OnePlus Nord CE 5

[ThinkMe]

On the other hand, the Nord CE 5 carries a more affordable price tag and is a rebranded global version of the Ace 5 Racing Edition. There will be some tweaks like the Dimensity 8350 SoC and the Nord CE 5 could be powered by a larger 7,100mAh cell.


https://www.gizmochina.com/2025/06/16/oneplus-nord-5-ce-5-buds-4-launch-date/

 

[limmk]

 

[tkte_85]

 

[tkte_85]

the main cam should be the 50MP LYT600

 

[KeYoKe]

Oneplus Nord 5 CE:

Unboxing:


Exterior look of the device (Colorway: Black Infinity):








All plastic build on the Nord 5 CE for both sides and back. There is also this "frame" between the side of the phone and the display. It might bother some as it makes the build looks "cheap". Note that there is no "Plus" key on the Nord CE 5 compared to Nord 5.

Mystery of the processor + 7100mah ULTRA BIG BATTERY:


3000mah?????????? #justjoking All the specifications are wrong before the software update. This is resolved after performing a software update


This looks more like it.

Dimensity 8350 Apex. Simi is Apex???????? Mediatek has funny naming conventions. Ultra, Ultimate, Apex,
However, it is like hairline difference between all of them, just treat it as a Dimensity 8350

 

[KeYoKe]

Physical Dual Sim + MicroSD (Pick 2 out of 3):


Benchmark numbers (for those who care):




GPS:


Single band GPS, AGAIN....

Overall thoughts:
This device is really light to hold considering it's size and it comes with a 7100mah battery. Battery life however, is not that great, or even on par with the 6800mah Nord 5. Seems like Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 is slightly more efficient than the Dimensity 8350 Apex?

Build quality is all plastic. The most impactful one is the plastic back. Maybe that is the reason why I do not feel that the Nord 5 frame is made of plastic in the first place.

Performance of the device is snappy, however, I do realise it heats up slightly more than the Nord 5. Benchmark numbers are not too far off the Nord 5 though.

Haptics on the other hand is just CRAP I am wondering why OnePlus did not put in a better vibration motor. The haptics is like those cheapo old phones that I have owned. Feels loose and lack of strength. How much is a good vibration motor and yet they want to skim on this....

Single firing speakers on Nord 5 CE. Again.... Simi era liao, still single firing speakers.... I mean this phone comes with a big screen, big battery. This is a good entertainment machine, and yet put a single firing speaker... idk la... GIVE UP LIAO

Overall, this phone still performs well on day to day usage. Just don't expect any bells and whistles on this. But I feel this is a better performance to price ratio phone compared to Nord 5 though as it peforms similarly and comes with a huge screen and huge battery.

 

[tkte_85]

Time for my experience, used for about a week, although not used daily actively as i was carrying a total of 4 phones including these 2 lol. 1st time actually reviewing, but is based on my own daily usage

Collection of the phone for test review

Nord 5CE, i got the White one

No charger also

Good thing about it is, it supports MicroSD even though base already has 256gb storage

 

[tkte_85]

For max charge speed test using their propriety charging tech supervooc, i tested the phones using my personal 150w max Supervooc powerbank i bought last month

This is the powerbank

For Nord 5CE, max charging speed is also 80W

 

[tkte_85]

Same with Nord 5, out of the box, theres some preinstalled apps, 5 to be exact, which is still kept at a minimal as compared to other brands. Namely, Amazon, Booking.com, Fitbit, Linked In, Netflix. Then for their inhouse apps that repeat with Google's own, its the browser "Internet" app (Vs Chrome) and "My Files" app (vs Files)

For performance, Dimensity 8350 is very similar to Nord 5's 8s Gen3, 8sG3 wins in CPU raw horsepower while loses in GPU compared to D8350
Somehow they wield similar results in 3DMark about 3k points on a singular test.

