5 reasons to buy OnePlus Nord CE 6 and 2 reasons to skip

As the successor to last year’s widely popular OnePlus Nord CE 5, the Nord CE 6 (review) brings upgrades and improvements across most areas. Rocking a similar boxy design with a subtle appearance, the Nord CE 6 comes with a Snapdragon processor, a larger battery, a higher-resolution display, and a more robust build that is rated to withstand heavy water and dust exposure. While the new additions may be enticing, is the OnePlus Nord CE 6 the go-to smartphone under Rs 30,000? Find out in this quick guide where we provide the top reasons to purchase and skip the smartphone.

Reasons to buy OnePlus Nord CE 6

A display that is sharp and vibrant

Sporting a 6.78-inch 1.5K (2772 x 1272) resolution, 10-bit AMOLED display with up to 144Hz refresh rate, the OnePlus Nord CE 6 delivers a great visual experience with sharp detail and sufficiently vibrant colours. As noted in our review, after watching tons of content, including IPL matches, Prime Video shows, and YouTube videos at 4K resolution, the panel on the Nord CE 6 left us completely impressed.

Regarding brightness, the Nord CE 6’s display is adequately bright indoors, and under direct sunlight, the screen’s content is legible to a great degree. Even though the panel is 144Hz rated, most daily-use apps run at 120Hz, as is the case with all phones. The 144Hz refresh rate is triggered in certain casual games, such as Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars, and Subway Surfers.

Strong build with a subtle look

The OnePlus Nord CE 6 features a clean, modest rear design with a square camera module that closely resembles the Nord 6. While we got the Fresh Blue colour shade in for review, the device also comes in Pitch Black and Lunar Pearl. The blue colourway sports a smudge-free matte panel that is not only soothing to the touch but also resistant to scratches and scuffs when used without the bundled case.

With IP66, IP68, IP69, and IP69K ratings and MIL-STD-810H certification on board, the OnePlus Nord CE 6 is built to withstand rain and dust. During our review period, the device was exposed to Delhi’s heavy dust storms. We later rinsed it under running tap water, and it has been working perfectly ever since. Even though it’s hefty at 215g, the rounded corners of the Nord CE 6 don’t dig into your palms during extended use.

Power-packed battery endurance

The OnePlus Nord CE 6 runs on an 8,000mAh battery. Having used the device in various scenarios, it’s safe to say it provides sufficient battery life for all kinds of users. To give context, when using the handset with two SIMs installed and personal hotspot enabled for 9 to 10 hours straight, the Nord CE 6 delivers over 6 hours and 30 minutes of screen-on time on a full charge. During this period, the phone was also used to scroll through Instagram, check WhatsApp messages, and casually take pictures.

In another charge cycle, the Nord CE 6 offered an impressive 9 hours of screen-on time over 1.5 days, with 14% battery remaining. While, for the most part, the device was used on WiFi, common tasks included scrolling through Instagram, playing games like BGMI and Subway Surfers, and livestreaming IPL. Furthermore, if you’re a light user, expect the device to offer 2 days of battery life.

Smooth and feature-rich OxygenOS 16

In the typical OxygenOS fashion, the OnePlus Nord CE 6 curates all the signature features from the flagship OxygenOS 16 devices, such as the OnePlus 15 and OnePlus 15R. While the UI misses out on advanced blur textures and details, it runs smoothly regardless of what you’re doing on the device.

For starters, there’s a host of lockscreen and homescreen customisation options, tons of AI imaging features in the Photos app, and productivity features like Sports Live Alert and Writing Tools in Notes. If you’re seeking one of the most comprehensive Android skins out there, the OnePlus Nord CE 6 has got you covered.

Excellent haptics integration

While most smartphones under Rs 30,000 miss out on a strong, high-quality haptic motor, the OnePlus Nord CE 6 comes with a Linear X-Axis motor that delivers tight, precise vibrations in various scenarios. Paired with OxygenOS’s O-Haptics, the Nord CE 6 makes excellent use of its linear motor, delivering precise haptic feedback even in subtle interactions, such as dragging the brightness or volume sliders, toggling switches, scrolling in the Recents screen, and more.

Reasons to skip the OnePlus Nord CE 6

Primary camera requires some work

Even though the 50MP primary camera of the OnePlus Nord CE 6 produces usable images with on-point dynamic range and natural tones, it struggles to deliver sharp results, possibly due to its small 1/2.88-inch sensor. In contrast, the OnePlus Nord CE 5 was equipped with a larger 50MP 1/2-inch main camera and an 8MP ultrawide lens, resulting in a more flexible shooting experience.

Not the best-in-class software update policy

The OnePlus Nord CE 6 comes with Android 16 out of the box and is slated to receive two OS upgrades and four years of security patch updates. While this is somewhat acceptable for a phone starting at Rs 29,999, the competition has an edge in terms of longer software support. For instance, other Snapdragon 7s Gen 4-powered smartphones released recently, such as the Vivo T5 Pro, Motorola Edge 70 Fusion, and Nothing Phone (4a), promise three major OS upgrades.