OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite vs iQOO Z7: price in India, specifications, design compared

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is the brand’s latest mid-range option in India and comes as a successor to the Nord CE 2 Lite from last year. Having been priced at Rs 19,999 for the base model, the Nord CE 3 Lite takes on the iQOO Z7 that launched in India a few days ago. Both phones come with 5G network support but the iQOO model comes with the latest MediaTek Dimensity 930 SoC and has an AMOLED display. In this article, we will be comparing the iQOO Z7 and the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite to see which is a better value-for-money offering.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite vs iQOO Z7

Price

iQOO Z7 price in India is Rs 18,999 for the 6GB + 128GB model and Rs 19,999 for the 8GB + 128GB version. iQOO is offering a flat Rs 1,500 instant discount when paid through ICICI and HDFC debit/credit cards, no-cost EMI, and free colour earphones.

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite’s price in India is Rs 19,999 for the 8GB/128GB model and Rs 21,999 for the 8GB/256GB version. The company is offering Rs 1,000 bank discount for ICICI bank card holders, on EMIs and net banking.

Design

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite has a quite familiar design, considering the phone is apparently a rebrand of the Realme 10 Pro. There is a centre-positioned punch-hole cutout for the selfie snapper and a sizeable chin below the screen. The volume rocker and SIM tray section are on the left edge, while the power button with the fingerprint sensor embedded is on the right edge. The back of the phone has OnePlus branding and two circular rings to house triple camera sensors and an LED flash. The bottom portion has the USB Type-C port for charging, a 3.5mm audio jack, a primary microphone and speaker grills. There is a secondary noise-cancellation mic on the top. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite’s frame appears to be made of a polycarbonate build. The phone comes in two colour options – Pastel Lime and Chromatic Gray. 

On the other hand, iQOO Z7 has a dated waterdrop notch to house the selfie snapper, which might be a deal breaker for someone particular about the design. The volume rocker and power button are on the right edge. The SIM tray and secondary microphone are at the top. While the speaker grille, 3.5mm audio jack, and USB Type-C port are at the bottom. Moving to the back, you find the rectangular module to house the dual camera sensors. The panel is made of good-quality plastic and does not feel cheap. There are two colour options – Pacific Night and Norway Blue.

Display

OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite flaunts a 6.72-inch FHD+ IPS LCD display with a 1080 X 2400 pixels resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, punch-hole cutout for the selfie shooter, 91.40 percent screen-to-body ratio, up to 680nits peak brightness, 20:9 aspect ratio, 1500:1 contrast ratio, 240Hz touch sampling rate, and Corning Gorilla Glass layer.

On the other hand, the iQOO Z7 5G has a 6.38-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate, 1300nits peak brightness, 360Hz touch sampling rate, and an in-display fingerprint sensor for security.

Verdict: The iQOO Z7 has a slight edge over the Nord CE 3 Lite in this area, thanks to an AMOLED display and a brighter panel.

Performance

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 SoC paired with Adreno 619 GPU for graphics. The SoC is paired with 8GB LPDDR4x RAM and 128GB/256GB UFS 2.2 storage.

The iQOO Z7 5G is powered by the latest 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 930 SoC paired with the new IMG BXM-8-256 GPU. There is 6GB/8GB RAM and 128 further expandable GB storage.

Verdict: Both the iQOO Z7 and Nord CE 3 Lite are equally powerful, at least on paper. However, the MediaTek Dimensity 930 is a newer chipset.

Cameras

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite has triple cameras on the back, with a 108MP Samsung HM6 primary sensor, 6P lens, EIS, LED flash and f/1.75 aperture, a 2MP depth sensor and a 2MP macro lens. There is a 16MP snapper on the front for selfies and video chats.

The iQOO Z7 5G has dual cameras on the back, with a 64MP ISOCELL GW3 primary sensor that is aided by OIS and LED flash and a 2MP secondary sensor. There is a 16MP snapper on the front for selfies and video chats.

Verdict: Leaving aside the secondary camera sensors, the 108MP unit on the Nord CE 3 Lite should be able to produce better quality images considering the larger megapixel count and the number of details that can be retained. However, the OIS support on the iQOO Z7 means the low-light images and video recording will be better.

Battery and Software

The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite packs a 5,000mAh battery with 67W SUPERVOOC fast charging support. On the other hand, the iQOO Z7 ships with a 4,500mAh battery with 44W fast charging support. Both phones run on the latest Android 13 OS out of the box.

Verdict: The Nord CE 3 Lite has a larger capacity battery and faster charging support.