Nothing Phone (3) vs OnePlus 13R

Nothing Phone (3)

A sharp 6.7-inch LTPO AMOLED with 120Hz and up to 2,000 nits peak brightness delivers a smooth, vibrant viewing experience.

• The LTPO OLED panel is bright, responsive, and color-accurate — a significant improvement over the Phone (2) display
• Peak brightness of 2,000 nits is good but falls behind Samsung and Apple flagships hitting 3,000 nits

OnePlus 13R

The 6.78-inch LTPO AMOLED display delivers 120Hz, 2780x1264 resolution, and 4,500 nits peak brightness — one of the best screens at this price.

• LTPO AMOLED panel delivers sharp, vibrant visuals with excellent color reproduction across sRGB and DCI-P3 gamuts
• Real-world auto brightness of around 1,223 nits provides comfortable outdoor visibility in direct sunlight

Nothing Phone (3)

The triple camera system co-developed with Samsung is a major upgrade, though processing still trails the best in challenging conditions.

• The 50MP main camera produces detailed, well-exposed shots in good light that compete with phones costing $200 more
• Telephoto lens addition brings welcome versatility with clean 3x optical zoom results
• Night mode and low-light processing lag behind Google and Samsung — images lack the computational magic of Pixel phones
• Video stabilization and dynamic range are adequate but noticeably behind iPhone and Galaxy flagships in side-by-side tests

OnePlus 13R

Main camera and new 2x telephoto deliver solid results, but the 8MP ultrawide is a consistent weak point that drags down the system.

• The 50MP main camera produces sharp daylight stills with wide dynamic range and vibrant-but-accurate colors
• The new 50MP 2x telephoto is a significant upgrade over the old macro lens, delivering sharp images with nice colors
• The 8MP ultrawide is the clear weakness — soft, lacking detail, with limited dynamic range that reviewers universally criticize
• Video recording is limited: 4K restricted to select cameras with mediocre stabilization compared to the competition

Nothing Phone (3)

Snapdragon 8 Elite puts the Nothing Phone (3) in the same performance tier as Samsung Galaxy S25 and OnePlus 13.

• Snapdragon 8 Elite provides genuinely flagship-level performance — gaming, multitasking, and app launches are all top-tier
• Nothing OS 3 is lightweight enough to let the hardware shine, with smooth animations and minimal background resource consumption
• Thermals are well managed with the aluminum frame acting as a heat sink, keeping sustained performance respectable

OnePlus 13R

Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 delivers flagship-tier burst performance, but lab testing reveals significant thermal throttling under sustained workloads.

• Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 delivers exceptional burst performance, making it one of the most powerful phones at this price
• Day-to-day performance is silky smooth — no lag, hiccups, or slowdowns with OxygenOS optimizations
• Thermal throttling is a concern: 3DMark tests show GPU stability of only 54% with CPU throttling to 64% under extended load

Nothing Phone (3)

A 5,500mAh battery provides solid full-day endurance with 45W wired and 15W wireless charging.

• Battery comfortably lasts a full day of heavy use with the 5,500mAh cell and efficient Snapdragon 8 Elite
• 45W wired charging reaches 50% in about 25 minutes and full charge in under an hour
• 15W wireless charging is included — a feature missing from the OnePlus 13R at a similar price

OnePlus 13R

Battery life is the crown jewel — the 6,000mAh cell delivers two-day endurance in real-world use. No wireless charging is the key omission.

• The 6,000mAh battery delivers genuine two-day endurance with 25+ hours of Wi-Fi browsing in lab tests
• Battery life absolutely demolishes the iPhone 16 by a full day — expect around 8 hours screen-on time with heavy use
• No wireless charging at $599 is a growing omission when Samsung and Google include it at lower price points

Nothing Phone (3)

Nothing OS 3 offers a clean, near-stock Android experience with distinctive monochrome widgets and Glyph integration.

• Nothing OS 3 is refreshingly clean with thoughtful touches like monochrome widget themes and Glyph app integration
• Only 3 years of OS updates and 4 years of security patches — significantly less than Samsung and Google 7-year commitments

OnePlus 13R

OxygenOS 15 on Android 15 is smooth and customizable with 4 years of OS updates and AI features, though it lacks the polish of Samsung and Google.

• OxygenOS 15 feels like a return to form — fast, fluid, and customizable with new Flux Themes
• Four years of OS updates and six years of security patches provide competitive long-term support