BUT

in the 20min 3dmark Wildlife Extreme stress test, while Nord 5 managed to stay at 82% stability, Nord 5CE went below 50% and the phone was damn hot to the touch. So while its a good enough phone for normal gaming at its price, it being not able to keep the heat down means your games will start to throttle and lag over longer periods for AAA games like genshin impact and wuthering waves

 

[tkte_85]

Camera wise, main camera is said to be LYT600. Also, its using a tighter 26mm lens so the perspective is gonna be tighter, user need to get used to it.

 

[tkte_85]

 

[tkte_85]

for battery, i have already stated it in nord 5's post

For battery, as its not used as a main phone, and my usage is not really what everyone else uses, but from what i tested, overnight drain is 2% for Nord 5, 3% for Nord 5CE, even though Nord 5 has 6800mAh battery and Nord 5CE has a bigger 7100mAh battery. Same for similar usage of playing pokemon Go at the same time for about 30 mins using daily incense. The Nord 5 had 1% higher battery left as compared to 5CE. Forgot to take a screenshot of the battery usage, but i believe its 95% vs 94%

Overall, i find Nord 5 CE to actually provide better value for $ as compared to Nord 5, even with its lack of the "Plus key" and the worse battery consumption/optimisation. And for the build being plastic, i believe most of us would put our phones in cases so i can actually overlook that, but it depends on the buyer too. But the same issue about the downgrade in CPU for the global model and still keeping the higher price does not sit well with me. The only redeeming factor is microSD card support, although user would have to sacrifice the 2nd sim card for it (being 2 out of 3), and no eSim support as well. And then theres the single bottom speaker and the lousier haptics and vibration.

 

[Fellowes]

So it’s seem like Nord 5 and 5CE will be launching in SG with review unit and testing. Now we need to see if the price is right.

 

[KeYoKe]

So it’s seem like Nord 5 and 5CE will be launching in SG with review unit and testing. Now we need to see if the price is right.

you are right. pricing wise will be released later in the evening after the launch event.

I got the pricing but still under NDA. apologise that i cant share it right now

 

[Fellowes]

OnePlus becoming focus on Indian market more than Global market. Indian market seem to love OnePlus and Nothing as compare to Apple and Samsung.

 

[tkte_85]

OnePlus becoming focus on Indian market more than Global market. Indian market seem to love OnePlus and Nothing as compare to Apple and Samsung.

It has always been, India has 13T global version as 13s, has 11R red, and lifetime screen warrenty for green line problem.

Anyway, i seem to be able to add the CE5 now to cart and see that the price after shopee 7.7 discount is $342, only 256GB, but as mentioned, this phone's storage can be expanded via microSD at the expense of 2nd sim slot.
I'd say its a pretty decent at that price point with a large battery that isnt too heavy coz of the new battery tech, even though i said from my testing that it drains a little faster than Nord 5, no frills device with a clean OS, provided the buyer can overlook the shorter comings like the single bottom speaker and a more standard vibration motor+haptics etc.

 

[Shadowz1984]

OnePlus becoming focus on Indian market more than Global market. Indian market seem to love OnePlus and Nothing as compare to Apple and Samsung.

Not just oneplus, most other brands are focusing on india market. Like xiaomi phones, they have bigger batteries for indian models.

 

[Fellowes]

It has always been, India has 13T global version as 13s, has 11R red, and lifetime screen warrenty for green line problem.

Anyway, i seem to be able to add the CE5 now to cart and see that the price after shopee 7.7 discount is $342, only 256GB. I'd say its a pretty decent at that price point with a large battery that isnt too heavy coz of the new battery tech, even though i said from my testing that it drains a little faster than Nord 5, no frills device with a clean OS, provided the buyer can overlook the shorter comings like the single bottom speaker and a more standard vibration motor+haptics etc.

Nord CE5 came too late, I just hoot the unique CMF Phone 2 Pro.

 

[tkte_85]

Nord CE5 came too late, I just hoot the unique CMF Phone 2 Pro.

Haha just enjoy wat u have alr bought

 

[KeYoKe]

PSA: GSMArena website shows CE5 does not have NFC but local set has been verified that there is NFC