OnePlus Nord could start as low as $299

OnePlus is reportedly gearing up to launch a budget phone by the name of OnePlus Nord. If the name sounds unfamiliar, that’s because it was previously assumed that it would be called the OnePlus Z. The price of the phone was expected to be in the neighborhood of $400, but now it looks like it could end up being cheaper.

OnePlus’ co-founder Carl Pie has retweeted a post from 2014. That tweet was about the OnePlus One and Android Central believes that it’s a hint that the OnePlus Nord would be priced similarly. 

The OnePlus One, as the name implies, was the company’s first flagship phone. It immediately garnered attention for having all the hallmarks of a premium Android handset and still costing half as much as the likes of Samsung Galaxy S5. 

The base variant went for $299, while the maxed-out model had a price tag of $349.

If Carl Pie is indeed hinting at the price of OnePlus Nord with the throwback, it will likely start at $299. Alternatively, if a leaked survey is to be believed, the base variant will set you back $330.

Either of these prices would make it cheaper than Apple’s iPhone SE that costs $399 and the upcoming Pixel 4a which is expected to go for $349. 

The OnePlus Nord is tipped to come with the Snapdragon 765G chipset which has an integrated 5G modem. It will apparently sport a 6.4-inch 90Hz AMOLED display and a quad-camera system with a 48MP primary snapper, a 16MP ultra-wide-angle module, and a 2MP macro camera. Nothing is known about the fourth unit at the moment, but it could be a depth sensor, a color filter, or a telephoto shooter.

The phone will likely pack in a 4000mAh battery and support 30W fast charging. It is expected to offer at least 128GB of storage and 8GB or 12GB of RAM. 

On paper at least, the OnePlus Nord looks more appealing than other mid-rangers around and even the forthcoming Pixel 4a, which will supposedly be powered by the Snapdragon 730 SoC. 

If the camera system is good enough, the handset could easily end up being the most popular mid-tier phone of the year. 

OnePlus will probably announce the handset next month. It will be released in India first, before going on sale in the US and Europe next quarter.