The OnePlus Nord (or OnePlus Z), if desired, sounds like a great phone. It reportedly boasts a large 90-inch screen with a fast 6.4-inch refresh rate, multiple cameras, including 2 upfronts, and a lower price tag than what you'd see from a recent OnePlus phone. One rumor has it that Nord is as cheap asド299.

The lower price means a less powerful processor, but the Snapdragon 765G, which is expected to power the Oneplus Nord, will still have a 5G connection. In short, the OnePlus Nord seems to be a very attractive addition to the growing market for mid-range phones that boast some premium features without a spike in prices.

But it sounds like if you live in the United States, you'll have a hard time getting your hands on this phone. Where is the love, OnePlus.

Earlier this week, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau announced plans to launch a "new, more affordable smartphone product line" - essentially confirming that OnePlus Nord was imminent. But he also revealed the release plan, in which the new phone will be launched in Europe and India for the first time, and US mobile phone buyers are looking out. We are also looking to introduce more affordable smartphones to North America in the near future," Lau sad said in a forum post on the OnePlus website. Optimists may mean that the oneplus Nord will eventually reach other markets, including the US, but pessimists may conclude that OnePlus' budget phone plans are still in the air, at least as far as the US is concerned.

OnePlus's plan to focus on other markets with the more affordable OnePlus Nord makes sense when you look at the big picture. Still, we hope that phone makers will not forget the United States completely when it's time to introduce a low-cost phone that follows OnePlus's knack for packing in premium features.

It's easy for people in the United States to forget, but it's a big, wide world full of people who want to buy a smartphone. And with Apple and Samsung dominating the U.S. smartphone market, phone makers like OnePlus are often more likely to succeed in other countries. According to Ramon Llamas, Research Director for mobile devices and AR/VR at research firm IDC, OnePlus has strong support, particularly in both India and Europe.

"In fact, when you look at India, the volume is almost equivalent to its total volume going to China," Lama said, referring to the domestic market of OnePlus. "Also, in Europe, sales volumes are stable in multiple markets, mainly showing an increase from the previous year.

India in particular is an attractive market for low-cost products, as OnePlus Nord is rumored. Consumers like US smartphone purchasers are willing to pay the exorbitant price of their flagships, so there may be demand for phones that offer premium features at affordable prices.

"India is certainly the target market for affordable smartphones, so [that's] another reason to include it," said Anshul Gupta, Gartner's research director, citing OnePlus's strong brand awareness in India.1

Putting it all together, it's probably hard to understand why Europe and India will be the first to get the OnePlus Nord when the phone debuted on May 7, but given the recent surge in interest in budget phones, wouldn't it also make sense to include the US in its launch?

Not necessarily, analysts say. OnePlus definitely made its way into the US market, but it was along with flagship devices like the OnePlus8 family this spring. And while it's as much a buzz as OnePlus has enjoyed over the years in its line-up of self-proclaimed "flagship killers," Apple and Samsung still dominate in this country.

"The low-cost option will allow [OnePlus] to reach another market segment, and it will only help grow the company's footprint," Llamas said. "But it's going to go up against tough competition from a long line of vendors that are already there."

One of the challenges facing OnePlus 1, and indeed the phone makers who are not peddling the iPhone or Galaxy flagships, is that Americans are still buying phones directly from companies that offer wireless services. That means the phone must be sold through over a major carrier to have a chance of success in this country.

OnePlus has made some progress in that regard. Since OnePlus6T, the company's phones have become available through T-Mobile. (Sprint, which has been absorbed by T-Mobile, also offers OnePlus phones.At this year's OnePlus8, Verizon joined a mix of carriers selling OnePlus devices.

Tuong H., Senior Principal Analyst at GartnerAccording to Nguyen, adding these carriers has been a good start for OnePlus. But competition and branding remain hurdles to overcome.

"Other Tier 1 brands — LG, Lenovo and Sony — have struggled to compete in this market, but little-known brands, including those from China, have an even harder time than their Tier 1 counterparts," Nguyen said. "On top of this, U.S. consumers are exposed to negative press around Chinese products. That could potentially make it harder for OnePlus to gain a better foothold in this market."

Despite all that, it's time for mobile phone manufacturers to roll out new mid-range models that advertise some standout features, while Apple's improved iPhone SE certainly captures the imagination of smartphone buyers, even with its aging design, Motorola has a long battery life (in the case of Moto G Power). Or we've introduced a trio of Moto G models that offer a handy stylus (for the Moto G Stylus).

These phones have earned solid reviews, not just because they offer premium features such as the iPhone SE's finest A13Bionic processor and Moto G Power's battery, which offers the best phone battery life. They also happen to be affordable, and it's a big phone concern for shoppers at a time when the coronavirus pandemic is rattling the economy. We don't know exactly what OnePlus will charge OnePlus Nord — some rumors suggest the phone has a price tag of less thanい499, or even less thanい299. That would put the phone in the company of the iPhone SE, the Samsung Galaxy A51, and potentially the Google Pixel4a. The fact that many of the same big-name phone manufacturers are competing for the same audience,

for a company that can get the right mix of features and price tags, given OnePlus's track record with feature—packed phones-its flagship compares very favorably with devices that cost hundreds more dollars-the OnePlus Nord meets its needs. Europe and India are the right markets for that phone to debut this summer, but certainly there are viewers waiting for the OnePlus Nord in America.