The OnePlus Nord CE 2 is a midrange smartphone with pleasant specifications. You can’t go wrong on paper. But is the device also a smart buy? In this OnePlus Nord CE 2 review you can read the pluses and minuses after three weeks of testing.
OnePlus North CE 2
Price € 359,-
Color Grey blue
OS Android 11 (Oxygen OS)
Screen 6.43″ amoled (2400 x 1080, 90 Hz)
Processor MediaTek Dimension 900
RAM 8GB
Storage 128GB
Battery 4,500 mAh
Camera 64. 8.2 megapixels (rear), 16 (front)
Connectivity 5G, Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi, GPS, NFC
Format 16.1 x 7.3 x 0.8 cm
Weight 173 grams
Other dualsim, fingerprint scanner under screen
Website www.oneplus.com 7 Score 70 
- Pros
- User experience
- Complete specifications
- Battery life and fast charging
- Negatives
- Old software and poor update policy
- Useless macro camera
- Device lacks right to exist
The OnePlus Nord CE 2 succeeds the original Nord CE from early 2021 and costs 359 euros. That is a lot more than the 299 euros of its predecessor. In fact, the Nord CE 2 is almost the same price as the Nord 2 from last summer. OnePlus defends the higher price by highlighting that the Nord CE 2 offers several improvements. How do they turn out, and is the smartphone worth buying? Time for an extensive OnePlus Nord CE 2 review.
Design
You can’t go wrong with the design of the Nord CE 2. The plastic housing is pleasant to hold, also due to the relatively low weight of 173 grams. The device is a bit cheaper. A case already gives a more premium feeling. You have to love the eye-catching camera lenses. The Nord CE 2 is available in the tested blue and gray – a more corporate colorway if you ask us.
It is good to know that the smartphone does not like water and dust, but it does like connections. You will find a headphone port on the bottom. Pretty crazy, because it’s not on the Nord 2. It is nice that you can increase the storage memory of the Nord CE 2 via a micro-SD card. Also striking, because OnePlus deleted the micro-SD card slot on the Nord CE and Nord 2.
Screen
The screen of the OnePlus Nord CE 2 measures 6.43 inches and is therefore reasonable to operate with one hand. The used OLED screen looks colorful and the Full HD resolution delivers sharp images. Also nice is the 90Hz refresh rate, which makes the image smoother than a traditional 60Hz screen.
In this price range, however, there are also plenty of smartphones with a 120Hz screen, which looks even nicer. The Nord 2 also has a 90Hz screen. You can switch to 60Hz on the Nord CE 2 to extend the battery life.
It strikes me that the screen of the Nord CE 2 is less legible on a sunny spring day. And then summer has yet to come. The photo above illustrates what I regularly experience: a screen that cannot be bright enough to be visible when the sun is shining outside.
Behind the screen is an optical fingerprint scanner. Rather low, but you get used to it quickly. The scanner itself is accurate and nice and fast. I am satisfied with it.
Hardware
OnePlus smartphones are known for their powerful specifications. That is no different with the Nord CE 2. The MediaTek Dimensity 900 processor is nice and smooth and handles all apps and games neatly. This is also due to the large amount of working memory. The device has 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.
Under the hood, a 4500mAh battery supplies the Nord CE 2 with power. The battery life is longer than a day with intensive use and two days with light use. I charge my smartphone every morning at breakfast. That is excellent, because the charging is very fast. The included 65-watt charger only takes thirty minutes to charge from empty to full. After two sandwiches with a cup of coffee, I have enough power for a whole day of use.
The fast charger is a big plus of the smartphone, especially since it comes in the box. More and more cheaper smartphones, including from Samsung, come without a charger.
The Nord CE 2 is suitable for contactless pins thanks to the NFC chip and can handle 5G internet. For the time being, this is of little use because 5G is hardly faster than 4G, but it does consume more power. Tip: you can set 4G as the preferred network in the settings of the smartphone to extend the battery life.
Cameras
On the back of the OnePlus Nord CE 2 you will find three cameras. To start with the good news: with the 64-megapixel main camera you can take good photos during the day. The camera also functions well in less light and is comparable to the competition. The Realme 9 Pro+, for example, does significantly better in the dark. The camera cannot zoom, although the camera app does appear to do so. In reality, he crops the photo, which does not improve the quality.
Below you can see the normal camera, wide-angle camera and disguised zoom via the camera app in two situations – during the day and late at night – from left to right.
You should not expect miracles from the 8-megapixel wide-angle lens. It works properly but is not better quality than the competition. For example, a blue sky looks too exaggeratedly blue, which is especially noticeable if you also take a photo with the regular camera. Finally, the macro camera. The quality of the camera is also disappointing. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that OnePlus hides the macro mode in a ‘More’ tab in the camera app, instead of really highlighting the mode. OnePlus could have better spent its investments in a macro camera.
Old software and fewer updates
In the software, for example, because it is disappointing. The Nord CE 2 runs out of the box on Android 11, the version from 2020. Android 12 was released in late summer of 2021, so well before the release of the Nord CE 2 in March. To my question when the smartphone will receive an Android 12 update, a spokesperson for OnePlus answers that that update is in the works and will follow shortly. At the time of finishing this review, in early April, the update is still not here.
OnePlus also lags behind in terms of security updates. The Nord CE 2 will receive an update every other month, according to the manufacturer. But at the beginning of April, the smartphone still has to do with the January update, and not March. So the phone is exposed to security risks for longer. Brands such as Motorola, Nokia and Samsung roll out an update to affordable smartphones every month.
In any case, OnePlus can improve its update policy. The Nord CE 2 can count on updates to Android 12 and 13. But that Android 12 update feels like a fake update, because this software could already have been on the phone. What remains: one real update. Many other brands guarantee two real updates. The three years of security updates that OnePlus offers is common in this price segment.
Samsung leads the way with four years of updates for all its devices. New models such as the Galaxy A33 (369 euros) even receive five years of security updates. So you can use such a device for much longer with peace of mind.
The Android 11 software on the Nord CE 2 works fine and contains few visual changes. OnePlus provides some apps, but they are not in the way. More annoying are adjustments in the background, which you can do little with. Such adjustments should improve battery life but may limit connected fitness trackers and smartwatches to continuously sync data.
Conclusion: Buy OnePlus Nord CE 2?
The OnePlus Nord CE 2 is a great smartphone with clear pluses and minuses. It is nice and complete in terms of specifications and functions and, in addition to a good battery life, also offers a fast charger. You make concessions with the cheaper design, the less bright screen and the more limited cameras. The fact that OnePlus is watering down its software support is an unnecessary setback. Certainly at a time when competitors are putting more effort into their update policy.
All in all, the OnePlus Nord CE 2 is a typical midrange smartphone, also in terms of pricing (369 euros). However, it is unclear to me what the Nord CE 2’s right to exist is. In terms of design, specifications, pluses and minuses and price, it is very similar to the Nord 2 that was released six months earlier.
The Nord 2 is slightly faster, the CE 2 has a headphone port and micro-SD card slot. Which one suits you best depends mainly on your preferences. In my opinion, OnePlus could have kept it better with one device. That would have been clearer.
Bold alternatives to the OnePlus Nord CE 2 are – in addition to the Nord 2, of course – the Samsung Galaxy A52s, Galaxy A33 and Poco F3. The Motorola Edge 20 is also an interesting option – after its significant price drop – just like the new Poco X4 Pro.
Also read our buying guide for the best smartphones under 400 euros.
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