OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G Review

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G Review. To put it gently, the OnePlus roster isn’t as clear and simple as it once was. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G is a good example. This phone is a more cheap version of the OnePlus Nord CE 3, which hasn’t even been launched yet, and it belongs to a sub-brand (the CE line) of a sub-brand (the Nord line).

Which in itself is a more affordable spin-off of the similarly unannounced OnePlus Nord 3, but now we’re really getting into the weeds.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G Review:

Purchasing a OnePlus phone has undoubtedly become much more difficult. The only thing you really need to know is that the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G is the most reasonably priced device in OnePlus’s 2023 lineup and that it is the direct successor to the fairly underwhelming OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G from the previous year.

Can OnePlus get the lower-mid-range formula right this time around, or is the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G another affordable also-ran?

Design & Build:

Relatively big and heavy
Flat-edged all-plastic design
The Pastel Lime color certainly stands out

Oneplus also produces a large phone called the Nord CE 3 Lite 5G. It is slightly taller and wider than the OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G, though a touch thinner, at 165.5 x 76 x 8.3mm. It weighs the same 195g, which is not at all light for a phone made entirely of plastic.

With smooth edges mirroring the current post-iPhone 12 fashion, OnePlus has improved the design language from the dull OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G. The left corner location of the previous model has been replaced by a central hole punch notch.

In a way akin to fizzy lemon sherbet, my Pastel Lime model stands out. Though both are somewhat of an odd color, the plastic rim’s metallic yellow-green finish complements it nicely.

The rear’s glass-effect plastic finish is quite easy to pick up greasy fingerprints, but the light coloring helps to mask them at a first impression. At this end of the market, a lack of an IP rating is not rare. Having said that, the Redmi Note 12 Pro does manage to have an IP53 rating, so it’s not altogether ridiculous to want one.

The conventional side-mounted fingerprint sensor is located underneath the right-side power button elsewhere. Since it is recessed and nearly flush with the edge, I found it to be a little trickier to feel for than usual, but it still functions just fine.

Screen & Speakers:

6.72in IPS LCD
Full HD+ & 120Hz
Stereo speakers

The larger display of the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G is the key factor in its somewhat larger size compared to its predecessor. Instead of the 6.59 display found in the CE 2 Lite 5G, this one has a 6.72 IPS LCD.

With a resolution of 1080 x 2400, or Full HD+, and a refresh rate of 120 Hz, it is more than sharp enough. It’s wonderful to note that it defaults to that high refresh rate too, unlike the majority of other inexpensive Android phones.

The type of panel that OnePlus has chosen to employ is the biggest problem I can see with this. The Redmi Note 12 Pro and Poco X5 from Xiaomi also have full AMOLED displays, making the Nord CE 3 Lite 5G display seem out of place.

It provides very average color output with a gamut coverage of 85.5% sRGB, 60.6% Adobe RGB, and 62.7% DCI P3 in the more appealing (though a little dull) Natural color profile. Although it offers a punchier 99.5% sRGB and 79.8% Adobe RGB, the default Vivid mode isn’t particularly color-accurate.

However, the main difference between an LCD and an AMOLED is found in the greyness of the blacks and the general lack of contrast. However, 510 nits of maximum brightness (with auto brightness turned off) is not to be taken lightly.

Stereo speakers are a much bigger upgrade compared to the OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G. Simply having a proper left and right channel in landscape video content makes all the difference, even though they don’t offer the deepest or most detailed sound.

Specs & Performance:

Snapdragon 695 5G
8GB RAM
microSD slot

Performance is one area where there has been very little advancement. The Snapdragon 695 processor is exactly the same here as it was in the model from a year ago and the slightly less expensive Poco X5.

This is supported by a larger 8GB of RAM as standard, an increase from 6GB in the model from last year, but that is essentially incidental. That processor is the problem here.

Indeed, the benchmark results from Geekbench 5 and GFXBench (covering CPU and GPU performance, respectively) roughly match the performance of the model from the previous year. At the same time, they are all noticeably inferior to the Redmi Note 12 Pro, which is likely the closest current model to which we can currently compare the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.

Benchmarks don’t always represent the actual experience, of course, but in everyday use, this older chip doesn’t deliver a contemporary mid-range experience.

During my time with the phone, I didn’t notice anything particularly egregious, but I did notice more frequent micro-pauses when navigating through menus and home screens and a longer delay when switching between apps than you get with more powerful phones.

Genshin Impact is a game that you should only play on medium settings, and even then, it won’t run perfectly smoothly.

The internal storage of 128GB comes standard, which is common in today’s world. It’s usually a plus to have the option of microSD card backup, which the aforementioned Redmi competitor does not provide.

Cameras:

Mediocre 108Mp main
Poor 2Mp macro and depth lenses
No dedicated ultrawide

The camera on the oneplus nord CE 3 Lite 5G has received an upgrade from OnePlus. The 108Mp primary sensor, the first in a OnePlus phone, replaces the 64Mp chip from the previous iteration.

Of course, pixels aren’t everything in photography, but this one also has a huge f/1.75 aperture and a 1/1.67 sensor size. However, the absence of OIS (optical image stabilization) really hurts the camera in low-light shooting situations.

In good lighting, I was generally pleased with the outcomes, especially with the attention to detail. Compared to earlier, the tone appears a little more natural and less overly processed. However, in those HDR scenarios, images could appear a little washed out and there might have been a hint of overexposure.

