Samsung Galaxy S21 5G vs. OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G

Phone Comparison, Reviews and Tests

In depth comparison and review of Samsung Galaxy S21 5G and OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G. Compare sizes, cameras, batteries, memory, and other important specifications and features to easily choose the right phone for you. Our goal is to help you uncover differences between the products and find the phone that will best fit your needs.

Phone Specifications Comparison

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G vs. OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G Comparison Chart
DESIGN AND DIMENSIONS Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Product Type Smartphone Smartphone
Manufacturer Model Number SM-G991U1 CPH2465
Form Factor Touch Touch
Height 151.7 mm 165.5 mm OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has greater height than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Width 71.2 mm 76 mm OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has greater width than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Depth 7.9 mm 8.3 mm Samsung Galaxy S21 5G is narrower than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Weight 171 g 195 g Samsung Galaxy S21 5G is lighter than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Body Colour Phantom grey | Phantom white Pastel lime | Chromatic grey
Protection Dustproof, splashproof, water-resistant -
Waterproof (Water-resistant) Yes - Samsung Galaxy S21 5G is waterproof.
IP rating IP68 -
SAR Value 1.58 W/kg (simultaneous), 1.11 W/kg (wireless router), 1.08 W/kg (body), 0.74 W/kg (head) 1.245 W/kg (body), 0.865 W/kg (head), 2.687 W/kg (limb)
Connector Type USB Type-C - 24 pin USB-C USB Type-C - 24 pin USB-C
Headset jack - mini-phone 3.5mm
SIM Card Type (Size) Nano SIM, Electronic SIM card (e-SIM) Nano SIM
SIM Card Qty Dual-SIM Dual-SIM
SIM Card Configuration Details - Nano SIM + nano SIM/microSD
DISPLAY Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Display Type OLED display LCD display
Display Technology Infinity-O Dynamic AMOLED 2X LCD
Screen Size (Display Size) 6.2" 6.72" OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has larger screen size than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Screen Resolution (Display Resolution) 2400 x 1080 pixels 2400 x 1080 pixels Both phones have the same screen resolution.
Display Format Full HD+ Full HD+
Pixel Density 421 ppi 391 ppi Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has better pixel density than OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.
Aspect Ratio - 20:9
Colour Depth 16.7 million colours -
HDR Yes - Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has HDR.
HDR Technology HDR10+ -
Display Enhancement Technology Eye Comfort Shield -
Display Refresh Rate 120 Hz 120 Hz Both phones have the same refresh rate.
Touch Sampling Rate - 240 Hz
Display Features AOD(Always On Display), Video Wallpaper Wide colour display (P3), Eye comfort mode, Dark mode, sRGB support
Display Protection (Screen Protector) Corning Gorilla Glass Victus (scratch resistant glass) -
PROCESSOR Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Processor Type (CPU) Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G
Clock Speed 2.84 GHz -
Processor Core Qty 8-core 8-core Both phones have the same number of phone cores.
Graphics System (GPU) - Qualcomm ADRENO 619
MEMORY Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
RAM LPDDR5 SDRAM - 8 GB LPDDR4X SDRAM - 8 GB + up to 8 GB Both phones have the same RAM size.
Internal Memory Size (Storage Capacity) 128 GB 128 GB Both phones have the same internal memory capacity.
User Memory 101.2 GB -
Memory Interface - UFS 2.2
Supported Flash Memory Cards (Expandable Memory) - microSDHC, microSD, microSDXC - up to 1 TB
CAMERA Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
MAIN CAMERA
Number of Main Cameras 3 3
Sensor Resolution 12 Megapixel 108 Megapixel OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has better camera resolution than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Sensor Size 1/1.76" -
Sensor Name - Samsung S5KHM6SX03
Lens Type Wide-angle lens -
Lens Aperture F/1.8 F/1.7 OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has better lens aperture than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Lens Construction - 6-element
Field of View (FoV) 79 degree(s) -
Pixel Size 1.8 μm 0.64 μm Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has larger camera pixel size than OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.
Optical Image Stabiliser (OIS) Optical Image Stabiliser (OIS) - Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has optical stabilisation.
Focus Adjustment Automatic Automatic
Laser Auto Focus Yes -
Optical Zoom 3x -
Digital Zoom 30x 6x Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has better digital zoom than OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.
