The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is the latest phone in the budget-friendly range, offering a superb slew of features at a low cost.
The OnePlus Nord isn’t the only budget range in town though, with the Samsung Galaxy A34 also eyeing up the market.
So which phone is best for you? We haven’t fully reviewed either phone just yet, but we’ve dug into the specs in order to find the biggest differences. So without further delay, here are the key differences between the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite and Samsung Galaxy A34.
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is more affordable
The main appeal of these two phones is the affordability, with a far lower price point than the companies’ flagships: OnePlus 11 and Samsung Galaxy S23. So any slight differences in price will have a big impact here.
The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is the cheaper of the two, priced at just £299 for the 128GB configuration.
In comparison, the Samsung Galaxy A34 will cost you £349 for the 128GB, making it £50 more expensive. Samsung is also offering the option to upgrade to the 256GB model for £399 – OnePlus does not offer this flexibility.
OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite
Powered by different chips
These days, the vast majority of Android phones are powered by some form of Snapdragon chip from Qualcomm. That’s the case with the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, which packs a Snapdragon 695 5G. But Samsung has decided on the MediaTek Dimensity 1080 chip instead.
The MediaTek Dimensity 1080 is an octa-core processor, capable of peak speeds of 2.6GHz. The Snapdragon 695 5G is also an octa-core chip, but can only muster maximum clock speeds of 2.2GHz.
This implies that the Galaxy A34 is a faster phone. We won’t be able to verify that until we get both phones in for testing, as multiple factors can affect performance, including thermals. Both phones support 5G though, so you won’t need to factor that into your decision.
OnePlus offers faster charging
One of the key selling points of the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is that it supports 67W SUPERVOOC fast charging. OnePlus claims this enables the phone to be charged up by 80% in just 30 minutes.
The Samsung Galaxy A34, meanwhile, is limited to just 25W charging speeds. This suggests it will take noticeably longer to charge the phone back up. So if you’re the kind of person who forgets to charge their phone well in advance of an important event, you may be tempted by the OnePlus.
The two phones share the same 5,000mAh battery capacity, although that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll share the same length of battery life. Factors such as the efficiency of the processor can have a big impact, so we’ll need to wait until we can test both phones properly before making any claims on that front.
Samsung Galaxy A34
Samsung Galaxy A34 supports 4K video recording
Both Samsung and OnePlus have opted for a triple-camera setup on the rear, but don’t expect similar snapper experiences, as there are plenty of differences in this contest.
If you’re keen on shooting video, you may favour Samsung since it supports 4K at 30fps video recording, and up to 480fps (in 720p) for slow motion. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite only supports 1080p video at 30fps, with up to 120fps (also in 720p) for slow motion.
Samsung seemingly loses its advantage for straightforward snaps. The Galaxy A34 sports a 48MP main sensor, with an 8MP ultrawide camera and 5MP macro camera.
OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite has an impressive 108MP main snapper, but features a 2MP depth-assist camera and 2MP Macro – there’s no ultrawide sensor here.
It’s important to note that you can’t judge a camera’s quality solely on specs, so we’ll need to test both phones before making a final decision on which is best.
Only OnePlus has a headphone jack
The headphone jack has gone out of fashion, with phone manufacturers using the rise of Bluetooth headphones as an excuse to slim down their phones and remove the legacy port.
But the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite is bucking the trend by retaining the headphone jack, which will no doubt please those who are still using wired buds to listen to Spotify and the like.
The Samsung Galaxy A34 does not feature a headphone jack, so you’re going to have to embrace the Bluetooth revolution if you plan on listening to music via this handset.
