OnePlus Nord N30 5G Review: Lost in the Crowd

Publish date: 2024-09-07

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OnePlus built its reputation on Android phones with impressive features for low prices. The Nord N30 5G would make those OG devices proud, but it exists in a very different landscape. Making a great budget device isn't a party trick anymore.

Back when the OnePlus 1 was released in 2014, budget devices were pretty darn bad. The OnePlus 1 was a breath of fresh air---the specs you care about for a reasonable price. As time has gone on, more companies have seen the value in this category. Budget devices aren't as much of an afterthought anymore. Meanwhile, OnePlus has shifted more toward flagship devices.

I've been using the OnePlus Nord N30 5G as my primary phone for two weeks. There's a lot to like about it, but there are some pretty big misses as well. Let's dive in.

Hardware and Design: Sneaky Good

When it comes to budget Android phones, you often have to sacrifice design and build materials. However, the OnePlus Nord N30 doesn't look like a phone that only costs $300. This is thanks in large part to the flat sides, which is an aesthetic often reserved for fancier high-end phones.

All is not what it appears when looking at the Nord N30 5G, though. You might think it has a metal frame with glass on the front and back, but that's only partly true---the back and sides are actually plastic. The sides do feel like plastic, but I was fooled into believing the back is glass.

The biggest design feature is the huge double camera protrusions near the top of the rear side. This is a pretty common design choice nowadays, and I really don't like it. The Nord N30 is very wobbly when lying on a flat surface. I don't know about everyone else, but I happen to do that with my phone quite a bit. I shouldn't need a case to correct such an obvious problem.

The fingerprint scanner on the Nord N30 5G doubles as the power button on the right side of the device. It's a good fingerprint scanner, and I don't mind the placement, but Android complicates things. If you have Smart Lock enabled, the phone won't go straight to the home screen when you put your finger on the scanner. Enabling "Enter Home Screen After Unlocking" in the Settings doesn't fix it, either. A small gripe, admittedly.

Lastly, the OnePlus Nord N30 5G is firmly on the large end of what I find comfortable to use. It seems like manufacturers enjoy using big screens as a selling point in budget devices, but that's not something I'm looking for. The big display paired with flat, sharp edges makes for an uncomfortable phone to hold.

Display: I Can't See It

Opposite the bulky camera protrusions is a 6.7-inch screen. It's an LCD panel with a 1080p display and a max refresh rate of 120Hz. I am not typically a snob when it comes to display quality, but it was pretty clear from the get-go that this is a cheap display, and it's actually unusable in certain conditions---more on that in a bit.

First of all, LCD simply doesn't look as good as OLED, and when so many phones feature OLED panels these days, LCD tends to stick out. It doesn't look as good as the LCD panel on the OnePlus Pad tablet. 1080p resolution, on the other hand, is perfectly fine. QHD would be nice, but it's an expected downgrade for a $300 device.

In general, it's a fine display for a budget phone, but it has one really big problem---I can't see the screen when wearing sunglasses.

LCD screens usually have a polarizing filter to reduce glare---the same type of polarized filter is often found on sunglass lenses. Typically, polarized sunglasses let light pass through in vertical directions, and the phone screen emits vertical light. So, you can see the screen in portrait mode, but when it's turned to landscape mode, the vertically emitted light becomes horizontal, and the sunglasses counteract it. The screen looks black.

Related: OnePlus Pad Review: First Try's the Charm?

Well, the OnePlus Nord N30 5G---or at least the unit I received---is the opposite. The display looks black in portrait mode when I'm wearing sunglasses. It's summer here in Michigan, which has made using the Nord N30 5G incredibly annoying. It'd be fine if it was like most LCD panels---I don't use my phone in landscape mode very often. But the fact that this happens in the primary way you hold a phone seems like a pretty big oversight.

OxygenOS: Mostly Okay

At the time of writing, in June 2023, the OnePlus Nord N30 5G is running OxygenOS 13.1 based on Android 13. I generally like the look and feel of OxygenOS, though some parts of it feel like they're trying too hard to be like iOS or just changes for the sake of being different.

The OnePlus home screen launcher has a feature called the "Shelf." It's essentially a separate screen exclusively for widgets---but only a select few OnePlus apps and Spotify. The Shelf widgets are extremely iOS-like, and they weirdly can't be used on the actual home screen. I'm not sure why I would use the Shelf when the home screen has so many other widgets to choose from.

