OnePlus Nord CE 3 review: good packaged phone

OnePlus Nord CE 3 alongside the CE 3 Lite in July, it wasn’t until August that the former became available for purchase on store shelves.

On the specifications front, the Nord CE 3 presents an impressive array of attributes. It houses the Qualcomm Snapdragon 782G octa-core processor, features a primary camera sensor developed by Sony, and proudly showcases OnePlus’ renowned and swift charging capability. However, the critical question remains – does it live up to these promises? Below, I share my insights regarding this recent addition to OnePlus’ lineup, a mid-range phone worthy of consideration.

The Nord CE 3 boasts an impressive array of features on paper, including the utilization of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 782G chipset. This device also stands out for its notable design, build quality, and display.

Design, build quality, and display

The latest Nord CE 3, especially in this stunning aqua surge variant, presents itself as an exquisitely attractive smartphone. The back panel, made from glasstic material, showcases a glossy texture that exudes elegance. Its visual appeal is striking under sunlight, while also excelling at concealing unsightly fingerprint smudges. Notably, its visibility is limited to specific angles rather than being perceptible from a direct line of sight.

Enhancing the visual appeal of the phone is the flat rim encircling the display’s perimeter. This rim not only adds to the phone’s aesthetic value but also imparts robustness, providing a secure grip for the fingers and enhancing the overall steadiness while holding the device.

This particular OnePlus smartphone offers robust safeguards against physical harm and scratches as well. The screen arrives pre-equipped with a screen protector, and inside the packaging, you’ll find a back cover case made of silicone that matches the device’s color scheme. It’s worth mentioning that OnePlus has taken careful consideration in the design of this cover. The case is slightly raised at the four corners and extends a tad around the display, displaying a thoughtful approach to protection.

In this manner, the phone is shielded against potential impacts from various dropping angles. Even when descending with the display side down, the raised edges guarantee that the screen remains elevated above the surface, unless it lands on a jagged substrate. Additionally, the softly padded corners provide a layer of defense against physical harm. However, it’s essential to note that the phone’s safeguarding doesn’t extend to protection against liquid-related damage.

The device is equipped with a speaker, a Type-C port, a microphone, and a hybrid SIM tray slot. When dealing with the SIM tray, exercise caution and use the SIM ejector tool mindfully. Insert the tool into the small circular slot located on the far left side at the base, not the slot next to the Type-C port. Failing to do so might result in unintended damage to the microphone.

Positioned at the upper part of the device, the manufacturer has seamlessly integrated an additional microphone alongside an Infrared (IR) blaster. This IR blaster serves the practical purpose of enabling the control of smart appliances such as air conditioners, televisions, and various other intelligent devices within one’s household.

Situated on the left side, you’ll find the volume rocker and the power button, thoughtfully stacked one over the other for convenience. Contrarily, the right side does not house any physical buttons, not even an alert slider. Instead, transitioning between silent, ring, or vibration modes requires a straightforward process employing the volume button.

This method is refreshingly uncomplicated. When the need arises to switch to silent or vibrate mode, a quick press of the volume button followed by lowering the volume accomplishes the task. Conversely, if the intention is to return to the ringing mode, a mere increase in volume on the home screen promptly serves the purpose. This operation proves to be swift and efficient, taking minimal time to execute.

The front side of the device showcases a generous 6.7-inch full HD+ AMOLED display with a resolution of 2412x1080p. This results in a pixel density of 394 pixels per inch, and an impressive screen-to-body ratio of 93.4%. Positioned at the upper center is a discreet front-facing camera, which minimally interferes with tasks such as reading messages, browsing news articles, or enjoying videos.

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It boasts a 120Hz refresh rate, a valuable asset when navigating through internet content or social media applications. The screen’s scrolling performance is marked by its seamless and sleek nature. Additionally, it incorporates an eye comfort function, effectively curbing the emission of harmful blue light during extended periods, such as binge-watching TV shows, movies, or delving into an e-book.

It provides support for a range of color profiles including sRGB and Display P3, accompanied by 10-bit Color Depth and HDR10+. Additionally, the display presents various modes tailored for specific tasks. These encompass Video Color Boost, Screen Color Mode, Auto Brightness, Manual Brightness, Screen Color Temperature, Bright HDR Video Mode, and Dark Mode.

Oneplus nord ce 3 Performance

Beneath its exterior, the OnePlus Nord CE 3 houses an advanced 6nm class Qualcomm Snapdragon 782G processor, coupled with an Adreno 642L GPU. The device’s memory configuration includes options for either 8GB or 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM, complemented by 128GB or 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage.

Our assessment unit comes equipped with an ample 12GB of RAM and a capacious 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage. With the added advantage of the RAM expansion feature, I successfully augmented the memory by an additional 12GB, culminating in a grand total of 24GB. The outcome was an impressively smooth performance, devoid of any discernible instances of lag.

Operating on the foundation of Android 13 in conjunction with OxygenOS 13.1, the device’s software environment is pristine and unburdened by superfluous bloatware or irrelevant third-party applications. A remarkable attribute is the device’s compatibility with microSD cards, enabling users to extend storage capabilities to a whopping 1TB.

This generous storage allowance facilitates the accommodation of an extensive assortment of photos, videos, and numerous applications, thereby granting users ample room for their digital pursuits.

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