its new smartphone by avoiding the burden of the cost of the certificate on the end user but has nevertheless taken care to make the device waterproof. 

Finally, we would like to spend two words on the audio of OnePlus Nord, equipped with only one speaker and with the earpiece which, despite its amplitude, does not perform the function of a second speaker. The result is a not particularly high volume but on the other hand, the yield is more than fair.

A convincing photographic sector

OnePlus Nord shows up with a photographic sector that seems to have been borrowed from OnePlus 8. On the back then we find the 586 megapixel Sony IMX48 main sensor with optical and electrical stabilization, a ultra-wide-angle - this time 8MP and not 16MP - and a 2 megapixels for macros. In addition we have a sensor from 5 megapixel dedicated to depth of field.

On the front, however, OnePlus Nord doubles. There are two front cameras: we have the 616MP Sony IMX32 sensor and an 8MP wide angle.

The yield is that seen on the older brother: we have sharp photographs, with balanced colors and HDR which behaves excellently. Even in the dark we can get convincing shots thanks to a night mode that performs its duty in the best possible way.

Selfies are then the strong point of this smartphone: the photos are sharp and with balanced colors, perfect for not looking out of place on your social networks.

And the videos? They arrive at 4K with an optical and electronic stabilization that manages to guarantee truly excellent results for a device of this range.

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OnePlus Nord review: the same performance as ever

Of course we cannot expect the same hardware configuration present on the top of the range of the Asian company but this does not mean that OnePlus Nord is not up to the situation. On the contrary, with its Snapdragon 765G and 8 or 12 GB of RAM you will have all the power you need, even if you are an avid gamer. 128/256 GB of internal memory is then available, more than enough to host data and applications.

Connectivity is fully promoted since we also have it available 5G networks in addition to dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC and GPS, while on the battery front we have 4.115 mAh that will take you to the end of the day without difficulty. In addition, you have the Warp Charge 30T, OnePlus' fast charge that takes you from 0 to 70% in about 30 minutes.

The software of course is Android 10 with OxygenOS 10.5, accompanied by 300 small optimizations which guarantee the same fluidity seen on 8 and 8 Pro. In addition, of course, we have all the comforts offered by the proprietary interface of OnePlus: there are the Zen Mode, the dark theme, the Game Space and the possibility of splitting accounts with apps parallel.

OnePlus Nord: the video review

OnePlus Nord: buy it or not?

A 399 € - or 499 euros if you opt for the 12/256 GB variant - it is undoubtedly one of the most attractive smartphones on the market. The build quality, the excellent performance, the excellent software optimization and the very complete photographic sector make it practically a must buy in this price range.