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OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Last week, OnePlus has expanded its Nord lineup with the launch of its highly anticipated smartphone, the OnePlus Nord 5, in India. Available in three variants and three colour options, it is the most powerful Nord device to date, the company claimed. But is it what it truly says? Read on to learn about it.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Price, Colours, Variants
The smartphone is available in three variants: 8+256 GB, 12+256 GB, and 12+512 priced at Rs 29,999, Rs 32,999, and Rs 35,999, respectively. The OnePlus Nord 5 comes in three colours: Marble Sands, Phantom Grey, and Dry Ice. We used the 12+256 variant of the device in the Marble Sands shade.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Design
The Nord 5 features a significant change compared to the Nord 4. The all-metal design of the Nord 4, which was a breath of fresh air, is gone and has been replaced by an all-plastic design, except for the screen, which is Gorilla Glass 7i. However, the Marble Sands shade looks fresh and extremely beautiful, as well as being pleasant to touch and nice to handle.
It has a 6.83-inch display, so some users may find it difficult to handle. However, it is a great option for gaming enthusiasts and for those looking for a device for general multimedia use. Also, the device comes with an IP65 rating, which indicates decent resistance to dust and mild water splashes.
On the right side, the phone houses the power button and the volume rockers, while a new button "Plus Key" is introduced on the left (more on this below). At the bottom, you'll find a SIM slot, primary microphone, USB Type-C port, and speaker grille. It should be noted that the Nord 5 does not have an eSIM, but the SIM tray can accommodate two SIM cards. The secondary microphone is positioned at the top.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Battery
The OnePlus Nord 5 is powered by a 6,800mAh battery and comes with an 80 W SUPERVOOC charging adapter. It took us about 55 minutes to charge the device from 1 to 100 per cent. But what truly stands out is the impressive battery life — with moderate use, it easily powers through two full days. Even under heavy gaming or extended video streaming, you’ll still have enough charge left to make it through the day comfortably.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Display
The OnePlus Nord 5 features the largest display ever on a Nord device — a stunning 1.5K Swift OLED panel with a silky-smooth 144Hz refresh rate. It supports 10-bit colour depth, HDR, and boasts an impressive 3000Hz touch response rate for ultra-responsive interactions. And it's also impressive practically. We tested it with content-heavy apps like YouTube and Netflix, and spent time scrolling through Instagram and Facebook. The experience was consistently good, with vibrant visuals and fluid performance across the board.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Camera
The OnePlus Nord 5 boasts a dual-camera system, featuring a 50 MP Sony LYT-700 main sensor on the rear, paired with an 8 MP ultra-wide lens. For selfies, it offers another 50MP front-facing sensor. Daylight photos are pretty good, with natural-looking colours and decent overall exposure. However, we found the ultrawide camera to be somewhat disappointing compared to expectations (shots below). Portrait shots, on the other hand, are a standout: sharp, detailed, and well-balanced in both the standard Photo mode and the dedicated Portrait mode, with a wide dynamic range that adds depth and realism. Selfies are equally impressive, coming out crisp and clear.
Here are a few shots that we took in different surroundings and daylight conditions to assess the camera quality and experience:
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: What is the Plus Key?
The phone features a Plus Key on the left side, which is a new feature that we first saw on the OnePlus 13S. If you are wondering what the Plus key is and what it does, well, it is a customisable button that replaces the alert slider present in previous OnePlus models. It is designed to provide quick access to various features and functions, similar to Apple's Action buttons. Users can configure it to launch the flashlight, camera, sound profiles, or even OnePlus' AI features like real-time translation.
However, in our experience, the placement of the Plus key could have been better, as it caused frequent interruptions while watching videos. Each time we rotated the phone to view content like videos or series, we accidentally pressed the key, which disrupted 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, featuring a 4nm architecture and flagship Kryo CPU, paired with LPDDR5X RAM. With this, the OnePlus Nord 5 has become the first device in the Nord series to feature a Snapdragon 8-Series chipset. Also, it comes with OxygenOS 15.0 based on Android 15.
During testing, the device did not show any lag while multitasking or using multiple apps in the background. Also, it handles heat very well.
The company has promised that the Nord 5 is entitled to 4 major OS upgrades and 6 years of security patches.
OnePlus Nord 5 Review: Things That We Feel Could Have Been Better
To sum up, here are a few things that we feel could have been better:
- The way the Plus key is positioned didn’t sit well with us.
- OnePlus Nord 5 now has a plastic frame and back, unlike its predecessor.
- The ultrawide camera, in particular, needs improvement.
- The IP rating has not been improved; it offers an IP65 rating.
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