Even though this phone isn’t Nokia’s flagship phone, it still has some pretty high-end features for a mid-range phone. The long wait after the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2018 finally ended with the Nokia 7 Plus being launched at the HMD Global event today, April 4.
This Nokia phone hasn’t shed its 3.5mm headphone jack, which is a delight for audiophiles that need to use their wired headsets. Also, its partnership with Zeiss ensures that the phone’s camera is a delight to use. And since the phone can only be used if its charged, the 3,800mAH battery promises to give two days of usability according to the company.
The hands-on should give you a brief preview of our first impressions of the phone, but be sure to come back for a more detailed analysis of the phone.
Whether or not the phone overs value for money at Rs 25,999 in yet to be seen.
Release date and price
The Nokia 7 Plus is going to hit the market on April 30, though you can start pre-booking from April 20. The phone is going to cost Rs 25,999 and will be available on Amazon, Nokia Mobile Shop and select retail outlets.
Design and display
The phone looks big but since it’s so slim, it keeps the phone from looking bulky.
Once the phone is in your hands, you can see how the being carved out of a single block aluminium makes the phone feel solid but, unlike the Nokia 6 (2018), the back of the phone has been coated in six layers of paint. So instead of being smooth, the phone has a in-between texture making it difficult to determine whether the rear of the phone is made from metal or plastic.
The color accents along the sides of the phone make it look more premium than mid-range. The fingerprint scanner of the phone is around the back which isn’t too hard to reach.
Before actually seeing the phone, the though that operating it with one hand would be cumbersome does cross your mind but, fortunately, that isn't the case.
The 3.5mm headphone is, of course, welcomed, since Nokia’s flagship model, the Nokia 8 Sirocco, chose to get rid of the feature altogether. Not that it's a bad idea, but it does turn into a barrier between your favorite pair of headphones and your smartphone.
The display of the phone is considerably large at 6-inches and flirts with phones in the phablet segment. It looks ideal for watching movies or playing games. As amazing at the Nokia 7 Plus' LCD screen is, you can't help that the phone deserved an AMOLED display since the screen visibility is hampered in sunlight.
Back of the Nokia 7 Plus
Camera and battery
The Nokia 7 Plus camera with Zeiss lenses comes with a dual rear setup. There’s a primary 12MP sensor and a 13MP telephoto lens, which is used to make the Boken effect happen. The sensors are vertically stacked at the back the phone, right above the fingerprint sensor.
This is pretty impressive because the camera specs are the same as Nokia's flagship phone, the Nokia Sirocco 8.
Vertical dual-camera set up
The camera app has a bunch of options including the Live Bokeh effect allowing users to check the Bokeh effect on their device before clicking the final photo and, more importantly, the Pro mode, allowing users to customize their shooting options.
The selfie camera can record in FHD (full HD), where as the primary camera of the phone can record in UHD (ultra HD) 4K.
The phone has a surprising 3,800mAh battery that should ideally, according to HMD Global, last for 2 days on a single charge. A more in-depth review of the phone will tell us whether or not that guarantee actually holds true.
Charging port
Performance and interface
One of the things that HMD Global is known for is that, its the only original equipment manager (OEM) to exclusively provide Stock Android devices. The Nokia 7 Plus follow suit in that trend running a pure version of Android Oreo without a bulky customized interface on top.
Being part of the Android One program, the Nokia devices have the advantage of receiving timely updates in terms of the interface as well as security.
Nokia 7 Plus interface
Other than that, the Nokia 7 Plus runs on the Snapdragon 660 chipset paired with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage, which is, of course, expandable to 256GB using a microUSB card.
The Nokia 7, in comparison, ran on the Snapdragon 630, which isn't nearly as powerful as the 660. The former functions on a Cortex cores, while the latter is equipped by Kryo 260 cores.
How this difference plays out on the actual phone, will be seen when we do a more detailed analysis.
Nokia 7 Plus camera app
Early verdict
The phone seems impressive with its specs but might be a little pricey for the Indian smartphone market at Rs 25,999. In this segment, the Nokia 7 Plus will be in competition with the Vivo V9, Oppo F7, Moto X4, and Samsung A8 Plus,
What leaves us wondering is the fact that the Nokia 8, which was launched last year costs Rs 27,999 while running on a far superior chipset, the Snapdragon 835. Both the phones have a 4GB RAM and 64GB of storage, albeit, the Nokia 7 Plus does have a dual camera and a bigger battery. We'll have to try the phone out to know if it's worth the buck.