Introduction
OnePlus has been making waves in the smartphone industry for quite some time now. The company has been known for its high-end devices that offer top-of-the-line features at a premium price. However, with the launch of the Nord series, OnePlus has been trying to cater to the mid-range segment of the market. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G is the latest addition to the Nord series, and it promises to offer a lot of features at an affordable price.
Design and Build Quality of OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has a simple yet elegant design. The phone has a plastic back that doesn’t make it look cheap. The build quality of the phone is such that it actually ends up looking quite premium. The phone has a clean boxy design, with plastic at the back that doesn’t make the phone look cheap. The in-hand feel of the phone is great, and the feedback of the physical buttons on the side of the device is also good. The only downside to the design is the massive lens enclosures at the back. While some people might find the camera module design interesting, for me, it just doesn’t work in terms of looks.
Display
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G comes with a 6.72-inch FHD+ display that can handle fast refresh rates up to 120Hz across 6 different stops — between 30 to 120Hz. The display is good for watching movies and shows and offers decent color accuracy, contrast ratios, and a typical peak brightness of 535 nits to help the panel reproduce accurate visuals not only inside a dark room but also when you’re on the move and using the phone’s panel that’s exposed to harsh sunlight. While it’s not the brightest, the most color accurate, or the most vibrant of panels you’d find on a phone in the segment, the Nord CE 3 Lite 5G’s display still does the trick.
Performance
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 695 SoC, which is a decent upgrade on the device. The general performance and design of the device are pretty good and are good enough to warrant a buying recommendation from us. The phone is good for playing games, watching movies, playing TV shows, and also scrolling the web. However, the older SoC and resulting choppy performance, coupled with the issues faced with the display, make it difficult to recommend over similarly priced devices like the Redmi Note 12 5G and the Google Pixel 6a.
Camera
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G comes with a triple rear camera setup. The primary camera is a 108MP sensor that takes decent photos in good lighting conditions. The phone also has a 16MP ultra-wide camera and a 2MP depth sensor. The cameras are above par and offer good color accuracy and contrast ratios. However, the phone lacks an ultrawide lens, which is a bit of a letdown.
Battery Life
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G comes with a big battery that can last for a day on a single charge. The phone also supports fast charging, which is a great feature to have. The battery life is one of the standout features of the phone.
Conclusion
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G may not stand out from the crowd, but it does hold its own against the competition when it comes to performance in key areas. Cameras and battery are the standout features here and deserve a call out from us, but even the general performance and design of the device are pretty good and are good enough to warrant a buying recommendation from us. If you’re looking for a mid-range phone with a good camera and battery life, the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G is definitely worth considering.
