90Hz AMOLED screen
Clever Pac-Man features
Excellent performance
Quick charge
No water resistance
Doesn't have wireless charging
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The OnePlus Nord 2 x Pac-Man is being aimed like a rocket at the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best gaming phones. Featuring one of the most iconic characters in all of video game history, it's a lov✅e letter to the franchise a♋nd a surprisingly powerful smartphone to boot.
Sure, it won't be able to go toe to toe with premium equivalents such as the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Samsung Z-Fold 3 or 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:iPhone 13 Pro and there are some strange oversights. But the OnePlus Nord 2 x Pac-Man is an impressive mid-range option that gets you solid performance for its £499/€529/₹37,999 price-tag nonetheless (sadly, it's not available in the USA). In short? It's a good choice if you want something different.
Operating system: OxygenOS 11.3 (Android)
Display: 6.43in Fluid AMOLED
Resolution: 2400x1080 pixels
Refresh rate: 90Hz
Front camera: 50MP + 8MP + 2MP
Back camera: 32MP
Storage: 256GB
CPU: Media Tek Dimensity 1200-AI
GPU: ARM G77 MC9
RAM: 12GB
Weight: 189g
Many themed products - be they the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best gaming chairs or the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best gaming headsets - can be obnoxious when it comes to design. Not so with the OnePlus Nord🅺 2 x Pac-Man. In fact, it's surprisingly restrained. A subtle version of the original 8-bit character can be seen on the back of the device (following a trail of shiny dots along the phone's length), and… that's about it for the physical phone, to be honest. Until you get it in darkness, anyway; when the sun goes down, a very cool but still classy glow-in-the-dark maze pattern appear📖s.
Switch it on and you're treated to some more old-school treats. Besides authentic ringtones and a cool video background that explodes from a retro 🐈landscape to the more modern Pac-Man, this phone's OnePlus icons have been replaced with pixelated video game versi♔ons that give it a distinct presence.
Similarly, the touch sensor features a g🐼eometric Pac-Man at its center and a parade of ghosts that dart around the perimeter when you unlock the phone with your thumb. There's even a pair of ghost eyes on the lock screen clock and Pac-Man 256 built in.
It's all completely unnecessary, of course, but that's what makes ♐it cool. A lot of thought has gone into this crossover, and more than you might ex🦂pect.
Don't worry if you think you'll get bored of these features, though. Each of them c💫an be swapped out for something more to your taste, as per usual. Doing so is as easy as diving into the settings too, so it's no problem if you'd prefer to scale back.
That's because, at its🌞 core, this is still very much the OnePlus Nord 2 - it's just had a new coat of ꦅpaint.
Even if you're not a die-hard fan of Pac-Man, you'll still be able to appreciate this phone 𒁃for its gene𝓀rally excellent feature-set
To start with, it's packing the same 6.43-inch AMOLED display with the 90Hz refresh rate. Additionally, the same 50mp AI triple camera is here (the Sony IMX766, to be pr🌸ecise) alongside a nippy Media Tek Dimensity 1200-AI processor.
In essence, it's a very c♚ompetent device for this 💃price-point.
This version of the Nord 2 charges incredibly fast with the cable you get in the box, and the battery will still be hovering at around 60% a💯fter a day's standard use along with a few gaming sessions. 256GB of storage is more than enough for the average 💃person, too.
As you'd expect from a device bearing the Pac-Man seal of approval, this version of the OnePlus Nord 2 is great for playing games. It loads apps quickly, is pleasantly responsive, and has plenty of screen real-estate at its command without becoming too large to hold in one hand. Yes, it lacks a killer app like the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:ASUS ROG Phone 3 with 💃its 'Air Triggers' that replicate a controller's bumpers, but it's still very goꦺod nonetheless.
It boast꧟s the OnePlus 'Pro Gaming Mode', too. This limits accidental mistouches wh💃ere you might activate the menu during a game without meaning to, and it blocks all notifications or calls that might prove to be a distraction while you're playing.
The 90Hz refresh rate is also rather nice. While it's a bummer that the phone doesn't have a 120Hz screen to match the flagship OnePlus models (which aren't all that much more expensive) or Samsung's S21 range, it's still welcome and will make twitchy games like 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Call of Duty: Mobile smoother. If you're used to 60Hz, it's a nic🍌e step up as well - albeit a subtle one, unless you're scrolling on both phones side by side.
The gorgeous AMꦏOLED scre𒊎en impresses enough to make up for any shortfall
And if we're being honest, it's not fair to ding the Nord 2 x Pac-Man for not having a 120Hz display. That's often the preserve of more premium devices such as the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:iPhone 13 Pro or 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Samsung Z-Flip 3, so it isn't surpr☂ising to see this mid-range contender skip that technology in order to keep costs down.
The gorgeous AMOLED screen impresses enough to make up for any shortfall, though. Colors pop with a vivid intensity, and booting up 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Mario Kart Tour on this beauty is a visual sugar-rush. Even browsing the web leads to sharp, rich imagery. It won't blow you away in the fasꦇhion certain competitors would, yet it does the j🃏ob very nicely.
Cameras are another plus point - relatively speaking, anyway. While you can get something better without pay🐠ing loads more, this is the sort of phone that'll serve any snap-happy user well. Providing detailed shots with HDR and AI adjustments that make colors seem more vibrant than they are in real life, it's a good companion for all your Instagram needs. Smart features including the Dual View Video (taking footage from the front and back cameras simultaneously) add to the wow-factor too. None of it results in mind-blowing photography, but the results are definitely serv💮iceable all the same.
When combined with up-market 💝build-materials, this Nord 2 feels more premium than it actuall♕y is. You aren't going to feel ripped off or as if you've compromised.
Unfortunately, there are so🎐me issues holding it back from being a home-run. If you don't want to use a case (I wasn't a huge f🐎an of the one that comes in the box, for instance), the phone seems intent on sliding off any and all surfaces as if it's slicked with Vaseline or is being pushed about by a particularly vindictive ghost. It doesn't seem to matter where you leave it; somehow, the device will find a way to slip onto the floor the moment your back is turned, just to spite you.
Wha🎀t's more, there's a baffling lack of w💛ater-proofing here. Most phones come with some form of protection at the very least, but the OnePlus Nord 2 x Pac-Man has… nothing. It's strangely absent from the spec list, which seems like a big problem.
It's the same with charging. Although you can get a very quick charge with the cable and plug included in the box, it's a shame not to have any wireless charging capabilities. It's just as well that𝔍 the battery life will still be going strong after a full day of general use and gaming sessions.
Let's talk br♉ass tacks, shall we? Even if you're not a die-hard fan of Pac-Man, you'll still be able to appreciate this phone for its generally excellent feature-set and specs. You won't have to fork out a small fortune, either; this is an affordable, mid-range device that still packs a punch. It's great for gaming, too.
However, there's a catch. Is the Pac-Man overlay worth the extra cash? Unless you're a fan or want a unique phone with a gaming edge, probably not - you're getting what is fundamentally the same experience as the standard Nord 2, only for more money upfront (especially when you cꦑonsider the cheaper Nord 2 model with 128GB of memory). Plus, the absence of water-resistance and wireless charging is a blow. As such, I'd recommend grabbing the base model or paying just a bit more to get something better.
I've been writing about games in one form or another since 2012, and now ma🐽nage GamesRadar+'s tabletop gaming and toy coverage. You'll find my grubby paws on everything from board game reviews to the latest Lego news.
