OnePlus Nord 2 Full Hands-On Review (Part-I) | Price, Design, Unboxing, Speakers

Introduction:

OnePlus pioneered the ‘flagship killer’ category, only to gradually retreat from it year after year until its flagships are true top-of-the-line (and expensively priced) handsets. Although hardly much of the company’s original mentality remains, you can see elements of it in the OnePlus Nord 2, considerably more so than in its predecessor, the original OnePlus Nord 2.

Unlike that one, the Nord 2 features a near-flagship processor, deviating slightly from the ‘flagship killer’ formula but not significantly – at least not for all but the most dedicated gamers. The rest of the phone’s specifications are all obvious compromises designed to keep the price low (aside from the primary camera and charging speed). More importantly, how do all of these concessions and the ‘near enough’ SoC and top-tier primary snapper and charging speed come together in the end product that is the Nord 2?

This isn’t a ‘flagship killer’ in the classic sense, but it’s also not a typical mid-ranger based on its specifications. Instead, it appears to occupy a fascinating middle ground between the two. Is it more than the sum of its parts, or will it never be able to rise above them? Is OnePlus developing (or, more accurately, inventing) a new and inventive smartphone tier? Or is it simply attempting to offer less expensive handsets than its flagships to cater to people looking for a flagship killer that is anything but?

With these questions in mind, we embarked on a long voyage with the OnePlus Nord 2, using it as our sole smartphone for some time to learn more about it, if it makes sense as a product (and to whom), and how pleasurable it is to use in everyday situations outside of the lab. If you’re curious about what we discovered, stick around for the following few pages as we lay out our findings, including the benefits and negatives.

Handling And Design:

The OnePlus Nord 2 appears to be a modern smartphone from the front, released within the last two years. That’s the vibe you get, and it’s okay, but nothing spectacular; it doesn’t stick out in any way. We’re not singling it out for this; we’re just pointing out that it won’t turn any heads unless you haven’t seen an Android smartphone in a few years.

The reverse, on the other hand, is a little different. It’s similar enough in design to many recent phones (especially those from the Oppo / Vivo / Realme stable) but different enough that it doesn’t feel utterly generic without going to the other extreme (stand out on its own).

It’s a well-executed design that isn’t groundbreaking, but the execution is commendable. The Blue Haze tint on our review device is stunning, and we like how it doesn’t show fingerprints. This generally comes with a matte surface; however, this one appears to be shinier (for want of a better description) than your typical matte finish. However, it isn’t quite gleaming.

The Nord 2 is slick but not as smooth as some of the worst offenders. And not as smooth as some of the most miniature cunning devices we’ve tested throughout time. It’s a fascinating in-betweener, which could end up being the theme of this entire review because that may be the best way to think of the OnePlus Nord 2.

The camera island is just that: a camera island that does its job. It is where the cameras are kept. And then there was a flash. It appears good, but it isn’t the best we’ve ever seen. It blends in beautifully with the rest of the back, and the overall design of the phone gives off the impression of being well-thought-out but not overly so. The rear glass slopes to the sides, unlike the screen, giving the phone a thinner appearance. The glossy plastic frame can collect fingerprints, but since it’s not something you’re looking at all the time, you might not notice.

When viewed from the front, the screen appears to sink into the frame, giving the handset a more premium appearance than your normal mid-ranger, which has the screen panel sitting on top of the rest of the hardware. However, the distinction is minor.

Unlike cheaper Nords, this one keeps OnePlus’ characteristic alert slider, which we love (and still don’t understand why no other Android device maker, including OnePlus’s now-merged Oppo, has replicated). Furthermore, you may quickly determine which alerting mode the handset is in by glancing at the slider’s position. It’s a fantastic user experience to choose between the three alerting modes without having to unlock the phone or glance at the screen.

The Nord 2 has excellent handling due to its smaller dimensions and lighter weight than most modern gadgets. It’s only 2-3mm slimmer than the average Android phone, but it makes a big difference in handling, especially for folks with smaller hands. It’s also significantly shorter than most other handsets, making reaching for items towards the top of the screen slightly easier.

Don’t get us wrong: we wouldn’t call this a tiny phone, but it is significantly smaller than others, which many people may appreciate even if this reviewer follows the rule of thumb that “the bigger, the better,” the Nord 2 isn’t so small that it becomes a hassle. As a result, it occupies an intriguing middle ground between small and large phones. It’s the same theme as before.

