OnePlus Nord 2T Review

Two weeks ago, I unboxed the OnePlus Nord 2T smartphone and it impressed me with its sturdy build quality and “pristine” texture.

After the initial impressions, I tested the features of the device further by conducting my usual gaming review with FPS tests, taking several pictures, and measuring its battery longevity. Here’s my full review of the OnePlus Nord 2T!

 

Design and Build Quality

 

The OnePlus Nord 2T feels great to hold even with just one hand thanks to a narrow frame and slightly curved edges. Boxier smartphones might look great but this one sticks with the more comfortable design.

Its rear camera array is a bit unusual though. The bottom ring appears to have a third camera placeholder that only contains the terms “DOL HDR”. It doesn’t really bother me though and the large camera island serves as a natural place for the pointer finger to rest while holding the phone.

OnePlus kept the alert slider on the right side above the power button. It’s a unique and useful feature among Android smartphones. The volume buttons are on the left side while the SIM card tray, USB Type-C port, and loudspeaker are at the bottom.

Overall, the OnePlus Nord 2T is a well-designed smartphone with good build quality.

 

90Hz AMOLED Display

The 6.43-inch FHD+ AMOLED display of the OnePlus Nord 2T occupies almost its entire front panel with small bezels on all four sides.

Since it’s an AMOLED panel, the colors look vibrant with deep blacks and great contrast. It remains legible outdoors even during a sunny day and can get comfortably dim for nighttime reading.

It supports up to 90Hz screen refresh rate making animations and transitions look and feel snappier than usual.

 

Performance and UI

The OnePlus Nord 2T uses the MediaTek Dimensity 1300 chipset together with 8GB of RAM. It runs on an Android 12 OS with OxygenOS 12.1 on top.

It offers a smooth user experience when opening apps, browsing social media, watching videos, and doing other casual tasks. There are virtually no lags or frame drops.

However, I can already notice the slight difference in smoothness between its 90Hz display and the 120Hz displays of premium flagship smartphones.

 

In terms of gaming performance, the OnePlus Nord 2T is very capable of running the most popular games.

It can run Mobile Legends and Call of Duty Mobile in HIGH graphics quality at a perfectly smooth framerate of 60FPS! The more resource-intensive Genshin Impact is playable in MEDIUM graphics quality but it only runs at 43FPS so it has to be set at LOW graphics quality for a smoother experience.

Here’s a more detailed gaming review of the OnePlus Nord 2T.

 

The neat and clean OxygenOS software of the OnePlus Nord 2T contributes to the overall experience of using the device.

There are no unwanted ads, notifications, and bloatware. The user has the freedom to install only the necessary apps for his/her lifestyle.

It’s also packed with features that can be explored in the Settings. Some interesting ones to tweak are the font, side notification light, always-on-display style, dedicated “work mode”, and the “shelf” which is a collection of widgets accessible by swiping from the top left corner of the display.

 

Cameras: Sample Pictures and Videos

The OnePlus Nord 2T is equipped with a triple rear camera system composed of a 50 Megapixel Sony IMX766 main camera, 8 Megapixel ultrawide camera, and 2 Megapixel monochrome camera.

It can produce good-looking pictures in well-lit conditions with sharp details, natural colors, and a balanced dynamic range. It’s better than most mid-range smartphones but slightly below the quality of premium flagship ones.

Here are some sample pictures captured by the OnePlus Nord 2T:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The OnePlus Nord 2T can also capture decent low-light pictures. Its dedicated Night Mode can even produce impressive shots of my usual low-light subjects.

It’s more suited for artistic light displays. Taking pictures of people using Night Mode requires them to remain still for 4-5 seconds.

Of course, there’s flash photography to fall back on. The device has a dual-LED flash that can be used to produce better-looking group photos at night.

 

 

 

 

 

There’s also a 32 Megapixel selfie camera on the front of the OnePlus Nord 2T that can capture sharp and detailed selfies.

I took a selfie at noontime under a shade and another one indoors in a restaurant. Both selfies turned out good with balanced brightness that favors my face over the background.

 

 

 

 

Connectivity and Sound Quality

The OnePlus Nord 2T is a dual SIM smartphone with 5G connectivity, Wi-Fi 6 support, NFC, and Bluetooth 5.2. Mobile data speeds are great in areas with 5G cellular signal coverage.

It has a stereo dual speaker setup with the bottom-firing loudspeaker and the earpiece acting as a stereo pair even though the earpiece is slightly lower in quality. This is useful in gaming and produces fuller sound for watching videos.

However, there is still a lack of bass so listening to music is better with earphones.

 

Battery Life and Charging Time

A 4,500mAh battery powers the OnePlus Nord 2T. It can last more than a full day of normal use and about 5 and a half hours of gaming.

It scored 13 hours and 3 minutes on the PCMark Battery Life Test 2.0 with airplane mode turned on and screen brightness set at 50%. This is an average score among smartphones I’ve reviewed.

The phone supports 80W fast charging technology and takes 30 minutes only to fully charge using the bundled charger.

 

OnePlus Nord 2T Review: Conclusion and Recommendation

The OnePlus Nord 2T is one of the best “premium mid-range smartphones” right now.

It has a solid build quality, good display, clutter-free software, capable cameras, fast charging, and a powerful chipset for gaming. The battery life is already good but a larger battery could have made it impressive too.

I recommend this smartphone for the good gaming experience it offers along with a comfortable design, dependable cameras, and quick charging time.