OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G, hands on: OnePlus’s most affordable handset could offer better value

OnePlus has a reputation for solid service in the mid-range smartphone market, but I was disappointed that some components had not been upgraded in the recently reviewed OnePlus Nord 2T 5G, which starts at £369. There is also disappointment with the new Nord CE 2 Lite 5G — not so much with the phone itself, but because in a crowded market this £279 phone is arguably more expensive than it should be: given that the ‘Lite' version is only £20 cheaper than the Nord CE 2, which we reviewed back in March, OnePlus could have pushed its cheapest handset further on price (see specs comparison below). Like its Nord CE predecessors, the Nord CE 2 Lite 5G is not officially on sale in the US. 

There are two colour options, Black Dusk and my review handset's rather arresting Blue Tide, whose light-refracting back morphs between baby blue and slightly deeper shades. The upper section of the back houses a large camera camera which stands very proud, causing significant rock-and-roll on the desk when the uncased phone's screen is prodded. Vertically stripes running the full depth of the camera bump and full width of the phone isn't the best design idea I've ever seen – it looks like someone put sticky tape on this section of the phone. 

As with the Nord CE 2, OnePlus omits its trademark Alert Slider, which lets you switch between silent, vibrate and ring modes. However, the internal specifications impress. The Nord CE 2 Lite is powered by Qualcomm's fast mid-range Snapdragon 695 5G chipset with 6GB of RAM, a platform that delivered Geekbench 5 CPU scores of 685 (single core) and 1945 (multi core). By way of comparison, the MediaTek Dimensity 900-based Nord CE 2 with 8GB of RAM scored 719 (single core) and 2143 (multi core). 

There is 128GB of internal storage of which 108GB is free out of the box. The 5G support is evident in the handset's name, and users have the choice of using either two SIMs or one SIM and a MicroSD card. 

There's a 3.5mm headphone jack on the bottom edge, and a fingerprint sensor built into the power button on the right side.  

The screen is pretty good considering this handset's price. It's an IPS panel rather than AMOLED (as on the Nord CE 2), but at 6.59 inches and delivering 2,412 by 1,080 pixels (401ppi) it looks clear and sharp. The 120Hz refresh rate is also nice to see in a phone at this price. 

There are few surprises on the software front, with Android 12 and OxygenOS 12 providing a fairly clean experience, with a gratifying lack of bloatware. I could do without Netflix and TikTok cluttering the place up, but both can be uninstalled. The Nord CE 2 Lite 5G includes the OnePlus ‘shelf', where you sweep down from the screen's top right to access a range of widgets. Some users find this distracting as they can hit it by mistake when accessing the notifications bar, but I find it easy enough to work with. 

There are three rear cameras, the main one being a 64MP f1.7 unit that shoots a decent picture. The other two are rather less useful: a 2MP f/2.4 depth-assist camera and a 2MP f/2.4 macro lens that needs to be 4cm from the subject for best effect. You can shoot 1080p video at 30fps, and slow-motion 720p video at 120fps. The front camera is a 16MP f/2.0 unit that shoots acceptable selfies and captures 1080p video at 30fps. 

The battery capacity is a generous 5000mAh. Although the Nord CE 2 Lite refused to complete the PCMark for Android Work 3.0 battery life test, I found it lost 15% of a full charge after running YouTube video continuously hours. This suggests total battery life of 20 hours. OnePlus provides a 33W charger, which should take the handset from empty to 50% in half an hour. There's no support for wireless or reverse charging, as you'd expect with a handset in this price bracket. 

The OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G is a neat and decently specified handset, but it's arguably a little overpriced considering that, for just £20 more, the Nord CE 2 gives you an AMOLED screen (albeit with 90Hz rather 120Hz refresh), slightly better performance, comparable battery life, faster (65W) charging, an ultra-wide angle camera, and Wi-Fi 6 rather 5. 

OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite specifications

Alternatives to consider

As the cost of living rises, many smartphone buyers are shifting their focus from expensive flagships to mid-range and budget handsets. There's an increasing range of choice at lower price points — here are three leading contenders around the £300/$350 mark.

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