Unboxing:

Unsurprisingly for a Chinese phone, you get a case in the box, and this one is a little better than the standard jelly case. It’s sturdier, and it has a unique arrow-like section that’s slightly matte, despite mainly being transparent. It also appears to be quite protective, but we haven’t dropped the Nord 2 during our time with it, so we can’t say whether it would survive a drop while in the case – but we see no reason why it wouldn’t.

Furthermore, even though this isn’t a ‘true’ flagship, OnePlus maintains its tradition of having a variety of various cases that can be purchased separately, which we enjoy. Many reputable third-party case makers only make cases for the most popular models from the most popular brands. So, if you buy a more ‘exotic’ phone (the degree of exoticism being connected to the country you reside in, of course), you may discover that you don’t have many options for cases.

While the OnePlus cases aren’t cheap, they are all well-made – we had an array of three to play with during our time with the Nord 2, and they’re all pleasant to the touch, though we like the ones with the OnePlus Sandstone finish. It’s just incredibly grippy!

Vibration Motor And Speakers:

The two speakers on the OnePlus Nord 2 are certainly sufficient, but they aren’t the loudest or highest-quality we’ve ever heard. The speakers don’t rise above that level, but they also don’t fall short. On the other hand, they’re neither quiet nor low-quality, so this is one area where the device delivers precisely what you’d expect for the price.

Using them was a pleasant experience, but they operate best in areas with negligible ambient noise. There’s a chance the volume isn’t quite right, but that’s true with many phone speakers. Even if the earpiece is doing double duty and there isn’t a symmetrical top speaker to go with the bottom one, we’re delighted there are two. Having more than one downward-firing unit is always ideal.

The vibration motor has a tale that is quite similar but not identical. We think it’s a touch better than the phone’s pricing suggests, but it’s still not up to par with the best on the market. On the other hand, the Nord 2’s motor isn’t one of those cheap, tinny, and obnoxious ones that can be found on far less expensive devices. However, since those are typically found on higher-end and more costly phones, we can’t hold it against OnePlus.

Unfortunately, there is no way to customize how severe the haptics are for typical UI interactions; there is only an on/off switch for “Vibrate on touch,” and that’s all. So, while it’s not one of the best, it’s also not one of the worst. For a better term, it’s “middle of the road.”

OnePlus Nord 2; Rate of Refresh:

The screen on the OnePlus Nord 2 is good, but 90 Hz isn’t the same as 120 Hz, and even Samsung isn’t attempting to get away with 90 Hz at this price point anymore. This is one of the Nord 2’s most significant flaws, and there’s no way around it. If you’ve ever used a phone with a 120 Hz refresh rate for any time, you’ll notice that switching to the Nord 2 feels a little slower. It’s the power of habit, the power of getting used to things, and while you can get used to the Nord 2’s lower refresh rate, you can’t help but think that things could be better in the back of your mind.

Or, more accurately, that they should be. With 120 Hz refresh rate panels, far less expensive devices are available, as was when the Nord 2 was released. OnePlus has no justification for skimping on the refresh rate here, no matter how worried it was that the Nord 2 would eat into sales of its higher-priced premium handsets.

As you can see, this exemplifies one of the issues with brands that cater to a wide range of pricing points. They always end up needlessly limiting the lower tier to avoid negatively impacting sales of the higher level, so that doesn’t happen. It’s a fundamental problem, but it’s a complicated one since you wind up developing the best product you can, rather than the best product that won’t affect sales of your other, more lucrative products.

It’s no accident that the brands that succeed in the lower or mid-tiers of the market are those that provide ‘the best bang for the buck.’ The OnePlus Nord 2 does not impress when it comes to the refreshing rate.

Of course, if your last phone had a 60 Hz screen, you’ll appreciate the upgrade. The problem is that you should have seen a more significant improvement. As you’ll see in the Performance section, the refresh rate also limits smoothness, which can’t compare to any device with a 120 Hz refresh rate, even those half the price.

Showcase your Skills:

Now that we’ve addressed the elephant in the room, we can declare that the Nord 2 features a high-quality display screen that has never failed to provide adequate brightness, even on the brightest of days. Sure, it doesn’t get as bright as some flagships, but it’s still reasonably viewable, which is commendable at this price.

