The OnePlus Nord 4 will go down in history as one of my favorite phones of 2024. The main reason for this is that it features an aluminum unibody and is the only mainstream device on the market with a metal back. I have always loved metal in phone builds.
While you may know that incompatibility with wireless charging is one of the biggest drawbacks of metal phones, it’s apparently not the only downside to the Nord 4. The metal unibody casing apparently makes it quite difficult to open and therefore difficult to repair. That’s the trade-off.
As good as it looks, the Nord 4’s metal unibody earns it a repair rating of 4/10
Metal used to be a material that was considered extremely high-quality when used in phones – even in their frames; today, metal frames are standard on flagships. However, with the advent of wireless charging and the need for stronger wireless signals, metal was gradually phased out in favor of the very fragile, but arguably higher-quality, glass.
The OnePlus Nord 4 is one of the first phones in a long time to have metal on the back again. In addition, it uses a unibody design, which means that the frame and back are made of a single piece of metal. I have used a Google Pixel XL, which had a unibody metal casing, and believe me when I say that it felt extremely good in the hand.
However, the problem that comes with using a metal unibody is that it’s quite difficult to get inside the OnePlus Nord 4. Because of this, PBK Reviews, who took the OnePlus Nord 4 apart, gave it a repairability rating of 4/10. That’s not good at all. Equally bad is the fact that the screen, one of the parts that most people will need to repair during the device’s lifetime, received a rating of 0.5/2 for its easy repairability.
Should you care about how well a phone can be repaired before you buy it?
I don’t mind shipping a phone that isn’t available in my area if I think it’s good enough for me. However, since there is relatively little availability in my home country, it would be very difficult to get such phones repaired where I live. The thing is, I’ve never thought about it more than a little bit and it makes me wonder whether or not we should consider repairability as a valid reason to buy a phone.
That’s a good question. I don’t because I rarely drop my phones and I’ve never had spontaneous problems like a broken charging port. However, I did have to replace the battery on my Google Pixel XL and the back of my Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ when I wanted to sell both devices, but I did that myself.
However, with a phone that could be as difficult to repair as this one, I think it should factor into your decision (even though iFixit DIY repair kits are available). Metal is a whole different caliber, so it would be a good idea to buy a more manageable device if you’re going to fix it yourself.
