OnePlus Nord N300 5G review: Solid specs for under $230

OnePlus’ Nord line has grown since its introduction in 2020 with good mid-range phones like the Nord N20 5G, but it’s now continuing to expand into budget territory in the US with the Nord N300 5G.

With a MediaTek chipset, simple design and affordable price, does the N300 do enough to entice you to buy it?

As you’ll see, I think it’s a mixed bag.

Design and build

Like its Nord N20 sibling, the Nord N300 has a fairly slim profile that’s relatively easy to hold in one hand. The slightly matte texture of the back of the phone also allows it to be held securely in one hand.

Sachin Bahal / Foundry

Although it weighs a bit heavy on the phone scale at 190g, the Nord N300 doesn’t feel too heavy and is fairly well balanced. This can also be attributed to the plastic frame and plastic back of the phone, which feels good and doesn’t scream budget phone.

The phone only comes in a Midnight Jade colourway, which is a fancy way of saying it’s black. It would have been nice to see a second color option available like blue as we’ve seen on OnePlus phones before.

The back of the phone has a small camera bump which is barely noticeable, but there is a very slight wobble when you put the phone down on a flat surface because of this.

Sachin Bahal / Foundry

Screen and speakers

• 6.56 inch screen
• 90Hz LCD
• HD+ resolution

The Nord N300 5G has a 6.56-inch HD+ LCD screen. Luckily, OnePlus has decided to go with a 90Hz refresh rate which makes browsing the phone much smoother.

The display itself looks good but nothing amazing. Some colors and blacks on the screen don’t show up as much as on a phone with an AMOLED display.

Similar to other Nord models, vibration and haptics are not the best of the Nord N300 5G. They could be a lot stronger, but they get the job done for the most part.

The phone also has two speakers that sound good, but aren’t as full-bodied or well-rounded as those on more expensive flagship Android phones.

Sachin Bahal / Foundry

Specifications and performance

• MediaTek Dimension 810 chip
• 4 GB of RAM
• Up to 64 GB of internal storage
• MicroSD card slot for expandable storage

The Nord N300 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 810 chip, which features an 8-core CPU and Mali-G57 MU2 GPU. The phone has 4GB of RAM which seems to be the bare minimum in Android phones these days. With the slightly offbeat nature of the N300, it kind of shows.

Overall, the Dimensity 810 chip gets the job done in most cases, but there were a few occasions where an app took a while to open, such as the Google Play Store.

The Nord N300 5G also marks the first phone from OnePlus to launch in the US with a MediaTek chip inside. The company has already launched phones in India powered by MediaTek chips, and the Nord 2T in Europe and the UK.

The Dimensity 810 chip not only brings 5G support, but there’s also Bluetooth 5.3 and Wi-Fi 5.

Camera and video

• 48Mp main sensor
• 2Mp depth sensor
• 16MP selfie camera

The Nord N300 5G has a dual camera setup on the rear with a 48Mp main lens and a 2Mp depth lens.

The main lens was able to capture good photos. In most cases, these photos would be perfectly acceptable for anyone considering buying this phone.

Sachin Bahal / Foundry

That comes with a caveat, in that the Nord N300 5G’s main cameras only work well in well-lit conditions where there’s a lot of light.

If you’re shooting in low light, you can take some decent shots, but nothing that will blow your mind. Shots can be grainy with lots of noise where detail is lacking.

The camera app has a dedicated night mode, but it can be a little slow and take a few seconds to take a photo.

For video, the Nord N300 5G can shoot up to 1080p at 30 fps. The quality of the videos shot is good, although slightly undersaturated.

On the front there’s a 16Mp selfie camera but it’s downright bad. Even in good lighting conditions or during the day with lots of ambient light, selfies look very blown out.

Battery life and charging

• 5000mAh
• 33W wired charging
• Adapter included

Battery life shouldn’t be an issue as the Nord N300 5G has a massive 5000mAh battery that easily lasts all day.

If you need to recharge, the Nord N300 5G comes with a 33W SUPERVOOC fast charger in the box. It’s okay, but not as fast as many other more expensive Android phones.

Using the included charger, the Nord N300 5G got around 26% in 15 minutes and around 50% after 30 minutes of charging. A full charge from 0% to 100% took about 90 minutes.

Sachin Bahal / Foundry

Software and Apps

• Android 12
• OxygenOS 12
• Only one OS update promised

On the software side, the Nord N300 5G runs Android 12 with Oxygen 12 on top. Over the years, OxygenOS has changed visually to a look that mimics Samsung’s OneUI in many ways.

With OxygenOS 12, the user interface (UI) has a bit of Samsung flavor but also a few touches of Oppo’s ColorOS. This is no coincidence, as Oppo and OnePlus are owned by the same company, BBK Group, and share a codebase for their software.

OxygenOS 12 brings a slightly updated design language with bolder text and new icons. There’s also a customizable dark mode that lets you adjust the shade of black or gray in the UI.

Other features in OxygenOS 12 include an improved Zen Mode that helps you reduce distracting app use, a similar Work Life Balance mode, and new always-on lock screen display options.

For software updates, the Nord N300 5G will only receive one software update (most likely to OxygenOS 13/Android 13). This software policy falls well short of other budget Android phones, like Samsung’s Galaxy A series, which get at least three years of Android updates.

OnePlus hasn’t announced when an OxygenOS 13/Android 13 update will come to the Nord N300 5G, but it looks like it will be in 2023.

Sachin Bahal / Foundry

Price and availability

The OnePlus Nord N300 is only available in the US through US courier service T-Mobile and its prepaid subsidiary, Metro by T-Mobile.

The phone costs $229 when purchased, or in some cases $0 depending on T-Mobile’s deals.

With its price, the Nord N300 5G is less than $100 less than its sibling, the Nord N20 5G. There’s also the Moto G Power (2022) and the Samsung A13 5G.

The phone is not available in the UK.

Verdict

Overall, the OnePlus Nord N300 5G is a decent budget phone for several reasons.

First of all, it doesn’t look like a cheap phone, the build quality of the phone makes it feel like a more expensive phone.

Second, it has great battery life that easily lasts a day or more and can be charged quite quickly.

There are a few negatives to the Nord N300 5G like weak vibration motor and haptics and only one future Android update, but overall there aren’t many better options at this price on the US telephone market.

Specifications

• Android 12 with OxygenOS 12
• 6.56-inch 90Hz, 20:9, HD+ LCD
• Side-mounted fingerprint sensor
• Unlocking by facial recognition
• 6nm MediaTek MT6833P Dimension 810
• 4 RAM
• 64 GB UFS 2.2 with microSD card slot
• 48Mp, f/1.8, main camera with OIS
• 2Mp, depth f/2.4
• 16Mp front camera, f/2.0
• Two speakers
• 5G
• WiFi 5
• Bluetooth 5.3
• USB-C port
• Headphone jack
• 5000mAh battery
• 33W fast charge
• 163.8 x 75.1 x 8mm
• 190g
• Launch Colours: Midnight Jade