Want a 90Hz screen for less than $200? Try the OnePlus Nord N100 budget smartphone

Why should you want the OnePlus Nord N100? Not for sterling performance, as sub-$200 smartphones are not equipped with the most powerful chipsets. Not for its cameras; don’t expect too much from those at this price point.

Perhaps you want the Nord N100 for its price, and that would be a valid selling point. It is the most affordable OnePlus smartphone in the market, afterall. If you want to experience OxygenOS without spending a lot of money, the OnePlus Nord N100 is what you want.

There’s the good-sized battery too. At 5000mAh capacity and with 18W fast charging, you will get decent battery life and quick top-ups.

However, there is one feature that you can hardly find on any sinilarly-priced smartphone in the market – a high refresh rate display. OnePlus Nord N100 has a 90Hz refresh rate display. That’s a premium feature built into a budget smartphone.

The few competing devices that you will find high refresh rate screens on include: Motorola Moto G20, Redmi 10, Motorola Moto G30, and Infinix Hot 10s. Like the N100, all of these are compromise devices – something gives to enable this premium feature. But let’s get back to the object of this article.

OnePlus Nord N100 it is made of plastic – both the frame and the back panel. It is good to see Gorilla Glass 3 on the 6.52-inch, low resolution IPS LCD. For photography, we have a 13+2+2 MP main camera at the back and an 8 MP selfie camera in front.

OnePlus Nord N100 Specifications

The core specs of this budget smartphone include:

• Android 10 + OxygenOS 10.5.9
• 2G/3G/4G mobile networks
• 6.52”, 720 x 1600 pixels, 90Hz refresh rate, IPS LCD, Gorilla Glass 3
• 8 MP selfie camera
• 13 MP main lens + 2 MP macro lens + 2 MP depth sensor
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 460 chipset (11 nm)
• Adreno 610 GPU
• 4 GB RAM
• 64 GB built-in storage
• memory card slot (dedicated)
• Dual Speakers
• Fingerprint scanner
• USB-C connector.
• 5000 mAh battery, with 18W fast charging
• Colours: Midnight Frost

Pricing

The Nord N100 sells for $180 in the USA, though you can get it for as low as $165 at some retailers. You can also get it for free when you switch to Metro by T-Mobile.

Above the northern US border in Canada, it is available for about C$ 250. In the UK, you can buy one for 167 GBP pounds. If buying from elsewhere in the world, check AliExpress.

The Nord N100 is a compelling smartphone in its category. While it does not deliver the best performance possible, and understandably so, it offers enough value to make it stand out. And as already mentioned before, it is the cheapest OnePlus phone, and it is great to finally have an affordable smartphone that runs OxygenOS.

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