Nokia 7.1 Review: A Well-Rounded Mid-Range Smartphone

The Nokia 7.1 is one of the recent addition to the HMD Global’s mobile portfolio in the Indian market. Even though the Nokia 7.1 was launched in the mid-range segment but it comes packed with a very distinguishing feature, and that is the HDR10 display. Apart from that, the phone also has decent specifications and run a stock version of Android. All of those make the Nokia 7.1 a well-rounded phone. But are those enough to justify its Rs. 19,999 price tag. Let’s find out.

Nokia 7.1: Design & Build Quality

The design is mostly the first thing people notice on a smartphone, and HMD Global did a great job on Nokia 7.1. On the front, it is relatively standard with a bit of a chin and thin bezels. On the back, the phone also has an attractive glass panel.

But the thing that really stands out in the Nokia 7.1’s design is the chrome detail around the camera setup. And this 6,000-series aluminum band goes around the sides of the phone as well. It makes the handset look and feel premium, and it also gives users the feeling that this device is very durable and you can even stamp on the phone without damaging it. It’s something that the Nokia brand has already been very well-known for since the 1990s. The phone comes in two color options which are steel and midnight blue.

The volume rocker and power button are located on the right side while the left side is for the hybrid dual-SIM tray. There is still a headphone jack at the top of the phone while the bottom is the place for a mono speaker and a USB-C port.

To be more specific, on the front, the Nokia handset sports a notch screen with slim bezels, a small chin housing a Nokia branding in the middle. On the rear, you can see a vertically stacked dual camera setup surrounded by a chrome detail as well as ZEISS branding and two-tone dual-LED flash. There are also a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and a Nokia logo on the same line with the camera setup.

As mentioned before, the Nokia 7.1 has exceptional build quality, and the handset also feels great when I hold it. However, as HMD Global opts for an all-glass finish on the handset, it may make the Nokia 7.1 a bit more fragile. While the front is protected by Gorilla Glass 3, it is not the case for the glass back, and it is also very prone to smudges and scratches. Therefore, I highly recommend a protective case on the Nokia 7.1.

Nokia 7.1: Display and Battery

Sporting a 5.84-inch Full-HD+ display with HDR10 and ‘PureDisplay’ tech of Nokia. That means the phone has the ability to playback HDR content. After spending some time with the handset, I can confidently say that the display on the Nokia 7.1 can easily beat the ones on other phones in the same segment.

It was great watching HDR content on the Nokia 7.1’s Full-HD+ display which shows rich contrast levels and vivid colours as well.

HMD Global opts for a 3,060 mAh battery on the Nokia 7.1 which is relatively low. During my time with it, the battery lasted for the day for my average usage while heavy users may need to carry a charge with them. The Nokia handset does have support for charging and it can fully charge in around two hours with the included 18W adapter.

Nokia 7.1: Performance and Software

The Nokia 7.1 comes packed with a Snapdragon 636 processor, coupled with 4GB RAM/64GB storage. While its chipset is slightly underwhelming, it is still enough for running the daily tasks like video streaming, split-screen multitasking, or playing PUBG.

And stock Android is one of the key reasons why the Nokia 7.1 has such performance. There are no useless bloat or unnecessary UI overlays on the phone. Nokia’s support app is the only extra pre-installed app on it, and the app is pretty useful. As a part of the Google’s Android One Programme, the Nokia handset runs Android 9 Pie, and it will most likely receive new updates from Google earlier than its counterparts.

Nokia 7.1: Camera

Commonly seen in mid-range phones this year, the Nokia 7.1 also has a dual rear camera setup with ZEISS-enhanced optics, including a 12MP main sensor  and a 5MP depth sensor.

I found that the cameras on the phone is more than enough for photography needs of a regular user. Photos taken in daylight conditions have enough resolved detail, and HDR mode can enhance darker areas of the photos’ scene without overexposing the light ones.

However, the camera performance in low-light conditions is quite poor as the pictures lack sharpness and have quite a few compression artifacts.

In my opinion, I still believe that the camera performance of the Nokia 7.1 is still above the average in the mid-range segment. Its 8MP selfie camera is decent enough for taking selfies and video calls as well. HMD Global also adds many features on the phone’s camera app, such as Bokeh, AR emoji, Pro mode, Google Lens, and more.

Nokia 7.1: Verdict

Although the Nokia 7.1 is a well-rounded phone, there are still a few improvements that HMD Global can make to get more customers as they are not the only player in town offering value-for-money smartphones in the mid-range phone market. For example, the Pocophone F1, which is pretty much the standard to compare new mid-range phones, is a good option with powerful specs.

But, hardware specs are not the only things that customers want in a phone. Many people actually value the design, software or other elements as well. And the Nokia 7.1 excels in terms of design and display and that may be enough to justify its Rs. 19,999 price tag.

So, if you are looking for a compact and well-built phone with a high possibility of getting new updates for a couple of years, then the Nokia 7.1 is undoubtedly the top choice for you. However, if you are looking for a powerful phone and don’t care much about a fancy display or hate the fragile and prone-to-smudges display, then skip the Nokia 7.1 and go for the Pocophone F1.

There are also other notable options out there such as the Xiaomi Mi A2, Motorola One Power, Nokia 6.1 Plus (which is pretty much the same as the Nokia 7.1 without HRD10), and the recently-released Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2.