Self-Timer Delay Yes -
Special Effects Face retouch, Grid Line HDR, face retouch
HDR Mode Auto HDR mode -
Camera Modes Panorama, Slow motion mode, Pro mode, HYPERLAPSE, Super Slow-mo, Flowers, Greenery, Trees, Sky, Beaches, Watersides, Snow, Backlit, Text, Food, Face, Baby, Person, Dog, Cat, People, Sunset, Sunrise, City, Waterfall, Scenery, Stage, Vehicles, Drinks, Animal, Shoes, Indoor, Clothes, Night view, Portrait, Night, Motion Photo, Mountain, Single Take, Pro Video, Portrait video, Director's View Time-lapse mode, Slow motion mode, portrait mode, Nightscape capture mode, Pano mode, Filter mode, Macro mode, Dual-View Video, Text scanner
Light Source High CRI LED flash LED flash
Video Resolutions 1920 x 1080 (1080p) at 60 fps, 1280 x 720 (720p) at 30 fps, 3840 x 2160 (4K) at 60 fps, Super slow motion video 1280 x 720 (720p) at 960 fps, Slo-mo video 1920 x 1080 (1080p) at 240 fps, 7680 x 4320 (8K) at 24 fps, Hyperlapse 4K video support at 30 fps, Super Steady 1080p video support at 60 fps 1920 x 1080 (1080p) at 30 fps, 1280 x 720 (720p) at 30 fps, Slo-mo video 1280 x 720 (720p) at 120 fps
Camera Features (Functions) Playback zoom, Motion photo, blink detection, QR-code scanner, VDIS (Video Digital Image Stabilisation), Tracking AF, Video location tags, Scene Optimiser, Lens smudge, Flaw detection, Shot suggestions, blur detection, HDR10+ recording, Super steady, Super Speed Dual Pixel AF, Quick Measure, Zoom-In Mic, HEIF image capture, Space Zoom, Take 33MP still photos while playing 8K video, Hybrid Optic Zoom 3x, Super Resolution Zoom up to 30x, Digital zoom up to 12x for video, AR Doodle, HEVC (High Efficiency Video coding) support, Microphone Control (Pro Video only) Phase Detect Auto-Focus (PDAF), Electronic Image Stabiliser (EIS), Continuous Auto Focus (CAF), AI Scene Enhancement
SECOND CAMERA
Sensor Resolution (2nd Camera) 12 Megapixel 2 Megapixel Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has better second camera resolution than OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.
Lens Type (2nd Camera) Ultra wide-angle lens -
Lens Aperture (2nd Camera) F/2.2 F/2.4 Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has better second camera lens aperture than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Field of View (2nd Camera) 120 degree(s) -
Pixel Size (2nd Camera) 1.4 μm -
Camera Functions (2nd Camera) - Depth camera
THIRD CAMERA
Sensor Resolution (3rd Camera) 64 Megapixel 2 Megapixel Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has higher resolution third camera than OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.
Sensor Size (3rd Camera) 1/1.72" -
Lens Type (3rd Camera) Telephoto lens -
Lens Aperture (3rd Camera) F/2.0 F/2.4 Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has better third camera lens aperture than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Field of View (3rd Camera) 76 degree(s) -
Pixel Size (3rd Camera) 0.8 μm -
Optical Image Stabiliser (OIS) Optical Image Stabiliser (OIS) - Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has optical stabilisation of the third camera.
Camera Functions (3rd Camera) - Macro camera
FRONT CAMERA
Number of Front Cameras 1 1
Sensor Resolution (Front) 10 Megapixel 16 Megapixel OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has better front camera resolution than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Lens Aperture (Front) F/2.2 F/2.4 Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has better front lens aperture than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Field of View (Front) 80 degree(s) -
Pixel Size (Front) 1.22 μm 1 μm Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has larger front camera pixel size than OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G.
Focus Adjustment Automatic -
Special Effects (Front) - HDR, face retouch
Camera Modes (Front) - Time-lapse mode, portrait mode, Nightscape capture mode, Pano mode, Filter mode
Light Source (Front) - Display flash
Video Resolutions (Front) - 1920 x 1080 (1080p) at 30 fps, 1280 x 720 (720p) at 30 fps
Camera Features (Front) Dual Pixel AF -
BATTERY AND CHARGING Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Battery Capacity (Battery Size) 4000 mAh 5000 mAh OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G has larger battery capacity than Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.
Fast Charging Technology Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Adaptive Fast Charging, Power Delivery 3.0 SuperVOOC Flash Charge technology Both phones have fast charging technology.
Wireless Charging Yes - Samsung Galaxy S21 5G can be charged wirelessly.
Wireless Charging Standards WPC, Qi, Fast Wireless Charging 2.0, Wireless PowerShare -
Talk Time 1800 minutes -
Run Time Details Talk (LTE): up to 1800 min
Active online usage (LTE): up to 14 hrs
Active online usage (Wi-Fi): up to 15 hrs
Playback (wireless video): up to 19 hrs
Playback (wireless audio): up to 72 hrs
Playback (YouTube): up to 17.1 hrs
Video call (WhatsApp): up to 8.7 hrs
Gaming (PUBG): up to 8.8 hrs
CELLULAR Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Technology CDMA2000 1X / GSM / WCDMA (UMTS) WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM
Mobile Broadband Generation 5G 5G Both phones have the same mobile network generation.
