Nokia’s back from the dead. They’ve been putting out some great phones recently, which is why you’re interested in 2017’s Nokia 6.
Before you hit the store, why don’t you give our review a try? Everything’s at your fingertips!
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The Nokia 6 is reminiscent of phones from the Lumia series as it’s edges are block like. Although great, its rectangular nature comes with a disadvantage- it’s hard to hold. You’ll feel its edges dig into your palm time and time again. In fact, it can get pretty uncomfortable.
The phone is built from aluminum. It’s 6000 series aluminum so it’s sturdy. Being 169 g, it has a bit of weight to it. This adds onto its premium feel. Due to its metal back, you’ll never have to worry about fingerprints again.
Nokia’s vertical branding and position of its camera makes the phone even more Lumia like. We’re all for its chrome housed camera, but it protrudes from the phone quite a bit. Thankfully, phone cases are a thing.
That being said, this striking similarity isn’t unique to the Nokia 6. A lot of Nokia phones (post Lumia) resemble their Lumia forefathers in a way.
Moving on:
Its keys are very tactile and easy to reach, but its headphone jack is on the top of the device. Honestly, phones like this aren’t my favorite, but I’ve grown accustomed to it.
The home key has a fingerprint scanner. It’s fast and responsive, so we have no complaints.
The phone has large bezels. However, its sides mesh with the frame of the phone.
It has a 5.5-inch screen. Although considerable, the device has a screen to body ratio of 71.2% which is poor by today’s standards.
The display is LCD and is FHD+. If we had a rupee for every phone that could’ve come with AMOLED panels but didn’t, we’d be the richest people in Sri Lanka. The FHD+ allows colors to pop, which is appreciated- don’t get us wrong.
You get an especially great viewing experience as its screen 2.5 D curved glass. The glass is Gorilla Glass 3 which means it’s pretty sturdy, but in 2020, Gorilla Glass 3 is replaced by the 6.
We all know how harsh the Sri Lankan sun is which is why you won’t have issues using the Nokia 6 outdoors. Its screen has a polarizer layer that limits glare.
The Nokia 6 comes with the Snapdragon 430 chip. If you know anything about processors, you know that the 430 is a less than great chip. This doesn’t mean the Nokia 6 is impossible to use, just that with excessive use, you’ll definitely have a limited experience.
Regular game play is alright, but once things get extensive, the phone starts to heat up. In fact, games can take a while to load and stutter every now and then.
Most noticeably, the phone lags if you quickly move between apps.
All of this is influenced by the phone’s RAM. It has 3 gigs of RAM, as well as a variant with 4 GBs. This isn’t surprising for its price point.
The phone has 32 GB of storage, with a version that comes with 64 gigs. This isn’t bad either, but we’re happy that you can expand this to a 128 gigs with a microSD card.
You get stock android with the Nokia 6, which all of you android purists would love. It came with Android Oreo, but you can rock Android Pie on it. If you’re excited for Android 10, the Nokia 6 won’t be getting the update.
Like its processor, its battery is pretty adequate. The phone comes with a 3000 mAh battery which is non removable. 3000 mAh isn’t the largest battery out there, but the Nokia 6 provides 18 hours of talk time (3 G). With moderate to light use, expect the phone to last the whole day.
For a phone at this price point, you’d expect fast charging. Get ready to be disappointed as the Nokia 6 doesn’t come with this feature. Its charging is very, very slow. It takes about half an hour to go from 0-10%. For a full charge, it can take up to 6 hours to get this done.
If you’re planning on being glued to your phone all day, not only would its battery drain fast, charging it back up would be pain staking.
The Nokia 6 Has a 16 MP rear camera. Usually, you see dual or triple cameras on phones these days, so this is refreshing.
The 16 MP camera is on a chrome block which adds quite a bit of a bump, as mentioned. The camera captures a fair amount of details when shot in good light. It struggles a lot in low light though. Of course, for a phone at this price point, we weren’t expecting the world from its camera.
The number of camera modes you can work with is limited. There’s no pro or manual mode, which means you can’t adjust shots to your liking.
That being said, its camera app is pretty easy to use.
In terms of its front camera, a 8 MP lens is present. It’s very similar to the rear one as it’s adequate in well-lit settings, but horrible in low light.
That being said, the Nokia 6’s HDR packs a punch.
With that done with, it’s only right that we run through a couple of its competitors. So, let’s get to it.
The Samsung J7 rocks a similar build to the Nokia 6. They both have aluminum unibodies. The J7 is also made from 6000 series aluminum, in case you’re wondering.
You get a 5.5 inch screen, which is identical to the 6. They both have less than great screen to body ratios though. Then again, 2017 was a time where bezels were common place. The J7 has a ratio of 73.1%, if you’re wondering.
Get ready for a surprise:
The J7 has a Super AMOLED display. This means colors are extremely vivid and much livelier than the Nokia 6’s.
The J7 has a better battery. Its is 3600 mAh and can go from 0-100% in about 2 and a half hours.
In terms of battery life, the J7 is superior. It provides 24 hours of talk time (3 G).
It doesn’t come with a Snapdragon processor. Instead, you get an Exynos chip. It comes with the Exynos 7870 Octo Core processor which is stronger than the Nokia’s 430 chip. For comparison, 7870 processor can out clock the Snapdragon 635.
The Nokia 6.1 is basically a new and improved Nokia 6. It has a 3000 mAh battery like its counterpart, but it comes with fast charge. The phone can go from 0-30% in half an hour which is an improvement by leaps and bounds.
That being said, its battery isn’t as great as it provides a 16 h talk time on 3G.
It also comes with a 5.5 inch LCD FHD+ screen. Its screen to body ratio is more flattering, but only by 2%.
Instead of the snapdragon 430, you get the much faster snapdragon 630. You also have more RAM as the device is 4 GB.
It rocks an aluminum unibody too, but the 6.1 is heavier. It’s 172 g while the Nokia 6 is 169.
If you want Android 10, the 6.1 is getting the upgrade.
On paper, it’s clear the 6.1 has the same front and back camera, but amped up. For example, you see a 16 MP 27 nm wide lens instead of a 1 nm one. This isn’t true just on paper as the 6.1 provides better pictures, especially in low light.
So, what’s the verdict?
We think that the Nokia 6 is an okay phone, and that’s it. We know that it’s a budget device, but this is not an excuse. For example, the J7 comes with a Super AMOLED panel while the Nokia 6 does not.
That being said, the 6 comes with a polarized screen which is pretty handy, especially in Sri Lanka. It also feels nice in the hand, but its sharp edges can stab you.
Its Snapdragon 430 chip is alright and makes way for adequate use. However, it can lag if you let it.
The phone comes with 3/4 GBs of RAM which is good, but what’s even better is the fact that you can transform storage capacity to 128 GB with a microSD card.
The device has a camera fit for a phone at its price point, so we can’t really complain.
It also comes with stock android, which many of you are fans of. However, if you’re looking to get Android 10, know that the 6 won’t be getting the update.
Touching more on the negatives:
Its battery power is alright, but it takes hours to charge. This means if you’re always on the go, you’ll struggle with the Nokia 6 by your side.
Although it looks promising, at the end of the day, the phone is a ‘meh’ device. Yes, you should give Nokia a try, but maybe not the 6.
So, what do you think? Let’s get talking! I’ll put the kettle on.
