Back in May, we reviewed the Ai+ Nova 2 5G and found it to be a good bargain in the entry-level segment. Now, we turn our attention to its Pro variant, which is currently priced at Rs 15,999. It packs the MediaTek Dimensity 7100 chipset under its hood and comes in 6GB/8GB RAM options. You also get a functional 8MP ultrawide lens as part of the rear camera array instead of a filler lens. This is pretty rare for a device at this price point. We used the smartphone for a week and went through its ins and outs to find out if it is a bargain like the base model in the series. Here is our in-depth review of the Ai+ Nova 2 Pro 5G.
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In This Article
Ai+ Nova 2 Pro 5G Review: Design and Display
Box Contents
- Smartphone
- 18W power adapter
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- Clear plastic cover
- SIM ejector
The Nova 2 Pro has a flat form factor and a plastic build. The back panel has a vertical camera array with individual cutouts for the lenses on top of a 2-step panel. This panel does stick out quite a bit, causing the phone to wobble when placed on a flat surface. The LED flash is placed adjacent to this island. The customisable lighting elements occupy the rest of the top section in a waveform shape.
The right edge of the plastic frame houses the volume rocker, side button, and an ‘AI button’. The latter launches the camera when it’s pressed twice. It can be customised to launch a third-party app or other native tools. The side button doubles as the fingerprint sensor. The hybrid SIM tray is placed on the left edge. At the bottom lie the 3.5mm headphone jack, primary microphone, USB-C port, and speaker grille. The secondary speaker and noise-cancelling microphone are positioned up top. The device is rated IP65 for dust and water resistance.
The 6.9-inch FHD+ IPS LCD panel has a 144Hz refresh rate. It is able to maintain decent legibility under direct sunlight. The display is surrounded by thick bezels that get chunkier around the chin. The front-facing camera is housed in a punch-hole cutout. You can set the refresh rate of the panel to 144Hz from the settings and force certain apps to adhere to it. The smartphone does not have an under-display optical sensor. Instead, it uses a side-mounted fingerprint scanner.
During the review period, we used the Ai+ Nova 2 Pro to stream movies and TV shows across OTT platforms like JioHotstar, Netflix, and Prime Video. The 1080p display produced good visuals packed with vibrant colours and essential details. The contrast wasn’t as punchy as we’re used to seeing on AMOLED displays, but LCD panels are pretty much the norm in this segment. The dual speaker setup produces a good audio output with just a tinge of boxiness.
Ai+ Nova 2 Pro Review: Performance and Cameras
At the core of the Nova 2 Pro lies the MediaTek Dimensity 7100 chipset. The smartphone comes in 2 RAM options.
- 6GB + 128GB: Rs 15,999
- 8GB + 128GB: Rs 17,999
In the Geekbench 6 test, Nova 2 Pro garnered a single-core score of 978 points and a multi-core score of 2,836 points. does a good job of handling routine tasks like calling, texting, media streaming, web browsing, and navigation. We used the 8GB RAM variant for this review, and it was able to juggle half a dozen apps with ease. Jitters and lag were the exception rather than the norm. Overall, we found the device to be quite reliable for everyday use.
The Dimensity 7100 SoC can run titles like BGMI and Call of Duty: Mobile, but the gameplay is littered with stutters and frame drops even at low graphics and frame rate settings. Simpler games like Candy Crush Saga and Subway Surfers are managed better. The back panel starts warming up after 15 minutes of continuous gameplay.
The Nova 2 Pro runs Android 16 skinned with Ai+’s nxtQ OS out of the box. The smartphone doesn’t ship with any bloatware apps, which is unheard of in this price segment. The software feels clean and intuitive. The NxtPrivacy Dashboard keeps track of apps using location services and other vital information. There are plenty of customisation options for the AI button. Its functionality isn’t extended within the Camera app, which is a bit of a letdown because it would have worked well as a shutter button. The smartphone supports Gemini Assistant but does not get Circle to Search.
One of our favourite things about this smartphone is its 6,000mAh battery pack. This battery pack can hold enough juice to last an entire day of heavy use with ~20-30% charge left to spare. If you’re conservative with your usage, you can push the battery life to 2 days. The smartphone supports 33W wired charging. It took us close to 3 hours to fully charge the device using the 18W power adapter provided in the box.
The rear camera array of the Nova 2 Pro comprises a 48MP primary shooter and an 8MP ultrawide lens. The 48MP Sony IMX582 sensor captures good images in outdoor daylight conditions. While these images aren’t the sharpest we’ve seen in this segment, they flaunt rich colours. The final results are certainly ‘social media friendly’. In limited lighting conditions, this camera relies on Night Mode to resolve the scene, but the pictures appear dim and grainy. This is not a dealbreaker, as this issue pervades every device in this price bracket.
Images taken from the 8MP ultrawide lens are visibly softer than their main camera counterparts. We expected this from the get-go as ultrawide lenses aren’t common in this segment. You’re getting an entry-level sensor, but that isn’t too bad, as you can get some decent shots out of it in optimum lighting. The less said about the night-time shots, the better.
Portraits taken by the Nova 2 Pro are vivid and well-focused. The smartphone struggles to detect the edges of the subject, so the final results do have some blurriness in random areas, but the pictures look good overall. The tinge of background blur makes these portraits pop. The front-facing 13MP camera captures sharp and clear selfies. All three cameras on this phone can record 2K videos at 30fps.
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Verdict
Despite the controversies surrounding the brand, Ai+ continues to put out value-for-money products which look particularly attractive at a time when smartphone prices are soaring through the roof. The Nova 2 Pro is a rock-solid phone for everyday use. It can get you through your daily tasks without breaking a sweat, play HD content on its massive display, channel good audio output through its dual speaker setup, and offer enough juice to last you an entire day. The cameras are teetering in the okay-ish territory, but you can get good shots in optimum lighting conditions, which is all we ask of a budget phone in this bracket.
Pros
- Big display
- Customisable lighting
- Clean software
- Good battery life
- Ultrawide lens
Cons
- AI button does not act as the shutter button in the Camera app
