Design and Build: A Return to Elegance
The OnePlus Nord 4 marks a significant departure from the polycarbonate bodies that have become commonplace in the mid-range segment. Its most defining characteristic is the full aluminum unibody construction, a feature often reserved for flagship devices. This choice immediately elevates the phone, providing a cold, solid, and immensely premium feel in the hand that plastic simply cannot replicate. The device retains the signature Alert Slider, a beloved OnePlus feature that offers tactile, hardware-level control over notification profiles, further distinguishing it from competitors who often omit such thoughtful details for cost-saving.
Available in finishes like Sleek Silver and Deep Emerald, the Nord 4’s design is both minimalist and sophisticated. The matte-textured back offers excellent resistance to fingerprints, while the slim profile and carefully calibrated weight distribution ensure comfortable one-handed use. The camera module is a refined, horizontal bar that integrates seamlessly into the metal frame, contributing to a cohesive and modern aesthetic. This commitment to high-end materials directly challenges the notion that a mid-range phone must compromise on build quality, making the Nord 4 feel like a device costing hundreds of dollars more.
Display: A Fluid Visual Feast
At the front, the OnePlus Nord 4 sports a 6.74-inch Fluid AMOLED display with a crisp 1.5K (2772 x 1240 pixels) resolution. This pixel density strikes an ideal balance between razor-sharp clarity and power efficiency, rendering text, images, and videos with exceptional detail. The 120Hz refresh rate ensures buttery-smooth scrolling through social media feeds, web pages, and the user interface, making every interaction feel instantaneous and fluid. For enhanced durability, the screen is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, offering best-in-class resistance against scratches and accidental drops.
The display is exceptionally bright, reaching a peak brightness of up to 2,200 nits in High-Brightness Mode (HBM). This makes the screen perfectly legible even under direct sunlight, a common pain point for many mid-range devices. Furthermore, the panel supports 10-bit color depth and a 100% DCI-P3 color gamut, delivering vibrant, accurate, and lifelike colors. Whether consuming HDR content from streaming services or gaming, the visual experience is immersive and top-tier. Features like Aqua Touch also improve usability with wet fingers, a small but incredibly practical addition.
Performance: Unmatched Mid-Range Power
The heart of the OnePlus Nord 4 is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset. This is not a minor iteration; it is a revolutionary processor for its tier, built on the same flagship 4nm architecture as the top-tier Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. This translates to staggering performance that blurs the line between mid-range and flagship. In daily use, the Nord 4 handles everything with effortless ease—from intensive multitasking with numerous apps running in the background to graphically demanding games like Genshin Impact or Call of Duty: Mobile at high frame rates.
The device is configured with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM, ensuring that apps stay resident in memory for longer, eliminating frustrating reloads. Storage options go up to 512GB using ultra-fast UFS 4.0 technology, which dramatically accelerates app load times, file transfers, and system operations. This hardware combination positions the Nord 4 as a performance powerhouse, arguably offering the best price-to-performance ratio in its class. It is a device for power users, gamers, and anyone who values a consistently fast and responsive smartphone experience without paying a premium price.
Camera System: Versatile and Capable
The camera system on the OnePlus Nord 4 is a versatile and well-rounded setup designed to excel in a variety of shooting conditions. The primary sensor is a 50MP Sony LYT-600 with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). This large sensor captures a significant amount of light, resulting in detailed, noise-free images with accurate colors and excellent dynamic range, even in challenging lighting. The OIS is crucial for stabilizing both photos and videos, reducing blur from hand shake and enabling cleaner night shots.
It is accompanied by an 8MP Sony IMX355 ultra-wide-angle lens, which allows for capturing expansive landscapes, architecture, and group photos without having to step back. The third lens is a 2MP macro sensor for close-up shots. On the software side, OnePlus’s OxygenOS leverages advanced computational photography, including a Master Mode inspired by its flagship Hasselblad partnership, offering professional-level control over settings. The 16MP front-facing camera housed in a punch-hole cutout delivers sharp selfies and supports clear video calls. Video recording capabilities are robust, with the primary sensor capable of capturing stable 4K video at 60fps, a feature often absent in this segment.
Battery Life and Charging: All-Day Power in Minutes
A massive 5,500mAh battery powers the OnePlus Nord 4, providing exceptional endurance that can easily last a full day, even for heavy users. Under moderate usage patterns, the device can comfortably stretch into a second day, alleviating the common anxiety of running out of power. This longevity is further bolstered by the power-efficient Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chipset and the optimized 1.5K display resolution, which reduces unnecessary power drain without sacrificing visual quality.
Where the Nord 4 truly shines is in its charging speed. It supports 100W SUPERVOOC wired charging, a technology that was flagship-grade just a generation ago. With the included charger, the massive battery can be replenished from 1% to 100% in approximately 30 minutes. This transformative feature means that a short charging session during a morning routine or while getting ready to go out can provide enough power for the entire day. While wireless charging is omitted, a common compromise in this price bracket, the sheer speed of wired charging more than compensates for most users.
Software and User Experience: Clean and Long-Term
The OnePlus Nord 4 ships with OxygenOS 14 based on Android 14, providing a clean, bloatware-free, and intuitive user interface that is a hallmark of the OnePlus experience. The software is refined and focuses on smooth, stutter-free animations and sensible customizations without overwhelming the user. Features like Shelf, Quick Launch, and extensive Always-On Display options add functionality without cluttering the core experience.
OnePlus has committed to a strong software support policy for the Nord 4, promising three major Android OS updates and four years of security patches. This long-term commitment is a critical factor for longevity, ensuring the device remains secure, feature-rich, and up-to-date for years to come, a level of support that sets a new standard for the mid-range market and provides significant peace of mind for the buyer.
Connectivity and Audio
The Nord 4 is equipped with comprehensive modern connectivity options, including 5G support for future-proofed network speeds, Wi-Fi 6 for stable and fast wireless connections, and Bluetooth 5.4 for improved connectivity with peripherals. The phone features an in-display fingerprint scanner that is both fast and accurate, as well as NFC for contactless payments. The stereo speaker setup provides a rich and immersive audio experience for media consumption, with clear dialogue and decent bass. Crucially, OnePlus has brought back the beloved 3.5mm headphone jack, a rarity in modern smartphones, catering to audiophiles and users who prefer wired audio for its zero-latency and high-quality output.