OnePlus Nord 2 review: the new mid-range phone to beat

Our Verdict

OnePlus has again produced a phone that offers so much for a handset of its price that you may struggle to believe the specs sail. It's just a pity that it's notwithstanding not coming to the United States.

For

Class-leading cameras
Cute display
Generous performance for price
Long upgrade path

Against

Fewer unique features than original Nord
Refresh rate isn't dynamic
No U.Due south. availability

Tom's Guide Verdict

OnePlus has again produced a phone that offers and then much for a handset of its price that you may struggle to believe the specs sheet. It's but a pity that it'south however non coming to the The states.

Pros

+
Class-leading cameras
+
Cute brandish
+
Generous operation for price
+
Long upgrade path

Cons

-
Fewer unique features than original Nord
-
Refresh charge per unit isn't dynamic
-
No U.South. availability

OnePlus Nord 2 specs

Starting price: £399

Brandish: half dozen.43-inch AMOLED, FHD

Refresh charge per unit: 90Hz/60Hz (fixed)

Rear cameras: 50MP principal (f/1.88), 8MP ultrawide (f/two.25), 2MP mono (f/two.5)

Front end camera: 32MP selfie (f2.45)

Chipset: MediaTek Dimensity 1200-AI

RAM: 8GB/12GB

Storage: 128GB/256GB

Battery: 4,500 mAh

Charging: 65W wired

Operating system: Android eleven with OxygenOS 11.3

Size: 6.25 x two.88 x 0.32 inches (158.9 x 73.ii ten 8.25 mm)

Weight: half dozen.67 ounces (189g)

H2o/dust resistance: "splash-proof" (no IP rating)

The OnePlus Nord two makes the confident marketing claim that it's "everything you could ask for." And that's true if you're asking for a great, reasonably-priced phone, and happen to live in Europe or Republic of india.

Ignoring the question of availability, OnePlus has an astonishing mid-range device on its easily. The parts that make up the Nord 2 are more than you'd expect for its price, with some components lifted straight from the flagship OnePlus 9 series. Even the places where OnePlus has made large changes — the cameras and the processor on the OnePlus Nord two — accept paid off, with the quality matching the rest of the phone.

In cutting back the inapplicable elements from the first OnePlus Nord, OnePlus has been able to refine what remains, which is ultimately far more than important than the extras the Nord two lost. If the Nord 2 is sold in your country and you've got a limited phone budget, this new Nord belongs on your shortlist adjacent to the Google and Apple phones you were likely already considering.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: Price and availability

OnePlus is offering the Nord 2 for pre-orders from July 22, and for normal sales from July 28. Y'all tin can purchase the telephone at the OnePlus online shop, Amazon U.Yard. and John Lewis; or from mobile carriers O2 and Three. You can pick from ane of two versions: a £399 model with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage, or a £469 model with 12GB and 256GB instead.

The OnePlus Nord 2's main competitors are the Google Pixel 4a 5G (£499), the Samsung Milky way A52 5G (£399) and the iPhone SE (from £399). Not only is the Nord 2 competitively priced, but as you'll come across beneath, it tops these other devices in several unlike areas.

OnePlus isn't selling the Nord two in the U.Southward. sadly. Instead, its current mid-range offerings consist of the cheaper OnePlus Nord N10 and OnePlus Nord N200. Both of these are decent devices for their cost, but don't lucifer the Nord 2 for quality.

At that place's as well a new OnePlus Nord 2 Pac-Man Edition, which draws inspiration from classic arcade game Pac-Human. It'southward not coming to the U.S., but you can go the handset in the U.K. for £499.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: Blueprint

As I unwrapped the OnePlus Nord ii from its plastic protector, I couldn't help simply feel it was a dull successor to the original Nord. Concluding year'south Nord was a brash upstart of a phone, with a huge number of camera lenses on both the front and dorsum and a unique stadium-shaped photographic camera cake. The Nord ii, with a single front camera and a rectangular rear cake containing just two main cameras, could hands be mistaken for any other budget Android telephone out of China.

