OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G Unboxing and First Impressions

We look closer at the new OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G with the Snapdragon 695, 50MP Sony LYT-600 main cameras, IP54 and stereo speakers.

OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G in Mega Blue

The Nord CE4 Lite 5G is OnePlus's latest affordable mid-ranger with entertainment-focused specs and features.

The new handset has an IP54 dust and water resistance rating and a 120Hz 6.67-inch AMOLED FHD+ display. Inside is the 6nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G, 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 256GB UFS 2.2 storage, and a 5,110mAh battery with 80W SuperCharge via USB-C and with 5W reverse wireless charging.

At the back are the 50MP f/1.8 main camera with a 1/1.95-inch Sony LYT-600 sensor, OIS, and EIS. Alongside is the 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor with an LED flash. The selfie shooter is a 16MP f/2.4.

Other features include a 3.5mm audio jack, stereo speakers, NFC, Bluetooth 5.1, WiFi, and In-Display fingerprint scanner.

The phone is priced at PHP 17,999 in the Philippines.

Let's take a look at it.

Unboxing/Accessories

OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G outer packaging

It comes in black packaging with OnePlus Nord branding, key features, and regulatory information. 

OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G box inclusions

Inside the box are the phone, the 80W SuperVOOC compatible USB-A to C cable, the SIM ejector, and documentation. 

Unfortunately, there are no earphones, silicone case, or an 80W wall adapter.

Build Quality/Design

Bright Blue design

At first glance, the phone looks eye-catching because of the bright Mega Blue colorway and flat sides. In between the glass front curved panel and the glasstic rear curved panel is an aluminum frame. A welcome surprise in its price category.

Eye-catching design and colors

The back is interesting as it has a glossy reflective finish with aluminum trim around the two camera protrusions. The back has branding and regulatory information too.

Upon holding the phone, you immediately notice the sharp edges of the flat sides. Because of this and because of the fingerprint smudge magnet rear panel, we recommend getting a case for it right away.

It measures 162.9 x 75.6 x 8.1 mm and weighs 191 grams. It is IP54 water and dust resistance rated.

OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G's punch-hole screen

In front is the aforementioned 6.7-inch curved AMOLED screen with a 2,400 x 1,080 resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, a 480Hz PWM, and a 2,100 nits peak brightness. It covers 100 percent of the DCI-P3 wide color gamut. It supports Aqua Touch enhancement too.

Around the panel are slim top and side bezels with the bottom chin being thicker than the rest. The punch hole with the selfie camera is on the upper part of the panel. Above it and inside the top bezel is the super slim earpiece.

Top and bottom

On top is the top-firing speaker; at the bottom are the bottom-firing speaker grills, USB-C port, microphone port, and 3.5mm audio jack.

SIM tray

The SIM tray accommodates up to two nano SIM cards or 1 nano SIM and 1 microSD card. There is no rubber gasket but OPPO says that the phone is supposedly IP54 water and dust resistance rated.

Left and right sides

On the left is the SIM card tray while on the right are the aluminum volume rocker and the power button. Both buttons have a nice resistance to them while feeling satisfying when pressed. 

Rear cameras

The back has the 50MP f/1.8 main camera with the 1/1.95-inch Sony LYT-600 sensor, OIS, and EIS, and a 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor with a dual LED flash.

While in front is the 16MP f/2.4 selfie camera.

The included modes of the stock camera app include Photo, Video, Pro, Night, Hi-Res, Pano, Slo-Mo, Time-lapse, Dual-View, and Text Scanner

The Pro controls include metering (Matrix, Center, and Spot), EV (+-3), the file format (JPG, RAW), ISO (50-3,200), Shutter speed (1/8,000-30 secs), Focus, and White Balance.

The Portrait Mode is equally robust with bokeh strength control (f/1.4-16), and Beautifcations.

Powering the phone is the 5,110mAh Battery that is rated for 18.67 hours of continuous YouTube Playback. It supports 80W SUPERVOOC fast charging via USB that takes 50 minutes to charge from 1 to 100 percent. It also comes with 5W reverse wireless charging.

Still with Snapdragpm 695

Alongside the 6nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 octa-core processor and  Adreno 619 GPU are the 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, 256GB of UFS 2.2, and up to 2TB microSD card expansion.

The phone comes with stereo speakers that can be pushed to 300 percent volume.

OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G Specs

Display: 6.67-inch AMOLED screen w/ 120Hz refresh rate, 480Hz PWM, 2100 nits, FHD+ 2400 x 1080 resolution at 395 ppi

CPU: 2.2GHz 6nm Snapdragon 695 octa-core processor

GPU: Adreno 619

RAM: 8GB LPDDR4X

ROM: 256GB UFS 2.2

Back Camera: 50MP f/1.8 Sony LYT-600 w/ PDAF, CAF, OIS, EIS, 2MP f/2.4 depth, + dula-lED flash w/ color temperature sensor

Selfie Camera: 16MP f/2.4

Battery: 5,110mAh w/ 80W SUPERVOOC

OS: Android 14 w/ OxygenOS 14

Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz/5GHz), 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.1 LE, OTG, NFC, GPS, GLONASS, QZSS, dual SIM (nano)

Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic

Others: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, face unlock, IP54 dust and water splash resistance, stereo speakers, USB-C, Colors: Mega Blue, Super Silver

Dimensions: 162.9 x 75.6 x 8.1 mm

Weight: 191 g

Price: 17,999

Quick thoughts

Websurfing on the OnePlus Nord CE4 Lite 5G

At PHP 17,990 features eye-catching colorways, aluminum frame, 120Hz AMOLED screen, stereo speakers, 3.5mm audio jack, large capacity battery, 80W fast charging and 5W reverse wireless charging.

However, we acknowledge that the Snapdragon 695 is not new and has been around for a while. OnePlus already used this on the Nord CE 2 Lite 5G (2022) and Nord CE 3 Lite 5G (2023).

For mobile gamers and those who want to shoot 4K videos on a phone, this could be a concern. Also, the competition at this price point is stiff.

Stay tuned for the camera samples and the full review soon.