OnePlus started off as a brand that brought top-of-the-line specifications and offerings at a relatively lower price point — democratizing the high-end features to those who are not willing to spend much. And therefore, the moniker, ‘flagship killer’. Building upon the success of its first-ever smartphone, OnePlus One (in 2014), the brand continued on its path to avail the best of the flagship devices at a reasonable price. Until a few years back, when it did change its strategy and started increasing the cost for its devices.
Now, to retain its mojo, it is again stepping into the mid-tier segment with an all-new device, called OnePlus Nord. Nord, the name, represents North in European languages, and as per OnePlus, it signifies the company’s tread in its journey over the years — upwards, North! Let’s dive in to find out more about the device.
Table of Contents
OnePlus Nord: Design and Display
In terms of design, the OnePlus Nord features an all-glass body with a plastic frame sandwiched in between. The back comes with Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5 protection and has a slightly curved arc on the edges to give a comfortable grip in hand. Furthermore, for the rear camera arrangement, the company follows the same approach as previous phones and has the sensors arranged in a vertical alignment. The Nord comes in two colorways: Blue Marble and Gray Onyx.
Towards the front, the Nord features a 6.44-inch AMOLED display with a 20:9 aspect ratio and support for sRGB and Display P3 color gamut. The display comes with a 90Hz refresh rate and has Gorilla Glass 5 protection on top.
OnePlus Nord: Performance
Moving from design to performance, which is another crucial element in a smartphone, the OnePlus Nord runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G chipset. The Snapdragon 765G is an octa-core chipset, built on the 7nm process, with an integrated 5G modem and a dedicated AI Engine. For graphics performance, the 765G incorporates the Adreno 620 GPU, which aids with faster rendering and graphics performance. To assist the processor, the device comes with 6GB (India only), 8GB, and 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 64GB (India only), 128GB, and 256GB of UFS 2.1 storage. And most importantly, for powering the internals, there is a 4115mAh battery on the device with support WarpCharge30T fast charging.
For connectivity, the Nord offers 5G, dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.1 (with aptX, aptX HD, LDAC, AAC support), and NFC. As for other specifications, the device comes with a USB Type-C (2.0) port, and an in-display fingerprint scanner and face unlock for authentication. Besides, it also features a linear motor for better vibration and haptics. On the software front, the device runs on OxygenOS 10.5 based on Android 10, out of the box.
OnePlus Nord: Camera
For optics, the Nord sports a quad-camera array on the rear, with dual-LED flash. The setup includes a 48MP (f/1.75) Sony IMX586 primary sensor with OIS+EIS, accompanied by an 8MP (f/2.25) ultra-wide-angle lens with 119° FoV, a 5MP (f/2.4) depth sensor, and a 2MP (f/2.4) macro lens. On the front, the device comes equipped with dual front-facing cameras, housed within a cutout on the top left. It is OnePlus’ first attempt at dual front-facing camera on their devices and the setup includes a 32MP (f/2.45) Sony IMX616 primary sensor with EIS along with an 8MP (f/2.45) ultra-wide-angle lens with 105° FoV.
Moving to the video prowess, the rear camera on the OnePlus Nord offers 4K at 30fps, 1080p at 30/60fps, super slow-mo in 1080p at 240fps, and time-lapse in 4K at 30fps and 1080p at 30fps. Whereas, the front sensor provides 4K at 30/60fps and 1080p at 30/60fps.
OnePlus Nord: Pricing and Availability
The OnePlus Nord comes in three configurations: 6GB + 64GB, 8GB + 128GB, and 12GB + 256GB, priced at Rs 24,999, Rs 27,999, and Rs 29,999, respectively. As for the availability, the base model with 6GB + 64GB will be available in September, whereas, the other two models will go on sale on August 4th. Interestingly, the blue color variant will only be available in 8GB/128GB variant, at least on Amazon.