Operating System Android 11 OxygenOS (based on Android 13)
Intelligent Assistant Bixby -
Payment Technology Samsung Pay -
Navigation GPS, GLONASS, Galileo GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, BDS
COMMUNICATIONS Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Data Transmission FDD-LTE, TDD-LTE, 5G NR FR1, 5G NR FR2 FDD-LTE, 5G NR FR1, TD-LTE
2G Band 850 GSM, 900 GSM, 1800 GSM, 1900 GSM, 800 CDMA2000 1X, 1900 CDMA2000 1X 850 GSM, 900 GSM, 1800 GSM, 1900 GSM
3G UMTS Band Band 1, Band 2, Band 4, Band 5, Band 8 Band 1, Band 2, Band 4, Band 5, Band 6, Band 8, Band 19
3G UMTS Frequency 2100, 1900, 1700, 850, 900 2100, 1900, 1700, 850, 800, 900, 800
4G LTE Band Band 1, Band 2, Band 3, Band 4, Band 5, Band 7, Band 8, Band 12, Band 13, Band 14, Band 18, Band 19, Band 20, Band 25, Band 26, Band 28, Band 30, Band 38, Band 39, Band 40, Band 41, Band 46, Band 48, Band 66, Band 71 Band 1, Band 2, Band 3, Band 4, Band 5, Band 7, Band 8, Band 12, Band 13, Band 17, Band 18, Band 19, Band 20, Band 26, Band 28, Band 32, Band 38, Band 39, Band 40, Band 41, Band 66
4G LTE Frequency FDD 2100, FDD 1900 PCS, FDD 1800+, FDD 1700 - 2110 AWS, FDD 850, FDD 2600, FDD 900, FDD 700a, FDD 700c, FDD 700 PS, FDD 800 lower, FDD 800 upper, FDD 800 DD, FDD 1900+, FDD 850+, FDD 700 APT, FDD 2300 WCS, TDD 2600, TDD 1900, TDD 2300, TDD 2500, TDD 5150, TDD 3600, FDD 1700 - 2110 AWS-3, FDD 600 FDD 2100, FDD 1900 PCS, FDD 1800+, FDD 1700 - 2110 AWS, FDD 850, FDD 2600, FDD 900, FDD 700a, FDD 700c, FDD 700b, FDD 800 lower, FDD 800 upper, FDD 800 DD, FDD 850+, FDD 700 APT, FDD 1500 L, TDD 2600, TDD 1900, TDD 2300, TDD 2500, FDD 1700 - 2110 AWS-3
5G NR Band N41, n71, n260, n261 N1, n3, n5, n7, n8, n20, n28, n38, n41, n66, n77, n78, n40
5G NR Frequency TDD TD 2500, FDD 600, TDD 39GHz, TDD 28GHz FDD 2100, FDD 1800, FDD 850, FDD 2600, FDD 900, FDD 800, FDD 700APT, TDD TD 2600, TDD TD 2500, FDD AWS-3, TDD TD 3700, TDD TD 3500, TDD 2300
Wireless Interface IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth Bluetooth 5.0 Bluetooth 5.1
NFC Yes Yes Both phones have an NFC reader for mobile payments.
MEDIA Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Supported Digital Audio Standards WAV, AAC, PCM, AMR, MP3, FLAC, XMF, OGG, MIDI, APE (Monkey's Audio), M4A, DSF, MXMF, OGA, 3GA, AWB, IMY, RTTTL, RTX, OTA, DFF, MID, DSD64, DSD128 AAC, MP3, FLAC, apt-X, LDAC, RAW, OPUS, AMR-WB, AMR-NB, SBC, Vorbis, apt-X HD, GSM, G711-ALAW, G711-MLAW
Supported Digital Video Standards MKV, FLV, AVI, 3GP, M4V, WebM, 3G2, MP4 MPEG-4, H.264, HEVC, VP8, VP9, 3GPP, AV1
Sound Enhancements Dolby Digital Plus sound, Dolby Atmos sound technology, Surround sound, stereo speakers tuned by AKG, Dolby Digital sound -
FEATURES Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Phone Functions Speakerphone, voice control, call timer, conference call, flight mode, voice dialing, vibrating alert -
Sensors Accelerometer, ambient light sensor, proximity sensor, barometer, gyro sensor, hall sensor, geomagnetic sensor Accelerometer, ambient light sensor, proximity sensor, digital compass, gyroscope, sensor core
Security Devices Fingerprint reader (under display), face recognition Face recognition, fingerprint reader (side)
Security Technology - Face Unlock
Additional Phone Features MIMO technology, Screen Write, notification flashlight, Smart Select, Fast Charging, Samsung KNOX, Smart View, Live message, Screen off memo, Samsung DeX support, Bixby Vision, TalkBack, Dual Audio, Bixby Routines, Intelligent Performance Enhancer, Bixby key, Bluetooth Scalable Codec, Samsung Knox Vault, Private Share function, Enhanced Game Booster, Air Command Noise Cancellation Technology, MIMO technology, dual stereo speakers, Ultra volume mode, Battery Health Engine
OTHERS Samsung Galaxy S21 5G OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G
Included Accessories SIM card removal tool, USB-C to USB-C cable SIM card removal tool, USB-C cable, screen protector (pre-applied), protective case, SuperVOOC 67W power adapter
Compliant Standards VDE, IP68, HAC (Hearing Aid Compatible), SGS Eye Care Display Certification -
Max Depth of Water Resistance 1.5 m -
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