OnePlus Announces Nord - Snapdragon 765 at 399€
by Andrei Frumusanu on July 21, 2020 12:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Mobile
- OnePlus
- OnePlus Nord
- future-u
Today OnePlus is announcing its latest smartphone, the new OnePlus Nord. The Nord is a special device for the company as it’s the first time since its inception that we’re seeing a product release outside of the usual flagship line-up. The new Nord positions itself as a mid-range device in the “premium” category, coming with a Snapdragon 765 SoC as well as an attractive price point.
| OnePlus 2020 Devices | |||
OnePlus Nord |
OnePlus 8 | OnePlus 8 Pro | |
| SoC | Snapdragon 765 1x Cortex-A76 @ 2.3GHz 1x Cortex-A76 @ 2.2GHz 6x Cortex-A55 @ 1.8GHz Adreno 620 |
Snapdragon 865 1x Cortex-A77 @ 2.84GHz 3x Cortex-A77 @ 2.42GHz 4x Cortex-A55 @ 1.80GHz Adreno 640 @ 587MHz |
|
| Display | 6.44-inch FHD+ 2400 x 1080 (20:9) 90Hz Refresh Rate |
6.55-inch FHD+ 2400 x 1080 (20:9) 90Hz Refresh Rate |
6.78-inch QHD+ 3160 x 1440 (19.8:9) 120Hz Refresh Rate |
| SAMOLED | SAMOLED HDR10+ |
||
| Dimensions | 158.3 x 73.3 x 8.2 mm 184 grams |
160.2 x 72.9 x 8.0 mm 180 grams |
165.3 x 74.4 x 8.8 mm 199 grams |
| RAM | 8/12GB LPDDR4X | 8/12GB LPDDR5 | |
| NAND Storage |
128/256 GB UFS 2.1 | 128/256 GB UFS 3.0 | |
| Battery | 4115mAh (15.84Wh) typ. | 4300mAh (16.55Wh) typ. | 4510mAh (17.36Wh) typ. |
| 30W Fast Charging | |||
| - | 30W Wireless Fast Charging (only via proprietary charger) 10W Qi Wireless Charging |
||
| Front Camera | 32MP IMX616 f/2.45 + 8MP f/2.45 108° Ultra-wide |
16MP f/2.0 |
16MP f/2.4 |
| Primary Rear Camera | 48MP 0.8µm 1/2" IMX586 (12MP 1.6µm 2x2 binning) f/1.75 w/ OIS |
48MP 1.12µm 1/1.4" IMX689 (12MP 2.24µm 2x2 binning) f/1.78 w/ OIS |
|
| Secondary Rear Camera |
8MP Ultra-Wide-Angle f/2.25 119° FoV |
16MP Ultra-Wide-Angle f/2.2 116° FoV |
48MP Ultra-Wide-Angle f/2.2 120° FoV |
| Tertiary Rear Camera |
2MP Macro Camera f/2.4 |
8MP Telephoto f/2.4 |
|
| Extra Camera |
5MP Depth Camera | - | 5MP Colour Sensor f/2.4 |
| 4G / 5G Modem |
Snapdragon 5G Integrated X52 (LTE Category 18/13) DL = 1200 Mbps UL = 150 Mbps (5G NR Sub-6) DL = ? UL = ? |
Snapdragon 5G Snapdragon Modem X55 (Discrete) (LTE Category 24/22) DL = 2500 Mbps - 7x20MHz CA, 1024-QAM UL = 316 Mbps 3x20MHz CA, 256-QAM (5G NR Sub-6) DL = 7000 Mbps UL = 3000 Mbps mmWave for OnePlus 8 (non-Pro) on Verizon in the US |
|
| SIM Size | NanoSIM + NanoSIM | ||
| Wireless | 802.11a/b/g/n/ac BT 5.1 LE, NFC, GPS/Glonass/Galileo/BDS |
802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax BT 5.1 LE, NFC, GPS/Glonass/Galileo/BDS |
|
| Connectivity | USB Type-C no 3.5mm jack |
||
| Special Features | On-screen fingerprint sensor | ||
| IP68 Rating | |||
| Launch OS | Android 10 w/ Oxygen OS | ||
| Launch Prices | 8+128GB: £379 / 399€ 12+256GB: £469 / 499€ |
8+128GB: $699 / 699€ 12+256GB: $799 / 799€ |
8+128GB: $899 / 899€ 12+256GB: $999 / 999€ |
Spec-wise, the phone is powered by the Snapdragon 765 SoC which is beginning to see a lot of traction in this mid-range/premium category of devices. Generally, the SoC is somewhat on par with a Snapdragon 845 in terms of CPU performance and on par with an 835 in GPU performance, so there’s still quite a bit of a performance differentiation compared to its primary devices.
Albeit priced more aggressively, the Nord isn’t all that much of a slouch with its 8 and 12GB LPDDR4X RAM configuration, as well as featuring 128 or 256GB of storage, although the interface here uses an older UFS 2.1 implementation.
Other areas where there have been compromises in specifications are the weaker WiFi chipset which doesn’t feature WiFi 6/ 802.11ax connectivity, although everything else is functionally on par with the OnePlus 8.
