The OnePlus Nord CE 2 is the Chinese phone brand’s latest attempt at a smartphone that packs in a lot of what makes its flagship phones great but in a package that is far cheaper than those handsets.
OnePlus as a brand began life with its flagship killer mantra, offering high-end smartphones that cost a lot less than typical top-tier devices. Over time, it dropped that and now its latest OnePlus 9 Pro series (and the recently revealed OnePlus 10 Pro in China) are similar prices to phones from Samsung and Apple.
Instead, the company has looked to its OnePlus Nord series as the cheaper options, with the OnePlus Nord CE 2 set to take over the even cheaper element of that line of handsets.
Revealed in February 2022, the OnePlus Nord CE 2 is set to offer some great specs for a lower price than you’d expect from a bunch of other phone brands. We’ve had time to try out the smartphone, so here are our first thoughts on the handset.
OnePlus Nord CE 2 release date and price
The OnePlus Nord CE 2 is confirmed to be launching in the UK and India, but we’ve yet to hear whether it’ll be coming to the US or Australia. The company hasn’t confirmed it won’t bring the devices there, but it looks very unlikely. Australia in particular is extra unlikely as OnePlus doesn’t currently have a presence there.
In the UK, the Nord CE 2 costs £299 with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. That’s the only variant available, but it comes in either a Gray Mirror or a Bahama Blue shade.
The OnePlus Nord CE 2 release date is set for March 10, and you’ll be able to pre-order in the UK on March 3. It’ll be on sale from Amazon, John Lewis, and from OnePlus directly.
Design and display
The design of this phone is similar to the first-gen Nord CE handsets, but it does have some slight differences, with a new camera module on the rear of the phone. This looks more similar to camera designs we’ve seen on Oppo products, such as the Oppo Find X3 Pro.
This is raised out from the rear of the phone, and each of the cameras has a metal rim.
There’s a ceramic-like feel on the rear of the handset, but it’s actually made of glass. There are two color options, which are called Bahama Blue and Gray Mirror.
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The bottom edge of the smartphone houses a USB-C port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a speaker grille. The right hand side of the device meanwhile features the power button, volume rocker, and the silence switch.
Our limited time with the screen so far has given us some good quality visuals, but we’ve yet to truly see what it’s capable of. It’s a 6.43-inch display with a resolution of 2400 x 1080. That’s 409 pixels per inch.
It’s an AMOLED display, and the refresh rate is 90Hz. That means the image on the screen refreshes 90 times a second, which should mean a smoother effect on the display when scrolling or playing games.
Cameras and battery life
The main camera on the OnePlus Nord CE 2 is a 64MP shooter with an f/1.7 aperture, and that’s flanked by an 8MP ultra-wide camera with a 119-degree field of view. There’s also a 2MP macro camera.
On the front, you’ll find your selfies and video calls are all captured through a 16MP shooter with an f/2.4 aperture.
We’re not yet able to comment on what this camera is capable of, but specs wise it’s about what we’d expect from this phone.
We’ve yet to learn how long the battery will last on the Nord CE 2 either, but we know it has a 4,500mAh cell. That’s the same battery size as the original OnePlus Nord CE, and we found that phone offered excellent battery life.
The phone also features 65W fast-charging, which should allow for the handset to be pumped up faster than an average device. But the Nord CE 2 doesn’t come with wireless charging, so you won’t be able to use Qi technology here.
Specs, performance and software
The OnePlus Nord CE 2 features a MediaTek Dimensity 900 chipset, which is a processor we’ve yet to use in many smartphones. In our short testing time, it seemed powerful enough to run any apps or games we wanted it to.
We used the 8GB of RAM variant (the only one available in the UK) but you may find you get lesser performance if you buy the 6GB of RAM variant.
The 8GB model comes with 128GB of storage, and there’s also microSD support here. That’s remarkable as we’ve never seen OnePlus include that before. The phone also comes with 5G connectivity built-in, which isn’t always the norm at this price bracket.
Early verdict
The OnePlus Nord CE 2 is a lot of smartphone for £299. The chipset seems powerful, the camera sounds like it’ll be impressive, and the addition of faster charging and microSD support compared to its predecessor makes it far more attractive.
We don’t yet know how the Nord CE 2 will work as our everyday phone, but so far it seems impressive, and it may be that this is one of the best phones from 2022 that you can buy for under £300.
