OnePlus Nord 2T 5G

A minor update over the Nord 2, but its speed and camera leave us questioning the value of flagships

- JON MUNDY

PRICE 128GB, £308 (£369 inc VAT) from oneplus.com

Last year’s OnePlus Nord 2 (see issue 325, p68) was a superb mid-range smartphone, providing strong performance and camera hardware for only £399. Now it’s followed by the Nord 2T, which brings hardware improvements while squeezing the price down to £369 for the entry-level model with 8GB of RAM 128GB of storage. There’s also a step-up model with 12GB of RAM and twice the storage for £469.

The 2T feels solid, with Gorilla Glass on the front and rear surfaces and a metal-effect plastic frame. It’s a comfortable size, with dimensions of 159 x 73 x 8.2mm and a weight of 190g, and the curved rear sits well in the hand – although the model we tested, in the sombre Jade Fog finish, quickly picked up finger smudges.

The 6.43in AMOLED display is the same as that on the Nord 2, meaning it’s nice and sharp at 1,080 x 2,400, with a smooth if unexceptional 90Hz refresh rate. Brightness, too, is fine rather than fantastic, although one upgrade over the old model is the addition of dual ambient light sensors, which allow the phone to adjust the brightness automatically according to your environment. While not as impressive as the 6.5in 120Hz screen found on the similarly priced Samsung Galaxy A53 5G (see p63), it’s a perfectly fine display for apps and films. There’s a speedy fingerprint sensor embedded into the display, too.