OnePlus Nord 2T 5G Review – Midrange phone that covers all the bases

Launched several months ago, the OnePlus Nord 2T 5G is a midrange phone with a particular emphasis on performance and charging speed while attempting to cram in as much value as possible but is it really worth what you’re paying for? Our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review puts their higher end 12GB RAM/ 256GB variant to the test to find out!

OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review – Build and Design

Intended as a mid-generation upgrade to the OnePlus Nord2 released last year, indicated with the addition of the T suffix to its designation, the OnePlus Nord 2T 5G straddles the space between a midrange and flagship phone with the hardware that it offers with the notably addition of an improved MediaTek Dimensity 1300 processor, a more refined design and an enhanced 80W charging speed over its predecessor.

The OnePlus Nord 2T 5G has a clean and contemporary design that holds it in good stead with other devices in its price range with sturdy build quality and a nice, even heft at 190g while keeping the form factor compact enough for one-handed use. Both the front and rear of the phone are paved in Gorilla Glass 5 to offer a modicum of scratch resistance though the frame is made of plastic to save on both cost and weight.

The right side of our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review sample features a power button and their vaunted alert slider which has slight knurling to make it easier to access by touch and lets you toggle between silent mode, vibration mode and sound mode for incoming calls. 

Oddly enough, its pricier sibling the OnePlus 10T 5G lacks the alert slider which does make the Nord 2T 5G more appealing for those who want a more classic OnePlus design. On the left side of the OnePlus Nord 2T 5G, you get a volume rocker while the top of the phone is bare of interesting features. 

The base of the phone features a USB-C port, a grille for the stereo speakers along with a dual nano SIM card tray.

Belying its midrange price point, our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review sample has a very striking backplate done up in a shade they’ve referred to as Gray Shadow which is, in effect, a black frosted finish. Alternatively, you can get it in a glossy light green colourway dubbed Jade Fog. This sleek frosted finish repels fingerprints nicely and offers wonderful tactility too. Perched in a corner of the backplate is a raised, square camera housing to house the phone’s triple camera array.

Up front, you get a 6.43-inch FHD+ AMOLED display that has a 90Hz refresh rate, a wide 20:9 aspect ratio, an off-centre punch hole for the 32MP selfie camera and an under-display fingerprint reader in the lower quadrant of the display. Closer inspection also reveals that the phone also has a pre-applied screen protector to protect the touchscreen which is a welcome bonus. There is also a tiny grille up top for the stereo speaker with the other one at the base of the phone. 

Overall build quality is good and punches above its price point though it lacks any official water or dust resistance rating so care needs to be taken if you’re going to tote it around the pool or anywhere dusty.

In terms of extra kit, our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review sample came with a generous amount of goodies. You get a vanishingly rare 80W charger and compatible USB-A-to-C cable, a protective case as well as a pre-applied screen protector on the display.

OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review – Specifications and Benchmarks

In terms of hardware, our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review sample for the Malaysia market comes with a MediaTek Dimensity 1300 octa core processor of recent vintage,  5G connectivity, 12GB RAM with up to 7GB of additional assignable vRAM and 256GB of non-expandable storage. Virtual RAM or vRAM is allocated from onboard storage but if you’re a heavy multitasker, this option comes in handy.

A cheaper variant is also available with 8GB RAM and 128GB of onboard storage. Running under the hood is Android 12 overlaid with their OxygenOS 12.1 firmware. Here’s how the phone stacks up on paper:

Price	RM2,099 (12GB RAM/256GB storage), RM1,899 (8GB RAM/128GB storage)
Display	6.43-inch FHD+ AMOLED, 1080 x 2,400 pixels, 90Hz, HDR10+
Processor	MediaTek Dimensity 1300 octacore
OS	Android 12 + OxygenOS 12.1
Memory	12GB RAM/256GB (review unit) | 8GB RAM/128GB
Camera	50MP F/1.9 w/ PDAF & OIS + 8MP F/2.2 ultra wide angle + 2MP F/2.2 depth sensor (rear) / 32MP (front camera)
Battery	4,500mAh w/ 80W fast charging
Size/Weight	159.1 x 73.2 x 8.2mm /190g

In terms of overall performance, our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review sample with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage acquitted itself well across the majority of day to day tasks expected of a phone and remained comfortably cool for the most part save for a slight warmth when conducting extended heavy gaming. Web browsing was fast and nippy and it was able to tackle Call of Duty Mobile and Diablo Immortal on high settings without issue. 

