HMD Global, the maker of Nokia phones, unveiled last week the Nokia 7.1, a midrange Android smartphone priced at just $350 (Amazon, Best Buy, B&H) for 64GB of storage - expandable up to 400GB with a microSD Card.
The Nokia 7.1 has a 5.8-inch Full HD+ display that supports the viewing of HDR10 (high dynamic range) content, showing a greater range contrast and better color accuracy which translates to greater clarity and more detail in the shadows and highlights.
“Almost 2/3 of videos around the world are viewed on mobile which is why we’ve introduced our PureDisplay screen technology, to give everyone a premium viewing experience on a smartphone,” said Juho Sarvikas, HMD Global’s Chief Product Officer at the launch event in London. “The Nokia 7.1 even offers real-time SDR to HDR conversion, meaning you can experience HDR quality entertainment, even when your content is not.”
Nokia’s latest midrange, which replaces the Nokia 7 that was launched last year exclusively in China, has 12-megapixel and 5-megapixel dual rear cameras with ZEISS Optics and an 8-megapixels front cameras that can be used simultaneously in a dual sight camera mode, and which captures both you and your subject in a split screen image or video – also called a bothie.
Other notable features of the Nokia 7.1 include a dual-SIM tray, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a USB type-C fast charging port that can charge up to 50% of the 3060mAh battery in 30 minutes and a “pure” version of Android 8.1 (Oreo) part of Google’s Android One programme.
Under Android One, the device will receive 3 years of monthly security patches and 2 years of Android updates.
Atherton Research’s Take
With its hardware capabilities (a 5.8-inch PureDisplay screen, camera, fast charging, dual-SIM, expandable memory, and audio jack), Android One support and a $350 price tag, the Nokia 7.1 stands out from the rest of the midrange phones under $400 including the LG G6, LG Q7+ or Motorola X4.
However, for the price, Nokia could have used a more modern processor than the year-old Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 and added some water resistance to the device.
