Nokia 7: Here is how the latest smartphone by HMD Global fares against the competition

HMD Global, the company that holds the exclusive rights to make Nokia-branded smartphones has launched its latest smartphone — the Nokia 7 — in the Chinese market.

Image credit: HMD Global

Image credit: HMD Global

Nokia 7 joins the line up of HMD Global's Android-powered Nokia handsets but it is the first one to come with a glass back. The company has priced the device starting from CNY 2,499 (approx Rs 25,000) for the 4 GB RAM variant up to CNY 2,699 (approx Rs 27,000) for the 6 GB RAM variant.

The Nokia 7 will be available for purchase starting 24 October in China. The company has not announced the pricing and availability details for other countries at the time of writing. The device comes with a 7000-series aluminum frame with a diamond-cut bevelled edges and the glass back is a vacuum moulded 3D Corning Gorilla Glass. The phone comes with IP 54 certification making it splash-proof and it will be available in Gloss Black and Matte White colours.

Image credit: HMD Global

Image credit: HMD Global

In terms of internal hardware, the Nokia 7 sports an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 processor clocked at 2.2 GHz along with Adreno 508 GPU and 4 GB or 6 GB RAM. It is equipped with 64 GB of internal storage which is expandable using a microSD card. The smartphone comes with a 5.2-inch FHD IPS LCD display with a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. It runs Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box and HMD Global has promised an Android Oreo update soon.

Image credit: HMD Global

Image credit: HMD Global

With the launch of Nokia 7, we thought that it is good time to pit the device against its competition. So, we selected Nokia 7, Moto G5S Plus, Xiaomi Mi A1, and Huawei Honor 9i. The reason we selected these smartphones is that most of these devices run Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 series (or the custom-made equivalents) and are in the same price bracket.

All these smartphones are considered mid-range devices from competing smartphone makers. Bear in mind that we're still not done testing some of these smartphones, so we're currently comparing them going only by their specifications on paper. A real-world test should follow soon.

Smartphone Nokia 7 Moto G5S Plus Xiaomi Mi A1 Huawei Honor 9i
Display Size (inch) 5.2 5.5 5.5 5.9
Resolution (pixels) 1,080 x 1,920 1,080 x 1,920 1,080 x 1,920 1,080 x 2,160
Pixel Density (PPI) 424 401 403 409
Display Type IPS LCD IPS LCD LTPS IPS LCD IPS LCD
Dimensions(mm) 141.2x71.5x7.9 153.5x76.2x8 155.4x75.8x7.3 157×77.5×7
Weight (gm) TBA 168 165 164
Dual SIM Yes Yes Yes Yes
SIM Type Nano-SIM Nano-SIM Nano-SIM Nano-SIM
Connectivity Types GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE GSM / HSPA / LTE GSM / CDMA / LTE GSM / CDMA / LTE / VoLTE
Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 HiSilicon Kirin 659
CPU Cores Octa-core Octa-core Octa-core Octa-core
CPU Clock Speed (GHz) 8x Cortex-A53 @ up to 2.2 GHz 8 Cortex A53 @ 2.0 GHz 8x Cortex-A53 @ 2.0 GHz 4× Cortex-A53 @ up to 2.36
GPU Adreno 508 Adreno 506 Adreno 506 Mali-T830 MP2
RAM 6 GB, 4 GB 4 GB 4GB 4GB
On-Board Memory 64 GB 64 GB 64 GB 64GB
Expandable Memory Yes, up to 256 GB Yes, up to 128 GB Yes, up to 128 GB Yes, up to 128 GB
Sensors Fingerprint, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Proximity, Compass Fingerprint, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Proximity, Compass Fingerprint, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Proximity, Compass, Infrared Fingerprint, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Proximity, Compass, Ambient Sensor, Sar Sensor
Primary Camera 16 MP, f/1.8 13 MP, f/2.0, 13 MP, f/2.0 12 MP, f/2.2 and 12 MP, f/2.6 16MP, 2 MP
Optical Image Stabilization TBA No No No
Autofocus System Phase detection Phase detection Phase detection Phase detection
Secondary Camera 5 MP, f/2.0 8 MP, f/2.0 5 MP, f/2.0 13MP, 2MP
Video Capture 4K 4K 4K 1080p
Flash Dual-LED Dual-LED Dual-LED LED
OS Version Android 7.1.1 Android 7.1 Nougat Android One 7.1.2 Android 7.0 Nougat
AI (Smart Assistant) Google Assistant Google Assistant Google Assistant Yes, Google Assistant
Wi-Fi Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Hotspot Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
Bluetooth v5, A2DP, LE v4.2, A2DP, LE, EDR v4.2, A2DP, LE v4.2, A2DP, LE
NFC Yes Yes No No
Fingerprint Scanner Yes, Rear button Yes, Home button Yes, Rear button Yes, Rear button
3.5mm jack Yes Yes Yes Yes
Radio Yes Yes Yes Yes
USB Type Type-C Reversible connector microUSB v2.0 Type-C Reversible connector Type-C Reversible connector
USB Standard USB v2.0 USB v2.0 USB v2.0 USB 2.0
Battery (mAh) 3,000 3,000 3,080 3,340
Fast Charging Yes Yes Yes TBA
Colors Gloss Black, Matt White Lunar Gray, Fine Gold Black, Gold, Rose Gold Prestige Gold, Aurora blue, Graphite Black
Prices in India TBA Rs 15,999 Rs 14,999 Rs 17,999

Published Date: Oct 21, 2017 08:54 am | Updated Date: Oct 21, 2017 10:04 am