Design-wise, the phone keeps things simple although still quite premium. We’re seeing an 6.44” 90HZ 1080p OLED display which at this price range is a winning combination, making it on par with the OnePlus 8 although some features such as HDR+ have been shelved.
OnePlus has opted for a dual-front camera design with a primary 32MP sensor and a secondary 8MP ultra-wide module for wider selfie captures and video – a bit unusual given the higher-end flagships just have a single camera module. The camera hole-punch design reminds us of the Oppo Reno 3 Pro – certainly both phones share similarities given they’re manufactured in the same factories by the parent company.
Footprint-wise, the phone is similar to the OnePlus 8, and comes in at 158.3 x 73.3 x 82.2mm which is a sweet-spot form-factor. The weight is also very similar at 184g. Battery-wise, OnePlus was still able to house in a 4115mAh battery which is slightly smaller than the OnePlus 8’s.
Lastly in terms of rear camera configuration, the Nord features the same IMX586 main camera found on the OnePlus 8, which probably is amongst its most interesting value propositions. Although this module faired adequately in the OnePlus 8, it’s a good match for the Nord’s price point.
In addition to the main camera we also see a 8MP ultra-wide module which likely won’t be of great quality, as well as an extra 2MP macro sensor just like on the OP8, as well as an additional 5MP depth camera for helping portrait mode photography.
399/499€ starting August 4th
The Nord is debuting in European and Asian markets first on August 4th, with a tentative release in North America later. The phone comes priced in at £379/399€ for the standard 8/128GB variant, and £399/499€ for the 12/256GB model.
The phone vastly undercuts similar devices such as the recently released LG Velvet as well as OPPO’s own Find X2 Neo whilst essentially being on par in terms of specifications – I see the Nord becoming extremely popular and successful due to its aggressive pricing.
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Sharma_Ji - Wednesday, July 22, 2020 - link
Well, you can buy 2 smartphones from its sister companies which offer sd855+, 90/120 hz screens, faster charging, versatile cameras, and you know what, all at the same fckin price.Well, if this is not one+ being apple of old days, I don't know what is.
Spunjji - Wednesday, July 22, 2020 - link
Honestly I'd have been happier if they managed to pull in an 855 or even an 845 for the role. The 865 is gratuitously overpriced and 765 is a shitty consolation prize for the Qualcomm monopoly. It's definitely possible to make a $500 phone with the 855 in, especially now that it's not "cutting edge".psychobriggsy - Tuesday, July 21, 2020 - link
This is about the price I am happy to pay for a phone. GPU is not quite what you'd want, but to get a decent 90Hz OLED screen, decent RAM and storage, good camera, and 5G at the price is pretty good.Sadly since Huawei are obscena negotium the cheap Honor phone range with Kirin chips that usually gave a flawed but decent CPU and GPU combination are not happening, and most of us are stuck with Qualcomm now as the SoC of choice for their mid-range phone.
I hope the reviews stick this up against 2/3 year old contemporaries, not just against other current phones, so we can see what an upgrade could provide.
NextGen_Gamer - Tuesday, July 21, 2020 - link
Some corrections for the article:"The Nord is a special device for the company as it’s the first time since its inception that we’re seeing a product release outside of the usual flagship line-up." This sentence should be removed or edited, as OnePlus has released a specially designed budget device before, the OnePlus X.
Snapdragon 765 mentions in the table and article should be amended to say 765G. The "G" has slightly faster graphics then vanilla 765 chipset.
Maybe a footnote or other small mention should be made of the cheapest configuration: 6GB of RAM + 64GB of storage. That one is India only, for a USD equivalent of ~$335.
Richlet - Tuesday, July 21, 2020 - link
Agreed! Oneplus X was the first one that wasn't meant to be a "flagship killer". Ah, miss those days of Oneplus not just releasing flagships that cost nearly the same as the competition like they do now.Spunjji - Wednesday, July 22, 2020 - link
Yeah, I'm a 50/50 split of being pissed off with Qualcomm and OnePlus for that trend. My first OnePlus phone was the 6 and it may have to be my last, because I'm not paying $1000 for a phone without a headphone jack, and I'm sure as hell not buying a brand-new $500 phone with an SoC that's not really any better than my 3-year-old design.It sucks because I really love their OS build.
ads295 - Tuesday, July 21, 2020 - link
Funny how everyone seems to have forgotten how the first 3 generations of OnePlus phones were in this price range, and they were all flagships too. It's what catapulted them to fame.And now, look...
Spunjji - Wednesday, July 22, 2020 - link
They were even cheaper than this! They all had some sort of significant disadvantage compared to the "true" flagships of the time, though, but it was sometimes worth it because of that sweet price.Also the "true" flagships were mostly around $600 back then. Heady days!
tkSteveFOX - Saturday, July 25, 2020 - link
No they didn't. Oneplus 3 and 3 pro were outstanding for the time and are still usable devices.zpeleg - Tuesday, July 21, 2020 - link
I believe that you have a mistake in 256gb version European pricing. I think it should be 499 euro and not 599.