The auto-brightness curve is satisfactory, but it may be improved. We found that it preferred a slightly too bright setting in most ambient lighting conditions. In contrast, it dims enough at night to avoid scalding your retinas when viewed in complete darkness. Still, it was very conservative in going up to the last 20% of the line – this became annoying outdoors occasionally, when, despite ample daylight, the brightness would never go up to 100% on its own if the sun wasn’t directly hitting the screen.

We were able to correct this promptly by making numerous manual tweaks that were remembered correctly. Overall, we wouldn’t call this a horrible performance in auto-brightness, but in the last year or so, most of the devices we’ve long-term reviewed have had more or less appropriately adjusted curves, so this experience was a little disappointing when compared to that benchmark. Unlike the refresh rate, though, this is something that can be fixed if you have patience and perseverance.

OnePlus Nord 2; Display Options:

The OnePlus Nord 2 allows you to choose your favourite colour mode, like almost any other phone with an AMOLED screen. In this case, only two alternatives are available: Vivid and Gentle, both of which are self-explanatory. The former is optimized for the P3 colour space, whereas the latter is optimized for the sRGB colour space. Vivid is the default, and which one you want depends on how vibrant you like your phone’s screen to be. If Vivid isn’t enough, you may activate “AI colour boost” to go even further at the expense of some battery life. We didn’t use it because we’re generally wary of such augmentations. Perhaps it’s because we grew up with a lot of these settings turned on by default on TVs, resulting in poor image quality.

In a similar vein, there’s also an “AI resolution increase” to “improve the definition of low-quality videos,” but we’re not sure who would benefit from it. Do you have a collection of QCIF videos that you filmed on your Nokia Asha a decade ago that you keep on hand and need to watch repeatedly? How low-resolution would a video on your phone’s screen have to be to necessitate such intervention? On the other hand, OnePlus deserves credit for making extensive use of the “AI” term; we all know that merely adding “AI” to something magically improves it (in case it wasn’t clear, yes, that was sarcasm).

The Nord 2 features a blue light filter, termed Eye comfort, just like many modern phones. While it’s not as adjustable or feature-rich as MIUI’s blue light filter was a year ago, it’s still a decent option. With a slider, you may choose between colour and black and white and the colour temperature (the warmer you go, the less damaging blue light released). It’s possible to schedule eye comfort, and it’s a clever blue light filter solution overall.

Sensor for Fingerprints:

The fingerprint sensor on the Nord 2 is an optical in-display type, and it works well. It’s quick and accurate; we had a 95% success rate unlocking the phone on the first try, comparable to the phone’s competitors and even some more expensive devices.

As with any optical sensor, registering your prints takes longer than with the latest ultrasonic sensors, but we won’t consider it a disadvantage since you only have to do it once per finger. You may choose from a variety of fingerprint animations. You can also enable “Quick launch,” which allows you to specify some app shortcuts to appear if you remain pressing the sensor area after the screen has been unlocked. Then glide your finger to the app you want to open (without lifting it), and it will open. In principle, this is a sound system, but we never found ourselves using it (something similar is present in other Android skins too). However, you could see it necessary, so we’re delighted it’s there.

Face unlock is also available, although it is less secure than the fingerprint scanner because it uses the selfie camera. There’s a setting that allows you to lock your phone while your eyes are open, which works nicely in practice. Because of the Nord 2’s excellent fingerprint sensor, we haven’t used face unlocking very much, but it has been quick and accurate when we have.

OnePlus Nord 2; Display in the Environment:

Naturally, the Nord 2 has an Always-on Display, which is one of the advantages of an AMOLED panel in that it doesn’t need to wake up the entire screen to show content on a portion of it. It’s called Ambient Display by OnePlus, and the way it’s implemented here is excellent, with a plethora of customization choices. You can choose from a variety of analogue and digital clock styles and a text clock. Notification icons are also displayed, and when a notification arrives, you can see the complete information on the AOD for a brief period. Ambient Display can be scheduled, and we appreciated that you could opt to have some “contextual information” appear if you want it to so it’s not just a clock with notification icons beneath it.

Although OnePlus took its sweet time providing the true always-on capability to its Ambient Display, it is available in the Nord 2, which we enjoyed. You can arrange it to appear when you pick up the phone, and if you tap the screen once if you don’t want (or need) it to be constantly on. You’ll save some power this way, but as our Battery Life section shows, the Nord 2 can still get a lot of use out of its battery, even with the Ambient Display turned on.

To be continued