Waterproof protection is one of the most important features on any smartphone, but with a budget phone like the OnePlus Nord N20 5G, is that something you can rely on? For a $280 smartphone, the Nord N20 5G is a fairly impressive handset. It has an AMOLED display, expandable storage, and a 4500 mAh battery. Those are all great specs on their own, especially when found on a smartphone that costs under $300.

However, as with any budget smartphone, the OnePlus Nord N20 5G is not perfect. Every affordable phone has to make compromises to reach a competitive price tag. This is true of budget phones from Apple, Samsung, Google, OnePlus, and every other company. This can take the shape of not including a headphone jack, not offering wireless charging, or not using an NFC chip for Google Pay.

Related: Does OnePlus Nord N20 5G Support Expandable Storage With An SD Card?

Another feature often cut from lower-cost phones is waterproofing. Flagship phones today are expected to have an IP rating for protection against dust and water. It’s something found on the Galaxy S22, iPhone 13, and virtually every other flagship released over the last few years. Unfortunately, it’s less common to see IP waterproofing on budget smartphones. It costs time and money to add that durability, get it certified, and apply it across millions of phones in the production process. That’s likely why you won’t find any waterproofing on the OnePlus Nord N20 5G.

The Nord N20 5G Doesn’t Have Any Waterproofing

OnePlus Nord N20 5G

For all the things the OnePlus Nord N20 does well, this is a smartphone that’s not waterproof. That may not be an issue if you’re careful with your phone and rarely get it wet. But if you spend a lot of time near the water and/or are a self-proclaimed butterfingers, not having any water resistance or waterproofing on the OnePlus Nord N20 5G could be a legitimate problem.

It’s also worth noting that the Nord N20 doesn’t have any visible waterproof protection. While some OnePlus 10 Pro models also lack an official IP rating, they still clearly have waterproof gaskets in the SIM tray. No such gaskets are present on the Nord N20 5G. Not only is there no IP rating, but N2o’s design is also clearly less durable than more expensive OnePlus smartphones.

Although this isn’t surprising for a $280 smartphone, it’s still something to think about before buying the Nord N20. If you know you’re careful with your smartphones and don’t anticipate that changing, the lack of waterproofing on the OnePlus Nord N20 may not be a problem. If you do need that waterproof protection, though, skipping the Nord N20 and getting a Pixel 5a or Galaxy A53 5G instead may be a better choice.