One thing OnePlus stole from iOS that I do like is the option to make large folders on the home screen. Similar to Apple's App Library, you can launch apps from the large folder without actually opening the folder. It's not enough to make me use the OnePlus launcher instead of Nova Launcher, but I appreciate the feature nonetheless.

This is only my second experience with OxygenOS, but I remain mostly impressed with OnePlus' skin. There are some small things that annoy me---like the red clock digit on the lock screen and the hexagonal settings gear icon---but I prefer it over Samsung's One UI. It's a nice balance of adding helpful features without going overboard.

Cameras: It's a Struggle

The OnePlus Nord N30 has a 108MP main camera, which is a very big number to see on a budget device. However, out of the box, the camera is set to take 12MP photos in order to use the 3X digital zoom feature, so that's what I primarily shot in.

OnePlus claims the 108MP resolution allows the camera to have 3X lossless digital zoom. The marketing actually says, "Telephoto lens, shmelephoto lens! Who needs telephoto lenses when your main camera has 3× lossless zoom?" Well, I'd prefer to have one. My zoomed-in photos often came out pretty blurry, as is expected from digital zoom.

Non-zoomed in photos, however, are pretty good for a device in this price range. If you shoot in 108MP, you'll get better details and more realistic colors. The default 12MP photos are a little more saturated, but the color is still not as good as you'll find on more expensive devices, unsurprisingly.

Also unsurprising is the low-light performance---it's not great. OnePlus includes a night mode feature, but it's not much of an upgrade over using the regular shooting mode. And don't even try taking photos in low light with the 3X zoom. All that being said, I still think the main camera is more than good enough for a $300 phone.

The secondary cameras aren't super exciting. You get a pair of 2MP cameras in the lower camera protrusion for depth and macro. I don't find these particularly useful. The depth sensor isn't doing a whole lot to improve portrait mode photos, and the macro lens just isn't something I ever really need in my daily life. I'd much prefer to have a zoom lens or a wide-angle lens.

OnePlus Nord N30 5G Cameras Samples

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Performance & Battery: Impressive

Powering the OnePlus Nord N30 5G is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 695, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage. This is a very, very small upgrade over 2022's Nord N20---it's the same processor and storage, but 2GB of more RAM. However, it's still a great combo for a device in this price range.

I used the Nord N30 as my primary device for a couple of weeks. In terms of the daily routine of scrolling through apps, texting, and emailing, I didn't notice a huge difference in performance compared to my Pixel 7 with the Tensor G2. However, when you do more resource-hungry tasks, like even just launching the camera quickly, you'll be aware this is a budget device.

The OnePlus Nord N30 5G is packing a big ol' 5,000mAh battery, and this is easily one of the strong suites of this device. Paired with the 1080p LCD display and low-powered processor, you can very comfortably get through a day, maybe even two. For example, the night prior to writing this, I put the phone on the charger before going to bed and it was still above 50%.

When you do need to charge up, the Nord N30 supports 50W SuperVooc wired fast charging---no wireless charging. This is a bump from the N20's 33W fast charging. The phone charges up to around 80% in 30 minutes, which is something you won't even get with high-end devices like the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.

Should You Buy the OnePlus Nord N30 5G?

OnePlus originally made waves with devices that had impressive specs and features for their low price points. The company has since gone on to release several high-end devices with prices sneaking closer to other flagship phones, but the Nord N30 5G feels more like its bread and butter.

However, OnePlus is far from the only manufacturer making compelling budget devices these days. The Pixel 7a and Samsung Galaxy A54 are two close competitors, both of which cost $150 more than the Nord N30 5G's $300 price tag. As great as the OnePlus Nord N30 5G is for the price, it's hard to argue against spending a little more for one of those devices.

Related: Google Pixel 7a Review: A Little Polish and This Phone Would Be Perfect

The one area where the Nord N30 leaves a lot to be desired is the cameras, and the Pixel 7a and Galaxy A54 are much better in that regard. Both devices also offer slightly more powerful processors, and the Pixel 7a even has wireless charging.

If you only have $300 to spend, or you just prefer OxygenOS, I think you'll be happy with the OnePlus Nord N30 5G. This price range is where OnePlus' "Never Settle" mantra makes the most sense. However, if you can spend a bit more, you can settle for even less.

OnePlus Nord N30 5G

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