The Nord ii recovers from its generic design with an excellent selection of colors. The two bachelor in the U.K. are the sophisticated Gray Sierra or the more than playful Blue Haze, which I tested. Both colors offering impressive fingerprint resistance, and then they'll maintain their good looks through everyday use.

I dear the feel of the Nord two, which stands at 6.4 inches merely weighs a fragile 6.7 ounces. Combined with the curved back edges, the Nord ii feels secure to concur and all parts of the display are piece of cake to attain. Function of the reason for this however is that the phone's back is made of plastic. The sometime Nord used a glass-similar finish to give the impression of extra luxury, but there is no pretension here almost materials.

OnePlus claims the Nord two is splash-proof, simply the phone doesn't have an official IP rating for water/dust resistance. This isn't unusual for OnePlus, since information technology's just just started to listing IP ratings on its virtually expensive flagships.

OnePlus also deserves kudos for making the Nord 2's box more eco-friendly. All the inserts, aside from the protective wrapping and the shrink-wrap around the charging brick, accept been turned from plastic to newspaper, making them easier to recycle. Although Apple and Samsung went a step further and got rid of the included charging brick — a conclusion with some major cons — I am glad OnePlus nevertheless offers a charging brick by default.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: Brandish

Keeping to a promise of a fast, smoothen brandish, the Nord 2's Full Hd AMOLED screen boasts a 90 Hz refresh rate. Yet the refresh rate isn't dynamic like you'll find on more expensive phones, including the OnePlus 9 Pro. You set the six.4-inch screen's refresh rate to 90Hz or 60Hz in the settings menu and that's information technology. So you have to decide whether to prioritize display smoothness or the phone's battery life, and have to get through a few menus every time you modify your mind.

Your video viewing feel on the OnePlus Nord 2 is farther enhanced with AI Colour Boost and AI Resolution Boost on certain apps, including YouTube. I checked out the trailer for Marvel's What If…? and idea the animated serial' assuming style was well matched by the vividness of the OnePlus Nord ii display; the phone's stereo speakers fabricated certain the dialog and soundtrack came through with plenty of power also.

The Nord 2 too boasts a smart ambient display, which adapts brightness based both on how vivid your surroundings are and how bright the content on-screen is. While the telephone was just about usable in very brilliant light, I tin't say I noticed any big divergence from other AMOLED phones I've used in the same situation.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: Cameras

Cameras on the OnePlus Nord ii are less extensive than what the original Nord offered. The expert news is that this reduced range of sensors allows the Nord ii to friction match up to the best cameras in its cost range.

The primary camera has a 50MP sensor with optical image stabilization (OIS). The 50MP sensor is the aforementioned one yous can find behind the ultrawide lens on the OnePlus ix serial, but with added OIS for the kind of stability you need from the chief camera.

This shot of a handsome flower head I establish in London'southward Whittington Park is bear witness of the overarching theme of the Nord 2's photos —they're brilliant, at the expense of a picayune colour richness. The Pixel 4a 5G offers some of the all-time photos from any phone, period, and produces a improve-rounded paradigm. However I remember personal preference could still hateful some users adopt the OnePlus shot.

Swapping to the Nord 2'due south full 50MP mode doesn't change much. You lot tin see a little more than of the veins in the petals of the blossom, but in terms of color and meaningful detail, information technology's not that much meliorate than the default 12.6MP image.

OnePlus has also updated its low-light photo capabilities with a new Nightscape Ultra fashion, boasting it can have photos even in dark, interior environments. I tested this with a line-up of espresso cups on a shelf in a nighttime room. Compared to the Pixel 4a 5G's Dark Sight, the Nord 2's paradigm is much warmer, seemingly aiming for the impression of the image being taken in daylight. Google'south algorithm instead appears to give images a bluer tint. While I unremarkably love the Pixel 4a 5G's depression-calorie-free shots, in this example I think the Nord 2 offers something better.

