OnePlus Nord 5 Review: A Complete Midrange Phone

In the tech world, the phones that are most hyped are those that do something unique, such as folding in half or featuring RGB lights on the back. While I don’t have anything against these features, I have always found that the best value phones are those that quietly get the basics right.

And that’s exactly what I feel with the new OnePlus Nord 5. Last year, OnePlus attempted to make the design flashy to stand out among its competitors, but this year, it has returned to its roots with the Nord lineup. That is to deliver a phone that hits the sweet spot of performance and cameras without charging too much money.

I had the opportunity to test the OnePlus Nord 5 as my primary phone for over two weeks. In this review, I’ll share my experience with the device, which should help you make an informed buying decision.

Design & Hardware

If you were a fan of last year’s Nord 4 with its metal design, I have some bad news for you. OnePlus has moved away from that design, and in its place is the same glass sandwich that we’ve all come to love and hate.

That said, the white variant, which I received, looks really pretty. OnePlus has done an excellent job with the in-hand feel of the back panel, which reflects light in different patterns. I had multiple friends ask me about the phone I was using, and the response was generally super positive, with everyone praising the phone’s looks.

At 8.1 mm in thickness, coupled with rounded corners, OnePlus has nailed the ergonomics as well. It was a super pleasant in-hand experience, and the weight didn’t cause any strain either. That said, it’s worth noting that OnePlus has opted for plastic sides, which some would argue is a significant downgrade from the previous generation. But to me, it wasn’t an issue at all. That’s because I’d much rather take the better internals of the Nord 5 than the slightly more premium design.

Speaking of the sides, OnePlus has also gone away from its signature alert slider, and in its place is the all-new “Plus Key.” As the name suggests, you can customize this key to do a wide range of functions or open a specific app. However, I’ll always be a fan of the alert slider, which, to date, remains the most convenient way to silence the phone.

The phone also comes with an IP65 dust and splash-resistant rating, which means it can probably survive rain but not submersion.

Display

The OnePlus Nord houses a 6.78-inch 1.5K OLED display with an eye-watering 144 Hz refresh rate. Based on the specs alone, the image quality on the panel is just exceptional. It’s sharp, color-accurate, the HDR experience is solid, and the blacks are inky deep. All this combines to provide a media experience that rivals much more expensive phones.

Outdoor visibility is pretty good, too. OnePlus claims a peak brightness of 1800 nits, and although I didn’t reach that number. The 1600 nits I recorded were more than enough to keep the phone visible in the most harsh sunlight, and provided a decent experience.

OnePlus has also done a good job of optimizing most apps to run on the higher refresh rate setting. Regarding display protection, the Nord 5 comes with Corning’s Gorilla Glass 7. Although I didn’t intentionally drop the phone, it showed no scratches from everyday usage.

Performance & Software

OnePlus prioritized better internals with the Nord 5, as it features the flagship-level Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chip. The chip houses one Cortex-X4 core at 3.0 GHz, four Cortex-A720 cores at 2.8 GHz, and three Cortex-A520 cores at 2.0 GHz, along with the Adreno 735 GPU. In addition, my review unit came with 12 GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 256 GB of UFS 3.1 storage.

The performance is a huge jump when compared to the previous Nord phones. That’s because the 8s Gen 3 manages everything like a piece of cake, be it scrolling through social media, using the cameras, or even playing games. There was never a moment when I felt a lack of power or noticed any lag or stutter.

OxygenOS remains one of my favorite flavors of Android. It’s clean, simple, doesn’t get in your way, and the animations are just stunning. I’ve said this before and will repeat it: OPPO and OnePlus have the best animations on Android, and that statement holds true not only for flagship phones but also for mid-range phones like the Nord 5.

This type of optimization is challenging to find and sets the Nord 5 apart from other brands, like Xiaomi and Realme. There’s also OnePlus’ promise of 4 years of Android updates and 6 years of security patches.

Benchmarks & Gaming

The Nord 5 flexes its internals in benchmarks as well. That’s because, in AnTuTu, the phone scored 1,472,528 points, representing a 30% increase over the 7s Gen 3. In Geekbench, the device scored 1985 in the single-core and 5086 in the multi-core tests. During the infamous 30-minute 30 thread throttle test, the Nord 5 throttled to 85% of its peak performance.

I absolutely love the gaming experience on the Nord 5. That’s because the company has collaborated with titles like BGMI to enable the 144 Hz refresh rate on their games. This instantly makes it a worthy option for gamers who are on a budget. During my extended gaming sessions, which lasted over two hours, the device remained cool, with a temperature of 36 degrees.

There’s also Bypass Charging for gamers who prefer to game while charging but don’t want to damage their battery. For the uninitiated, bypass charging is used when gaming, as it prevents the battery from charging, thereby protecting it from damage.

Battery Life

At 6,800 mAh, the Nord 5’s battery life is just perfect. Not once did I have to worry about the battery being dead before the day. Instead, with my typical workflow, which involves mindlessly scrolling social media, taking camera samples, and playing BGMI, I ended the day with more than 30% juice remaining. If you’re a casual user, then you can easily squeeze two full days of battery life.

Charging is pretty sorted as well. That’s because OnePlus has bundled an 80W charger right in the box. With it, you can charge the battery from 20% to 80% in just over an hour.

Cameras

In terms of optics, the OnePlus Nord 5 houses a 50MP Sony LYT-700 main camera sensor, the same one found in the likes of the OnePlus 13, and an 8MP UltraWide lens with an FoV of 116 degrees. In daytime conditions, the photos from the Nord 5’s main sensor are generally pretty good. I had no complaints, as the phone consistently produced sharp and vibrant images with accurate skin tones and white balance.

The dynamic range was also largely on point, although slightly affected by the harshest sunlight. On the other hand, though, the UltraWide lens isn’t that good. Sure, its colors and skin tones are also on point, but that 8MP resolution inherently limits its capabilities and makes it only usable in daytime scenarios.

Moving to artificial and low lighting, the primary lens shines once again, delivering some aesthetic photos with natural colors and ample sharpness. Just note that the phone takes a second to capture photos in low light, which can sometimes result in blurry images if you’re capturing moving subjects, such as children.

Since the phone lacks a telephoto lens, the primary sensor also serves as the portrait lens. The results are largely satisfactory, with shots that are pleasing to the eye, exhibit a natural depth of field, and display accurate colors. However, it’s important to mention that the images in artificial and low lighting can come out blurry.

The real surprise was the 50MP selfie shooter, which, at this price, delivers some amazing photos thanks to its high resolution, and even the colors are on point. There’s, of course, a beauty filter applied, but you can turn it off pretty easily.

Should you buy the OnePlus Nord 5?

At 31,999, the OnePlus Nord 5 is a solid deal in every aspect. Sure, the Poco F7 might have better performance, but the Nord 5 is a much more rounded phone. You’re getting a stellar 144 OLED display, an 8-series Snapdragon chip, a mammoth two-day battery life, and a software experience that is unmatched by any other. So, if you’re shopping in the sub-35k segment, be sure to check out the Nord 5.