OnePlus Nord 2 5G: Even better in its second generation

Sure, a metal case would have been nice. Yes, an HDR-capable display has mostly become standard; a smartphone shouldn't get that hot and neither should it have to throttle its performance; and of course, wireless charging would have been the absolute killer feature.

While it's not the case that the OnePlus Nord 2 5G leaves nothing to be desired, our review of the new and affordable OnePlus smartphone is still largely positive.

Especially when it comes to performance, the Nord phone proves to be really fast: It offers a fast SoC that is especially convincing in terms of graphics processing and even UFS 3.1 storage, which is anything but a given in this price range.

In addition, there's OnePlus's WarpCharge with a maximum of 65 watts, which means that the battery is full again in much less than an hour. And you don't even need to charge the device that often, since the battery capacity is easily sufficient for a few days.

Thanks to Wi-Fi 6, 5G, and Bluetooth 5.2, the OnePlus Nord 2 5G feels very modern, and it features a 90 Hz touchscreen that hardly leaves anything to be desired in terms of ease of use.

So, do we still need a more expensive smartphone? Well, high-end users will probably frown at the plastic frame and the outdated Gorilla Glass 5 on the front and back.

But users who are only willing or able to spend 400 Euros (~$467) will have a hard time finding a smartphone that feels so premium in everyday use despite its shortcomings.

For more information on the OnePlus Nord 2 5G, including detailed benchmark results, charts, and gaming tests, we recommend our comprehensive review of the smartphone.