The other chief photographic camera on the Nord 2 is an 8MP ultrawide photographic camera, platonic for plumbing equipment more into frame when up close to your subject. The big difference between these two shots of Whittington Park'due south World War I memorial is the contrast: the Nord 2's image is and so much sharper compared to the Pixel's, information technology looks similar it was drawn in a comic-book style. The Google phone's image remains the amend one for color though, offering a more attractive saturation level.

To round out the rear array, OnePlus has added a 2MP monochrome sensor. This doesn't actually accept photos itself, just instead acts equally an auxiliary sensor for the main camera to help add actress detail and texture when you lot enable a born black-and-white photo filter. This monochrome epitome of a log certainly turned out well, with the rings and bawl all coming beyond clearly.

The mono sensor is somewhat superfluous since information technology's not difficult to plow photos black and white in various mobile and desktop apps, simply perchance some users volition find it convenient. Personally, I'd much prefer this to a basic macro camera, the throwaway sensor often establish on phones in this price range.

The Nord 2 features a single front end camera, instead of the main/ultrawide duo OnePlus fitted to the original Nord. It's still an impressive 32MP sensor, which should provide plenty of detail for your selfies, but I kind of liked the utility of existence able to fit more scenery or people with an ultrawide front lens.

As we can see from these selfies, the Nord 2 is again producing brighter images. I'm quite impressed with the bokeh effect on the Nord 2, which is of like quality to the Pixel's. Not just is it attractive, only as well the segmentation between me and the background is near-flawless. It's the coloring that draws me to the OnePlus' image more than withal. In the brilliant sunlight of a rare British heatwave, the OnePlus can keep me looking more than or less my normal self, while the Pixel ends up making me look oddly dark red.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: Operation

OnePlus has broken from tradition with the Nord 2 by equipping information technology with a MediaTek Dimensity 1200-AI chipset, rather than Qualcomm's Snapdragon silicon it'due south used since the OnePlus One. The "AI" version of this Dimensity chip is unique to OnePlus, and allegedly offers enhanced machine learning capabilities to the phone's photography and display compared to the vanilla bit.

Joining the Dimensity 1200-AI is either 8GB or 12GB of RAM, and either 128GB or 256GB of storage, OnePlus' habitual retentiveness options for its latest phones. This is some other surface area where the phone maker's been quite generous, since comparable phones offer only 6GB RAM or less, and of that group, only the iPhone SE lets you spec up to 256GB storage.

The results from the benchmarking apps for my 12GB OnePlus Nord 2 were suitably impressive. On Geekbench 5, a benchmarking app that tests general performance, the Nord two accomplished scores of 786 for the unmarried core exam and 2,757 for the multi-core exam. It is still a ways off beating the A13 Bionic-powered iPhone SE'southward i,333 and iii,108. But the Nord finished well alee of the Google Pixel 4a 5G (598 and 1,614) and Samsung Galaxy A52 5G (645 and i,903), which are powered by the Snapdragon 765G and Snapdragon 750G, respectively.

Looking at the results on 3DMark'south Wild Life Unlimited graphical performance exam, the Nord two crushed the competition. The OnePlus' results were a score of iv,185 and an boilerplate frame rate of 25.1 fps. The Galaxy A52's results of 1,106 and six.6fps are nowhere most. The iPhone SE, with its flagship-grade scrap, still defeats the Nord 2 with a score of 8,000 and a 47.ix boilerplate frame rate. The budget iPhone is an outlier, though, and it seems safe to say that switching from Snapdragon to Dimensity chips hasn't done the Nord 2 any harm.

We may demand to take these figures with a compression of common salt. OnePlus was recently defenseless throttling the operation of its 9 series phones on apps aside from well-known benchmarks. This may hateful that in terms of existent-globe functioning, these figures don't quite translate.

