OnePlus Nord N10 5G review: An affordable 5G phone with few compromises –

With the Nord N10 5G and N100, OnePlus is increasing its extra inexpensive “Nord” household of telephones after launching its first OnePlus Nord in July. Available in Europe and North America at a later date, the N10 5G prices £329 (US and Australia pricing weren’t launched but, however that converts to roughly $430 and AU$600). This is cheaper than the £379, UK-only OnePlus Nord, and far decrease than the corporate’s least expensive flagship mannequin, the OnePlus 8, which is presently discounted at $599 and £549 (AU$837 transformed).

The Nord N10 5G does lower a couple of corners. For occasion, it has an LCD show as a substitute of OLED, it would not have an in-screen fingerprint sensor, it is powered by a slower processor than any 2020 OnePlus telephone, it is not IP rated for water resistance and it runs the older Android 10 OS. But it nonetheless has some premium options, comparable to 5G, a 90Hz show and a strong 4,300-mAh battery, in addition to a couple of retro surprises that no new OnePlus telephones have, like expandable reminiscence and a headphone jack.

If US pricing stays per the UK, it’s going to be one of many extra inexpensive 5G telephones obtainable, touchdown between the $360 LG K92 and the $445 Motorola One 5G. Though I do assume the Pixel 4A 5G and One 5G are value the additional bit of cash (the $500 Pixel telephone, as an example, will get the most recent software program help from Google, has a wonderful digicam and a long-lasting battery life), the N10 5G is a best choice if you happen to’re a fan of OnePlus and need 5G at an inexpensive value.

N10 5G’s acquainted design touches

The N10 5G has a darkish blue, shiny design that appears polished and slick. From afar it would not seem like a “funds” telephone. But after I first picked it up, I may inform it wasn’t as high-end. It’s heavier and thicker, and its bezels, particularly the underside chin bezel, is wider than the entire telephones OnePlus launched this 12 months. It additionally would not have the handy toggle swap for silence/vibrate that OnePlus telephones are identified for. Nonetheless, it is nonetheless a comparatively engaging machine, and its rounded edges on the aspect are comfy to carry.

The N10 5G additionally has an LCD show, whereas OnePlus telephones often have AMOLED screens. When considered side-by-side with the Nord, the AMOLED display screen is a bit brighter and vibrant, with extra distinction. I additionally observed that when viewing the N10 5G from numerous angles, the colour shifting was extra noticeable. But these particulars are solely discernible subsequent to a different telephone. By itself, there is no such thing as a actual situation with the N10 5G’s display screen, and watching movies and photographs regarded sharp and clear. Its 90Hz refresh charge makes scrolling by feeds and apps really feel zippy and clean.

Lastly, not like a lot of OnePlus’ new telephones, the N10 5G has two issues which might be acquainted however have been lacking from many premium gadgets: a headphone jack for wired headphones and a visual fingerprint sensor on the again of the telephone that works rapidly.

N10 5G’s has 4 rear cameras, however it solely wants two

Similar to many OnePlus telephones, the N10 5G has 4 rear cameras, and much like these telephones, it actually solely wants two. The normal and ultra-wide cameras are nice and are those I used probably the most, however the monochrome digicam is barely helpful once you need to take black and white photographs, which I hardly do. And the 2-megapixel macro digicam for closeup photographs takes photographs that seem like, effectively, they have been taken with a 2-megapixel digicam. While it did permit me to focus in on an object and get tremendous near it, photos in the end regarded washed out and muddy.

But once more, the usual and ultra-wide cameras are fairly wonderful. Photos have been sharp with wealthy distinction, and the digicam’s HDR impact is vibrant. The normal digicam defaults to 16-megapixel, however you’ll be able to shoot on the full 64-megapixel decision. The digicam’s 10x digital zoom can also be first rate, and was capable of seize particulars of faraway objects regardless of being a tad blurrier. 

The N10 5G’s low-light mode, referred to as Nightscape, wasn’t very spectacular nevertheless. While taking a photograph of a black bookshelf in close to darkness, I used to be capable of see a couple of extra particulars and e-book titles. But the image remained comparatively darkish nonetheless and after I in contrast the identical scene on the OnePlus Nord, the One Plus 8T and the Pixel 5‘s Night Mode, all three telephones brightened up the scene quite a bit higher. 

N10 5G’s battery and efficiency

The telephone is provided with a Snapdragon 690 processor. Though on paper that is not as quick or as highly effective because the OnePlus Nord, Motorola One 5G and the Pixel 4A 5G’s Snapdragon 765 chipset, the N10 5G tracked intently with the telephones when it got here to benchmark exams. I additionally did not discover any pace points or laggy habits throughout my time with the telephone. 

The N10 5G has a beefy 4,300-mAh battery, which is similar capability because the costlier OnePlus 8. Anecdotally, the telephone can simply final a day or two and not using a cost with gentle utilization. At the top of 1 explicit night time, the battery was solely at 70% after I took the telephone out through the day to take a bunch of photographs and browse the web. Battery exams for steady video playback on Airplane mode averaged 16 hours, 27 minutes. For comparability, the OnePlus 8 lasted longer, at almost 19 hours.

N10 5G’s software program and interface

When OnePlus launched its 8T in October, it additionally up to date the corporate’s OxygenOS interface, refreshing menus and notifications in order that they regarded extra streamlined, trendy and clear. I used to be a fan of it, so it was disappointing to not see it on the N10 5G. This is probably going as a result of the telephone runs the earlier model of Android, Android 10, however even when the N10 5G would not run Android 11 out of the field, it is nonetheless attainable for OnePlus to tweak some components of the N10 5G’s interface with the latest OxygenOS look. But the N10 5G is anticipated to obtain one OS replace (from Android 10 to Android 11) and a complete of two years of safety updates in keeping with OnePlus.

The N10 5G does nonetheless have helpful software program options, together with a local display screen recorder, Dark Mode and ZenMode, which is OnePlus’ digital wellbeing app that limits telephone performance once you need to focus.