HMD Global has officially unveiled the new Nokia 8.1 – a successor to Nokia 7 Plus. Originally the phone was launched in China in October as Nokia X7. So it’s not a new phone and none other phone was announced unlike it was expected.
There was a great hype about this launch event from Nokia and people were expecting more than one phone. In fact Nokia did tease earlier that new Nokia “phones” are coming soon amid the speculations of Nokia 9 with penta-lens camera. However the event ended up with just a relaunch of a China specific model of Nokia X7 in the global market with a different name, as Nokia 8.1.
Hardware Features
Nokia 8.1 maintains everything from within what Nokia X7 has to offer. In fact the global Nokia 8.1 has only one configuration option that is 4GB RAM and 64GB internal storage, whereas the X7 comes with an additional configuration option – 6GB RAM and 128GB storage.
Dubbed as PureDisplay, the new Nokia 8.1 features a 6.18-inch FHD+ IPS display. It runs the latest Android 9 Pie operating system under Android One program. Nokia 8.1 is powered by the Snapdragon 710 chipset with an octa-core processor. You must note here that instead of last year’s Nokia 8 the new 8.1 is a successor to the Nokia 7 Plus. The original Nokia 8 (review) was succeeded by the Nokia 8 Sirocco launched earlier this year.
The phone features a 3500 mAh battery with fast charging support via the bundled 18W charger. Thankfully, the phone comes with the USB 3.0 Type-C connectivity.
Camera and Imaging
Nokia 8.1 features a dual-camera – the main 12MP 1/2.55″ super sensitive sensor with 1.4 micron pixels and Zeiss Optics. Less specified, the secondary 13MP camera has a fixed-focus lens. The camera indeed equips with an Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) for less shaky images. The system also offers Pro mode for manual shooting.
The 20MP on the front is said to be an “adaptive” camera that lets you capture the “ultimate night-time selfie, as it enhances how much light it is able to capture by combining four pixels into one super pixel.” The camera supports 4K video capture with high fidelity Nokia spatial audio stereo surround sound recording.
The camera software offers features like studio-style portrait, bokeh effect – enhanced with the native shallow depth of field achieved by the secondary 13MP depth sensor. The Bothie feature now comes with AI-powered 3D personas, masks and fun filters in your photos and videos. That all you can live stream directly from within the native camera app.
Nokia 8.1 Specifications
- OS: Android 9.0 Pie, Android One
- Design: 154.8 x 75.76 x 7.97 mm
- Weight: 180 grams
- Display: 6.18-inch IPS display, 1080 x 2280 pixels, 1:1500 contrast ratio
- 19:9 aspect ratio
- ~81.3% screen-to-body ratio),
- ~408 ppi density
- Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 (SDM710) 10 nm process
- CPU: Octa-core
- 2×2.2 GHz Kryo 360 Gold
- 6×1.7 GHz Kryo 360 Silver
- GPU: Adreno 616
- CPU: Octa-core
- Design:
- Weight: 180 g (6.35 oz)
- Memory:
- RAM: 4/6 GB
- Internal: 64/128 GB
- Card slot: yes, microSD, up to 400 GB (uses SIM 2 slot)
- Camera:
- Main Dual:
- Primary: 12 MP, f/1.8, 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, Zeiss optics, dual-LED dual-tone flash)
- Secondary: 13 MP Fixed Focus
- Video: 4K/2160p @30fps, 1080p@30fps – Gyro EIS (Electronic Stabilization)
- Front Camera: 20 MP, f/2.0, 0.9µm
- Main Dual:
- Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G – LTE Cat. 6, 2CA, L+L, VoLTE, VoWiFi
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS/AGPS+GLONASS+Beidou
- Colors: Blue/Silver, Steel/Copper, and Iron/Steel
- Battery: Non-removable Li-Ion 3500 mAh
- Price: €400 / ~$450 / ~PKR 62,500
Nokia 8.1 Price and Availability
The Nokia 8.1 was announced for global markets and will be available in mid-December. The phone will be available in three colour options – Iron/Steel, Steel/Copper, and Blue/Silver.
The company tagged it with price of €400, or roughly $450. That makes it around PKR 62,500/- in Pakistan according to current rupee value. However, unfortunately, it looks like you are gonna pay a good premium for this phone in the country. The phone is already listed on Nokia Pakistan portal for PKR 69,000, around $500.
As the availability of the phone is not confirmed yet, you can expect this listed price to change later. Keep the unstable Pakistan Rupee value into consideration, probably which is the reason the company has listed the phone at higher price tag.
Regional availability will be revealed via regional announcements, however no words were heard for the phone to reach North America.
