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When the original OnePlus Nord came out, I had a brief taste before passing it on to my brother. Back then, OnePlus was still keen on pleasing its core fanbase and OxygenOS was one of the most coveted Android skins around. But things took a turn with the launch of OxygenOS 12, where the company not only abandoned the stock Android experience but also shifted its product strategy altogether.
Now, I have the opportunity to try out the Nord 3 at a time when OnePlus has transformed into a very different company, far from its OnePlus 7 series days. I put the OnePlus Nord 3 through its paces to see if the brand still has what it takes.
The OnePlus Nord 3 succumbs to the temptation of squared-off edges and becomes the first Nord to do so. That makes it less comfy to hold, but thankfully there’s a nice rubbery matte case in the box that solves that problem. I dig the colour, which is a subtle blue-green that doesn’t scream for attention. And those thin bezels all around make the phone look quite classy.
But my favourite bit about the Nord 3’s hardware, hands down, is the alert slider – that fabled switch on the side that lets you toggle between sound modes. It’s a game-changer, trust me. No more fumbling with buttons or screens to silence your phone. Just slide and go. It becomes second nature. Like when I had a meeting at work, I just reached into my pocket and flicked the switch without even looking. I could rave about it all day, but you really need to try it for yourself to believe it.
When I first glanced at the top of the phone I was pleasantly surprised to see an extra dot. Just like the alert slider, the IR blaster is also one of those things you think you don’t need until you actually start using it. With the pre-installed IR Remote app, I can now control my AC seamlessly – no need for that pesky remote that always goes missing and has a weak signal. Extra points for the inclusion of this feature.
If you hang out on tech Twitter, you might have seen some shade thrown at MediaTek chips. I’ve stayed out of the discourse so far having never used a MediaTek phone. But now I do: the OnePlus Nord 3 rocks the Dimensity 9000 processor, which is MediaTek’s top-of-the-line chip, even though it’s already been outshone by the newer Dimensity 9200. Still, the Dimensity 9000 is a beast on paper, scoring over 800,000 on AnTuTu. And it shows in real life too, with silky smooth scrolling and transitions across apps.
However, gaming is a different story. While the phone doesn’t really heat up, I could tell that some of my favourite mobile titles such as COD Mobile, Grid Autosport, and CarX Street weren’t well optimised for it, meaning these games didn’t run at max graphics, or worse, exhibited lags. That’s a shame, because the processor has a lot of juice – when a game actually works well with it, like Fortnite or PUBG Mobile, it’s a blast to play on par with the latest Qualcomm flagships.
As I mentioned at the start of this article, I’m a former OnePlus Nord user. That means I’ve enjoyed the original OxygenOS, which was completely independent from Oppo’s ColorOS. Sadly, that’s not the case anymore, but it’s not as bad as it sounds.
The OnePlus Nord 3 comes with OxygenOS 13.1 based on Android 13, which has deviated a bit from the stock Android philosophy, but not too much, especially compared to other skins out there. Sure, there are some quirks, like the app drawer that stubbornly sticks to 4 columns regardless of the home screen layout, the annoying “Your phone is now in optimal condition” prompts every time you clear all apps, and the clunky status bar. But the latest version of OnePlus’s skin is not a step back from OxygenOS 11. It feels well-refined with smooth animations and elegant aesthetics. My only gripe is that there’s no way to force some apps to run at 120Hz – a few apps like Microsoft Edge are locked at 60Hz for some reason and feel extremely choppy.
The OnePlus Nord 3 boasts 3 cameras (50MP+8MP+2MP) on its back, led by the Sony IMX890 sensor. I put this camera to the test and got mixed results.
It does a good job with exposure and dynamic range, but it often spoils the colours and edges with too much saturation and sharpening both in daylight and nighttime scenarios. This might be a way to compensate for the lack of details, but I would prefer a more natural look with less processing.
Despite this minor flaw, the Nord 3 delivers a respectable camera performance for its price range. You can capture some stunning shots that will impress your social media followers. Just don’t expect it to rival the flagships. The ultrawide camera is okay and the selfie camera is decent.
If you are a former OnePlus fan who jumped ship due to its Oppo-fication, it’s time to come back. The OnePlus Nord 3 shows that the company hasn’t lost its mojo, and the buggy OxygenOS 12 days when the company was undergoing its controversial transition is now over. OxygenOS 13 is as stable as a rock and it’s hard to dislike the way the skin is put together. Add to that 3 years of OS updates and 4 years of security updates.
The pricing is a bit of a pickle, though. On one hand, you have the likes of the Poco F5 and Moto Edge 40, which offer almost but not quite the same experience and performance for a few bucks less (Rs 30,000). And on the other, you have an offering from the same maker – the OnePlus 11R – a near-flagship beast with an arguably catchier design selling for just Rs 5,000 more. Nevertheless, the OnePlus Nord 3 is still a great choice for those who want a perfectly-balanced phone that does everything well without breaking the bank.
