OnePlus Nord 2 renders give a sense of déjà vu

OnePlus just revealed its first Nord phones of the year, and both fall below the bar that the first OnePlus Nord set last year. Its true successor is still coming, even OnePlus said so, but details about the OnePlus Nord 2 are still unofficial. As is the company's practice, OnePlus might start teasing the phone closer to its launch, but, thankfully, we may already have a clear picture of the OnePlus Nord 2, literally, too, thanks to these new renders.

Those closely following OnePlus's phones will most likely recognize the OnePlus Nord 2 immediately. If these renders are accurate, and they probably are since they come from @OnLeaks and 91mobiles, then you can't be faulted for mistaking it for the OnePlus 9. Save for one very minor detail; the two are almost completely identical.

Of course, the OnePlus 9 doesn't have a monopoly on punch-hole cutouts located in the corner of a phone screen. It is, instead, the triple cameras on its back that give the telltale sign of its similarity, with two large sensors on top of a smaller one. The only difference between the two is that the LED flash on the OnePlus Nord 2 may be located right beside that smaller camera, creating a better visual balance than the OnePlus 9 did.

The renders also show the usual design elements of OnePlus phones, like the alert slider and power button sitting on the right side opposite the volume rocker on the left. The absence of a headphone jack is disappointing but not unexpected, and a fingerprint scanner is hidden underneath the display.

Earlier leaks point to the OnePlus Nord 2 as the company's first MediaTek phone, possibly running on a 5G Dimensity 1200 chip with 12GB of RAM. Despite the name, the OnePlus Nord 2 might shape up to be a new OnePlus flagship killer, presuming the price is right, making its semblance to the OnePlus 9 quite fitting.