All You Need To Know About Nokia 5.1 Plus - Specific Reviews

Registering the entire 2018 Android fleet of HMD Global into Android One programme of Google is the best thing it did this year that makes the HMD Global be slightly better than the competition because it offers users a guarantee of 2 years of updating software and 3 years for updating security. So far, the line of Nokia phones have been somewhat competitive with some of the recent launches which are more notable such as the Nokia 7 Plus and Nokia 6.1 Plus.

Lately, HMD Global released the Nokia 5.1 Plus - a new smartphone slots in at the Rs. 10,999 mark which is an affordable price. It’s quite confusing for the smartphone’s positioning as it is believed to be successful with the current Nokia 5.1, but the older model is more expensive. It’s time to found out whether HMD Global has skipped some of its steps to reduce the cost as cheaply as possible while the new Nokia 5.1 Plus bears some better specifications to some extent.

The looks of the Nokia 5.1 Plus

Right at the time that you unbox the Nokia 5.1 Plus, you will be impressed by its premium design. It looks gorgeous thanks to a high-gloss finish so its cost is easily thought to be up to Rs. 15,000. The back of the smartphone made from 2.5D curved glass - a rare material for this segment.

The Nokia 5.1 Plus is fairly slipped over hands due to its burnished finish that rises an ergonomic issue. However, it’s kinda durable cause when we met a few cases that the phone slipped off a couch and onto the floor, but fortunately, it did not get any scuffs or dings though it uses no reinforced glass - confirmed by HMD Global. In a while that we used this phone, its display did not have any small cut or marks, however, it should be installed with a screen guard for lengthening the using.

The phone’ display measured 5,86 inch with an aspect ratio of 19:9 on the front and only HD+ (720x1520) resolution. HMD Global has had skipped some of its steps to reduce the cost for users in this area. Yet its display quality is quite good with the more-than-adequate brightness for good legibility outside along with punchy and lively colors, good back levels.

On the right of the Nokia 5.1 attached with all of the buttons which feel very clicky. And on the left situated dual-SIM tray and two Nano SIMs. The phone also supports the Dual 4G VoLTE. You’ll have to abandon the 2nd SIM slot for more internal storage which quite expandable. Another rare sight in this lower-end is a USB Type-C port.  

The screen notch’s design is relatively wide, also its space created is unlikely to be used optimally since no LED for notification placed here so we don’t actually like it and at the bottom is a sizeable chin but its borders are so thick. On its back, the cameras set up is very same as the other recent x1 phones from HMD Global. During our review time, we did not see any paint scuffing though its camera bump is noticeable. Since the fingerprint sensor can be hard to find at times which is placed just below the camera, and it works fine, but we wish it were a bit larger and more prominent and larger.

The Nokia 5.1 Plus is equipped with standard spare parts consisting of headset. Though silicon case will be useful for the slippery build of the phone but it is not included. Generally, 5.1 Plus looks more high-ranking than its price, it’s also easy to hold with its lightweight. It is said that HMD Global has done a very good job with this phone.

Features and specifications of the Nokia 5.1 Plus

The internals of the phone featured well which contains the upgrade of the Helio P18 in the last version called MediaTek Helio P60 otcta-core SoC. Along with posting benchmark numbers which is better when being compared with most phones that bear Snapdragon 636 in this price range. This phone has only one 32GB storage and 3GB RAM version and it supports Bluetooth 4.2, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Category 4 LTE with an expansive range of  GPS systems comprising of Galileo and Beidou too. The phone has no NFC but it has both USB-OTG and FM radio.

Without whatever any bloatware, you get stock Android 8.1 Oreo. A suite of Google apps and support apps from HMD Global gives users help with booking an appointment with a service center any phone features. It has some movements help users launch the camera app by double-pressing the power button and pull down the shade of notifications by using the fingerprint sensor.

Nevertheless, having no ways to remain unseen the notch is not the main matter with this phone because apps are designed to not fill its screen. For instance, beyond the notch don’t stretch most of video players and games so the content is hardly covered. It’s good that with the September 2018 security patch, the OS is also updated. The face unlock feature of Android’s default depends on the ambient light so it is rather hit or miss.

Battery life, performance, and cameras of the Nokia 5.1 Plus

During our review time, actually we were pleased while using the phone as our main device which just looks really good and its size is handy and fit with most pant pockets. Because of the glossy finish, it is easily to leave fingerprints, however with just a shirtsleeve, you can wipe it off quickly. You should cover it with a case or a skin to fix its slipperiness.

The phone operates smoothly general tasks like chatting, using the GPS in apps like Uber or navigation. However, when you play a game for a long time, the LED flash’s area shall start heating up rapidly and an even simple game as Alto’s Odyssey can rise up the temperature. Yet the phone is still capable of controlling the heat after about 30 minutes of PUBG from when the entire phone’s body warmed up, also the heat does not spread outside that is too much.

At the bottom placed a single loudspeaker which is quite loud when getting max volume but it’s also easy to block with user’s palm when watching or playing games in the mode of landscape due to its positioning. The built-in headset are the same, its ear tips did not stay still in user’s ears and the sound is hollow and dull. There is no button to direct the music for playing back though it has a microphone for making calls.

De facto, the phone’s camera performs not bad though compared to that of the Nokia 5.1, its 13-megapixel primary sensor might be a step aside in resolution. The phone is featured with a f/2.0 aperture lens, a second 5-megapixel depth sensor and PDAF. The camera offers enough light and in the landscape shots, the sensor catch and forcefully hold good details. Unluckily, even with automatic HDR, it can not always catch the right exposure. When saving images, its closeups experience a bit of shutter lag causing noticeable blur around the objects’ edges at times. The blur that the secondary depth camera applied looks so artificial, also in portrait mode it does an average job at the edge detection. After taking shots, you can take a re-adjustment but not much in can salvage according to our experience. Speeds of focusing were dipped and suffered the most is landscapes in weak light. Additionally, under artificial lighting being decent the Macros.

Beauty mode is adjustable and the beautification is not too discordant. Masks available in additional camera features are not too much for us to choose and it can lay over faces of users for fun. You can shoot with the front and rear camera simultaneously thanks to Dual and P-I-P modes. There are both modes of manual and panorama.

By default, there’s can’t-be-switched-off stabilization and video recording climaxed 1080p. The shimmer effect was not too clear in sight due to electronic stabilization under good light but the video’s quality was quite poor at night. The Nokia 5.1 Plus featured with a slow-motion shooting that can capture 720p footage at 120 fps. Under good light, the selfie camera in the front of the phone is 8 megapixel which can capture decent selfies but when we needed the HDR kick in, it did not do. The screen flash works not too effectively at night.

Surprisingly, the battery life is good that helps us manage to go a full day on one charge with the capacity of just 3060mAh. We got a runtime of fourteen hours and over half of an hour in the test of HD video loop. In an hour, the battery could rise up to 56 percent thanks to the 10W adapter though there is no fast charging and it came to full charge only after a little more than 2 hours.

Conclusion

At the price of Rs. 10,999, the Nokia 5.1 Plus is a safe and good option. In this segment, many phones are now featured with higher resolution displays but the HD+ display on this phone is never found as an issue. However, it might be an issue with the hybrid dual-SIM slot particularly if users would like to use a microSD card and 2 SIMs. The video performed light poorly so it ranked under the average and in daylight shots, the light metering could have been better.

In this segment, however, the Nokia 5.1 Plus is one of the phones look most beautiful though its screen borders are thick and the notch is wide. Some features such as excellent battery life, a powerful processor, Android One programme and compact size are some are notable too.