OnePlus NORD 5 Comments: Just another mid-range northern phone or a game-changer?
OnePlus Nord 5 Reviews: Last week, OnePlus expanded its NORD lineup with the launch of the highly anticipated smartphone OnePlus Nord 5 in India. The company claims it comes in three variants and three color options, making it the most powerful NORD device to date. But is this what it really says? Keep reading to learn about it.
OnePlus Nord 5 Reviews: Price, Color, Variants
The smartphone comes in three versions: 8+256 GB, 12+256 GB and 12+512 are priced at Rs 29,999, Rs 32,999 and Rs 35,999, respectively. The OnePlus Nord 5 comes in three colors: Marble Sand, Phantom Gray, and Dry Ice. We used a 12+256 variant of the device in the marble sand shade.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Design
NORD 5 has significant changes compared to NORD 4. The all-metal design of the Nord 4 is the breath of fresh air and has been replaced by an all-plastic design, except for the screen (i.e. the Gorilla Glass 7i). However, the shadows of marble sand look fresh and very beautiful and are pleasant to touch and handle very well.
It has a 6.83-inch display, so some users may find it difficult to deal with. However, it is a good choice for gaming enthusiasts and those looking for devices in general multimedia use. Additionally, the device has an IP65 rating, which indicates resistance to dust and mild water splashes.
On the right, the phone contains the power button and volume rocker, while on the left, a new button “Plus Key” is introduced (more on this below). At the bottom you will find an analog slot, main microphone, USB Type-C port and speaker grille. It should be noted that the NORD 5 does not have ESIM, but the SIM card tray can hold two SIM cards. The secondary microphone is on top.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Battery
The OnePlus Nord 5 is powered by a 6,800mAh battery and comes with an 80 W SupperOOC charging adapter. It took us about 55 minutes to charge the device from 1% to 100%. But what really stands out is the impressive battery life – with medium use, it can easily start over a full two days. Even in heavy gaming or extended video streams, you still have enough charge to complete the day comfortably.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Show
The OnePlus Nord 5 has the largest NORD device display ever – a stunning 1.5k Swift OLED panel with a silky and smooth 144Hz refresh rate. It supports 10-bit color depth, HDR, and has an impressive 3000Hz touch response rate for hyper-responsive interactions. In fact, this is also impressive. We tested it with content-rich apps like YouTube and Netflix and spent a lot of time scrolling on Instagram and Facebook. The experience is always great, with the whole visual effect and fluid performance energetic.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Camera
The OnePlus Nord 5 has a dual camera system, a 50 MP Sony Lyt-700 main sensor at the rear and an 8 MP Ultra wide lens. For selfies, it also offers an additional 50MP front sensor. The sunlight photos are very good, with natural colors and decent overall exposure. However, we found that the super camera was a bit disappointing compared to expectations (photo below). Portrait lenses, on the other hand, are outstanding: sharp, detailed and balanced in standard photo modes and dedicated portrait modes, with a wide dynamic range that can add depth and realism. The selfies are equally impressive, crisp and clear.
Here are some photos we took in different environments and daylight conditions to evaluate camera quality and experience:
OnePlus Nord 5 Comments: What is a plus sign?
The phone has a plus sign on the left, a new feature we’ve seen for the first time on the OnePlus 13s. If you want to know what the key is and what it is, then, this is a customizable button that replaces the alert slider that existed in previous OnePlus models. It is designed to quickly access various features, similar to Apple’s action buttons. Users can configure it to activate flashlights, cameras, sound profiles, and even OnePlus’ AI features (such as real-time translation).
However, in our experience, the Plus Key’s placement may be better as it causes frequent interruptions when watching videos. Every time we rotate our phone to view something like a video or series, we accidentally press the key, which ruins our entertainment.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Performance and Software
The OnePlus Nord 5 is powered by the cutting-edge Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 mobile platform, which features 4NM Architecture and flagship Kryo CPU, and is paired with LPDDR5X RAM. As a result, the OnePlus Nord 5 has become the first device in the NORD family to have a Snapdragon 8 series chipset. Again, it is based on Android 15, which comes with 15.0.
During the testing process, the device did not show any lag when multitasking or using multiple applications in the background. And, it handles heat well.
The company has promised NORD 5 has the right to carry out 4 major OS upgrades and 6 years of security patches.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: We Think Something Better
All in all, here are some things we think can be better:
- The plus positioning method is not good for us.
- The OnePlus Nord 5 now has a plastic frame, unlike its predecessor.
- Especially super cameras need improvement.
- The IP rating has not been improved yet; it offers an IP65 rating.
