OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite review: minor but significant changes

The OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite is OnePlus’s most cheap smartphone in 2024, continuing last year’s hugely successful OnePlus Nord CE3 Lite (review). The smartphone, like many next-generation gadgets, comes with a slew of improvements, including an AMOLED display for a more vibrant viewing experience and a larger battery for longer battery life. Mind you, the new features do not result in increased weight or thickness.

OnePlus has introduced the OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite smartphone in India today. The sequel to last year’s Nord CE4 Lite has the same SoC, adds an AMOLED screen, a new 50MP camera, a larger battery, and faster charging, all while remaining the same price. Let’s go into the review to find out.

ONEPLUS NORD CE4 LITE KEY FEATURES

The Nord CE4 Lite is OnePlus’ latest entry-level model. On paper, the new model improves on its predecessor, which we found weak in numerous areas. For starters, the CE4 Lite now features an AMOLED display, a first for this series of smartphones. The new model also includes an upgraded rear camera, a larger battery, and a faster charger (at least in India).

On the other hand, OnePlus has decided to remain with the same Snapdragon 695 CPU as in the previous configuration. This, combined with the identical RAM and storage arrangement, means that some aspects of the device will most likely feel the same. Will this be a huge issue, or are the new features sufficient to justify the update? Let us find out.

ONEPLUS NORD CE4 LITE UNBOXING

The OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite comes in the standard black Nord packaging with blue and white branding. Inside, you will find the phone, an 80W fast charger, a USB-A to C cable, a soft clear silicone cover, and the normal paperwork.

The case that comes with the phone is quite simple. It features a glass back and frosted sides. The headphone jack and USB ports have flaps that always get in the way when you try to plug something in. Given that the phones are already water and dust-resistant, it’s about time OnePlus removed these flaps from their cases.

CAMERA

The camera interface in OxygenOS 14 is familiar. There are several modes available, including Pro, Panorama, Slo-mo, Time-Lapse, Dual-View video, and text scanner. The back camera outputs 12.5MP after pixel binning, while the front camera photos are 16MP in size.

Daylight photographs turned very great thanks to the 50MP sensor, and the dynamic range improved with auto HDR. 2X is fine, however as you zoom in, you lose detail, even though you can zoom up to 20X. The portrait mode has good edge recognition thanks to the 2MP depth sensor.

The colors are natural, however I found the IMX890 performed significantly better in low light. The night mode is useful, although it takes a few seconds to operate. There’s also a tripod mode. The 16MP front camera performs admirably in daylight but falls short in low-light conditions. The bokeh images are good, and the edge detection is acceptable.

It can record videos in 1080p at 30 frames per second with both front and rear cameras, but the SoC is limited. There is OIS and EIS, which do a good job, but no specific ultra-steady mode.

DESIGN AND SCREEN

The Nord CE4 Lite’s display is a 120Hz 6.67-inch OLED panel with FHD resolution, which is far larger than what you would expect for a phone at this price. Using the same screen technology as last year’s flagship OnePlus 11, OnePlus claims the phone’s peak brightness is 2,100 nits, which means the display will be four times brighter than its predecessor and nearly twice as bright as the Pixel 8a’s.

The Nord CE4 Lite’s display may be configured to refresh at either 120Hz or 60Hz. While it cannot resize dynamically like a flagship phone’s screen, it does adjust automatically to give you a choice between scrolling smoothness and battery life.

OnePlus has also given the screen some additional capabilities. First, there’s 480Hz PWM dimming, comparable to Honor phones like the Magic6 Pro and 200 Pro, which could alleviate eye strain. The other is Aqua Touch, which was introduced with the OnePlus 12, and makes the screen more usable when it or your hands are wet.

In terms of audio, OnePlus has carried over the Nord CE3 Lite’s 300% “Ultra Volume” option to the CE4 Lite, enabling you to blast your music or video at super-high volumes through its twin speakers. Fortunately for more reclusive users, a headphone socket is there for when you need it, without having to deal with Bluetooth connections.

HOW’S THE PERFORMANCE?

As previously stated, the Nord CE4 Lite uses the same Snapdragon 695 SoC that powered last year’s OnePlus Nord CE3 Lite. Even the storage configuration is the same. The base model with 8GB of RAM (LPDDR4X) costs Rs 19,999. The top edition with 258GBGB, which I am also examining, costs Rs 22,999, which is Rs 1,000 higher than the original pricing of the Nord CE3 Lite in the same configuration.

Naturally, there are no significant improvements in performance due to the identical processor aboard. In our AnTuTu and Geekbench benchmarks, both devices score similarly. Notably, the Nord CE3 Lite scored marginally higher on Geekbench. The Nord CE4 Lite demonstrated superior CPU stability during the throttle test using the Burnout app (see images below).

Based on our results in similar benchmarks, the top-performing smartphone in the sub-Rs 20K market is still the MediaTek Dimensity 7200 SoC-powered iQOO Z9. The OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite performed somewhat better than the Dimensity 6080 SoC-powered POCO X6 Neo (review), another popular device in the category.

Beyond figures, the OnePlus Nord CE4 delivered consistent performance, despite employing Qualcomm’s outdated Snapdragon 695 SoC, at least for daily use. This includes browsing, using social media, watching videos, and making calls. However, it has several pre-installed programs, albeit most third-party apps may be deleted. You may expect to use popular OnePlus features such as Shelf (for quick access to the weather, step count, and live scores) and ORelax, which I also appreciate.

Buy it if...

• Despite its large 5,500mAh battery, the OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite feels comfortable in the hand.
• The new AMOLED display panel enhances the viewing experience.
• Its new 50MP camera works admirably in bright light.
• The 5,500mAh battery provides a strong battery back.

Don't buy it if…

• Low-light photography on the Nord CE4 Lite requires improvement.
• OnePlus might have introduced a new processor. The existing one is adequate at best.

FULL SPECIFICATION