All the same, I tried out racing game Cobblestone nine: Legends and found that my test results matched my real-globe experience. While the gameplay was beautifully smoothen when in normal graphics manner, the Nord two didn't quite accept the power to run at the higher graphics setting without occasional stuttering. Yous'll still demand a proper flagship phone if you lot want to become the best gaming experience.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: 5G

The MediaTek chip inside the Nord 2 too adds 5G connectivity. Since this phone is bound for Europe and India rather than the U.S., it only supports sub-6GHz 5G, rather than the faster mmWave format bachelor through some American carriers. What's more, none of the 5G bands listed in OnePlus' press cloth friction match upwards with those offered by U.S. carriers. That means fifty-fifty if you bring your Nord 2 to the U.S., you won't exist able to do good from 5G speed.

This isn't much of an consequence since the Nord 2 isn't sold in the U.S. It's withal going to be a fleck of a disappointment for overseas visitors though.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: Battery and charging

OnePlus has fitted 65W wired charging to the Nord two, which is the same charging system used on the OnePlus 9 series; it likewise remains faster than basically any other charging standard out in that location. Using that 65W technology, the OnePlus went from empty to 58% in but xv minutes, and to 100% in an impressive 30 minutes, which ways you lot need never worry virtually forgetting to plug your phone in overnight.

Y'all don't get wireless charging though, something that the iPhone SE does offer. Equally useful equally it is to have the option to power upwardly your phone without plugging it in, wireless charging remains a more premium characteristic and is therefore one of the almost sensible omissions OnePlus made to continue the Nord 2'south price down.

The zippy charging feeds a 4,500 mAh dual-cell battery, which is again quite impressive for a budget phone since it'due south again taken directly from the OnePlus 9. As a effect, the OnePlus Nord 2 lasts a while.

I tuckered the battery by playing a 10-hour aquarium video on YouTube over Wi-Fi, with the brandish prepare to 90Hz, OnePlus' AI picture enhancements turned on, the phone's brightness slider stock-still to the eye and the speaker at mid-volume. It took vi hours and 33 minutes to drain the phone from 50% to empty. While I don't have other phones to compare that result against directly, being able to watch more than 12 hours of video on a single charge seems to guarantee that the Nord 2 won't ever leave yous in the lurch past suddenly switching off when you demand information technology most.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: software

Running the testify on the Nord two is OxygenOS eleven.iii, perchance one of the last OnePlus phones to use its ain Android skin before the telephone maker adopts Oppo's ColorOS on future devices. The switch is a shame since OxygenOS has consistently been one of the prettiest and best laid-out versions of Android around, and this upgraded version of Android 11 is no exception.

Even meliorate than the handsome visuals, OnePlus has pledged to two full Android upgrades and iii years of security updates for the Nord 2, which is particularly generous for a low-toll phone. Between this and the 5G compatibility, there's no rush for you to upgrade from the Nord 2 as it ages, at least compared to the average Android phone.

A related point to software is the Nord 2'south introduction of Haptics 2.0, which makes the Nord ii just as prissy to blazon on as the OnePlus 9 Pro. I still prefer Google's phones when it comes to the perfect tap feedback experience though.

OnePlus Nord 2 review: verdict

OnePlus was brave when to choose its "everything you could ask for" slogan, but information technology's been proven correct in our OnePlus Nord 2 review. The Nord 2 ticks basically every box when looking at its specs, and is a capable new rival in the premium mid-range market, even if its claims of being a flagship killer aren't quite borne out.

The Nord ii is a phone to go for if y'all prioritize display quality and charging speed, but not one if y'all want the best functioning. If y'all're a phone photography fan, the Nord 2 doesn't quite edge out the competition on epitome quality lone, but its cheaper price may convince you it's a amend purchase than a Pixel 4a 5G or an iPhone SE.

The but major complaint I tin can levy at the Nord 2 is the fact that American readers can't buy information technology. Sure U.South. phone buyers tin pick the Nord N10 or Nord N200, but they are far cheaper phones with more distinct flaws. The Nord 2, like its predecessor, is an outstanding mid-range phone that is unfairly kept from large numbers of potential customers.

Richard is a Tom'south Guide staff writer based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, gaming, sound and whatever else people need communication on. Following on from his MA in Mag Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he'southward also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at piece of work, he'due south likely thinking almost how to mash the perfect cup of specialty coffee.

Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/oneplus-nord-2

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