OnePlus Nord 2 may have a very surprising upgrade

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OnePlus Nord 2 may ditch Qualcomm chips for MediaTek. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing

OnePlus Nord review
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The OnePlus Nord 2 is expected to see a major chip upgrade, one that's set to rival the the Samsung Galaxy S21.

The latest rumor from Android Central is that the OnePlus Nord 2 will be skipping Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 7-series chipsets in favor of the MediaTek Dimensity 1200. It’s a decision that may surprise some, but could work in OnePlus’ favor.

MediaTek chipsets aren’t nearly as common as Qualcomm’s, and are typically more affordable as a result. That means its chips are often found in cheaper phones, rather than pricier flagships boasting the latest most powerful hardware. 

That said, the Dimensity 1200 could come with extra advantages, since the upcoming chipset is set to be one of MediaTek’s top-tier processors. So, technically it’s meant to rival Qualcomm’s flagship 8-series chips, which is a win for the Nord 2.

Announced earlier this year, the Dimensity 1200 comes with eight cores: a 3GHz Cortex A78 prime core, three additional A78 cores that hit 2.6GHz, and four efficiency cores that clock in at 2.0GHz. The Snapdragon 765, which was featured in the original OnePlus Nord, features a prime 2.3GHz Cortex A76, a 2.2GHz performance A76, and six efficiency cores that clock in at 1.8GHz.

MediaTek has a clear advantage in terms of raw numbers, which is a boost for OnePlus. Not only is it offering a significant upgrade over the original OnePlus Nord,  MediaTek chips are also more affordable. That means the Nord 2 isn’t likely to be more expensive as a result. Plus it helps that the Dimensity 1200 comes with 5G too.

The only thing we don’t know is how the Dimensity 1200 will perform in real world conditions in comparing to Qualcomm chips. After all, MediaTek doesn’t have a history of offering high-spec chips at its lower price point, and we can’t comment on the Dimensity 1200’s performance until it can be thoroughly tested.

Per Android Central, the OnePlus Nord 2 will launch in Q2 of this year, meaning we don’t have very long to wait to get our hands on a review unit. We just need to get past the impending OnePlus 9 launch event first.

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Tom Pritchard
Tom Pritchard
UK Phones Editor

Tom is the Tom's Guide's UK Phones Editor, tackling the latest smartphone news and vocally expressing his opinions about upcoming features or changes. It's long way from his days as editor of Gizmodo UK, when pretty much everything was on the table. He’s usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or complaining about how terrible his Smart TV is.