In terms of longevity, Oneplus has stated thus far that the phone will have two years of OS updates and three years of security updates though things are uncertain after that juncture which means it will get an OS update up to Android 14. This is somewhat short of the industry standard who are promising at least 4 updates and 5 years of security patches.

In synthetic benchmarks, the phone scored a generally fair scores across the board:

3DMark Wild Life	4,633
3DMark Wild Life Unlimited	1,296
3DMark Wild Life Extreme	1,326
3DMark Wild Life Extreme Unlimited	1,293
Geekbench 5 Single core	428
Geekbench 5 Multi core	2,612
Geekbench 5 Vulkan	4,704
Geekbench 5 OpenCL	4,784
PCMark Work 3.0	10,533
PCMark Battery Life	N/A

Our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review sample features a 6.43-inch AMOLED display with FHD+ resolution, support for HDR10 and HDR10+ content and a 90Hz refresh rate that serves up vibrant hues, crisp imagery and relatively smooth animations on screen. 

The Netflix mega hit Cyberpunk Edgerunners with its vividly drawn scenery and deep black backgrounds of Night City as well as David’s neon yellow jacket looked punchy with deep blacks.

If this is a bit too saturated, you’re able to dial the refresh rate down to 60Hz down in the settings to save on battery life and tweak the display’s colour profile to taste. Alternatively, if you prefer an even  brighter and more saturated colour profile for video content, you can activate a Video Boost setting to kick up brightness and saturation especially for videos.

Paired with the solid display are a pair of stereo speakers with one just on top of the display and one at the base of the phone. When tested, the speakers served up good volume and a modest amount of detail for movies and games alike though bass was middling at best and the lower speaker is markedly louder and more powerful than the top one.

In terms of battery life, the OnePlus Nord 2T 5G does a fair job off its 4,500mAh battery and was able to last a full day of use with light gaming, social media, voice calls and web browsing but may not be able to hold enough juice for the commute home. Unfortunately, the PCMark battery benchmark wasn’t able to run  but it was able to run for about 7 hours and 10 minutes on average before it crashed. Fortunately, charging it is a relatively fast affair and the 80W SuperVOOC fast charging is able to go from dead zero to full in about 40 minutes of charging via the provided charger and cable.

OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review – How are the cameras?

On the imaging front, our OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review unit has a triple camera array on the rear built around a 50MP F/1.9 camera that has optical image stabilisation. Riding shotgun is an 8MP ultra wide angle camera, a dual LED flash and as an afterthought, a 2MP depth sensor. This setup allows it to take 12.5MP stills at up to 10x digital zoom and up to 4K@30fps video. Up front, it has a 32MP F/2.4 fixed focus camera capable of taking selfies and up to 1080p@30fps video.

Shots taken with the primary camera and with Auto HDR and AI mode on by default are good under daylight conditions with relatively accurate colour rendition and detail though the ultrawide angle camera does not fare as well with fair if soft details on account of the modest 8MP sensor. 

Under dimmer light conditions, the main camera edges out over the ultrawide with good shots that have a decent amount of detail and light though zoomed in shots with the primary camera beyond 2x and anything on the ultrawide camera are underwhelming with noticeable noise and murky results.

A Night mode is available with the trade-off of longer exposure times with mixed outcomes so a steady hand and patience is required. Up front, the selfie camera is serviceable for video calls and the odd mugshot or two in brightly lit conditions.

In terms of video, the rear camera array maxes out at 4K@30fps footage and benefits from OIS for judder free footage in daylight though low light footage isn’t much to write home about. Unfortunately, many phones are already capable of 4K@60fps but for otherwise general usage like filming the odd birthday party or two, it does the job.

Should you buy the OnePlus Nord 2T 5G?

The OnePlus Nord 2T is a competently made phone that blends fair build quality and overall decent performance across the board though it doesn’t stand out in any particular area and comes at a slight premium for what it has to offer versus other contenders in the market while also lacking any water resistance or wireless charging. 

Still, it’s worth a look if you’re a fan of OnePlus and are looking for an RM2,000 workhorse phone.

OnePlus Nord 2T 5G review unit courtesy of OnePlus. To purchase and for more details please visit https://www.oneplus.com/my