Additionally, I discovered that the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G was a little sluggish when shooting moving targets, with blur visible even in bright daylight.

Due to the significant amount of noise and general lack of sharpness in low-light images, it’s safe to assume that this lack of OIS is at least somewhat to blame.

You could counter that this is to be expected from a phone priced so much lower than even the sub-£400 Pixel 6a. However, I took both the Redmi Note 12 Pro and the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G on a walk and took about a dozen photos that were exactly the same.

Even if it wasn’t a complete victory, the latter’s trustworthy (and plainly larger) Sony IMX766 sensor, supported by OIS, produced more aesthetically acceptable and more upscale-looking images in the majority of circumstances, particularly when the light decreased.

Naturally, there isn’t a separate telephoto camera, but according to OnePlus, the 3x cropped images obviate the need for one because of the additional pixels on the primary sensor. I wouldn’t go that far because the original material is far from perfect and there is still a definite drop-off in detail.

But it’s more than sufficient for those social media posts, the main sensor’s color is preserved, and the outcomes likely outperform a subpar telephoto lens overall. Just avoid getting too near.

Contrary to the aforementioned competitor, the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G still lacks a dedicated ultra-wide camera, and the 2Mp macro camera is a total waste of time. When taking extremely close-up photos, you want to Naturally, there isn’t a dedicated telephoto camera, but OnePlus does e-up, you want a respectable level of detail that this sensor just isn’t able to deliver.

The 16Mp front camera can take acceptable if slightly washed-out, selfies. Portrait selfies frequently exhibit the recognizable halo of fuzziness that frequently accompanies less expensive phones.

Here, 1080p video can only be captured at 30 frames per second. That’s a fairly poor feature for a £300 phone, especially as several competitors provide at least 4K at 30 frames per second.

The camera system on OnePlus’ entry-level phone has improved, but it still isn’t among the finest in its class.

Battery Life & Charging:

5000mAh
Two days of light use, one of intensive
76% charge in 30 minutes

The Nord CE 3 Lite 5G from OnePlus sports the same large 5000mAh battery as its predecessor. Anecdotally, when I checked the phone in the morning after a full 24 hours between charges and light to moderate usage (around 3 hours of screen-on time), I had about 45% remaining in the tank.

This phone, like its predecessor, can easily last a full day when used heavily and two full days when used lightly.

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G achieved a score of 13 hours and 5 minutes in the standard PC Mark Work 3.0 battery test. That is precisely one hour and thirty minutes longer than the Redmi Note 12 Pro, which is a commendable achievement.

This time around, OnePlus has increased the charging speed from 33 to 67 W, which is the major battery-related enhancement. With the included charger, this was sufficient to charge the phone from 0 to 42% in 15 minutes and to 76% in 30 minutes. This is impressive, especially when you consider that phones like the Samsung Galaxy A54 still lag behind with 25W and don’t include an adapter.

Software:

Android 13
OxygenOS 13.1
Only two Android updates

Software no longer serves as OnePlus phones’ primary competitive advantage. The brand’s OxygenOS is now largely a reskin of the parent brand’s ColorOS after being absorbed by Oppo. It lacks the clean, fashionable appearance of the previous OnePlus UI.

That isn’t to say that OxygenOS 13.1 has a poor user interface. It simply isn’t as clear and unified as Motorola’s minimalist UI or Google’s stock Android anymore, with the experience being detracted by unappealing menus and awkward notifications.

However, it still doesn’t bombard you with quite as much bloatware as Xiaomi’s MIUI, giving the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G an unusual victory over the Redmi Note 12 Pro.

The second home screen offers Netflix and a specific OnePlus tools folder, while the main home screen features a nice Weather app and games management software. The relaxation-focused O Relax and Zen Space look like particularly shady choices, but there are a few more preinstalled apps stashed away in the app tray, and they are easily disregarded.

Only two major Android updates and three years of security updates are promised, as opposed to three and four, respectively, or even more with Samsung, when using MIUI on the Redmi.

Price & Availability:

Starting on April 20, OnePlus will sell the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G directly from their store for £299. It isn’t formally offered in the US.

There is only one model available, which comes with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. There are two colors available. The same price can also be found on Amazon.

The SIM-free variant costs £20 more than the OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G from a year ago, and it places the OnePlus uncomfortably close to the Redmi Note 12 Pro, which has an MSRP of £339. As we’ve already mentioned, this competing gadget outperforms the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G in a number of significant aspects.

You’ll need to choose for yourself whether an improved display and camera, somewhat faster performance, and the inclusion of IP53 water protection are worth an additional £40 investment. In my opinion, it is.

It’s also important to keep in mind that a OnePlus Nord CE 3 is probably on the horizon. It might be worth waiting to see what OnePlus has in store for this year as there wasn’t a significant pricing difference between the two with last year’s corresponding models.

If your budget allows, you might take into account the Samsung Galaxy A54 or Google Pixel 6a, both of which are included in our list of the best mid-range smartphones.

Specs:

Android 13
6.72in, Full HD+, LCD, 120Hz, flat display
Qualcomm Snapdragon 695
8GB RAM
128GB storage
108Mp, f/1.8 main camera
2Mp macro camera
2Mp depth sensor
Up to 1080p @ 30fps rear video
16Mp front-facing camera
Side-mounted fingerprint sensor
Stereo speakers
Dual-SIM
5G
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth 5.1
5000mAh battery
67W charging
165.5 x 76 x 8.3mm
195g
Launch colors: Chromatic Gray, Pastel Lime