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Nokia 8: Is this the true OnePlus 5 killer?

Sahil Bhalla | Updated on: 26 September 2017, 18:58 IST
(Sahil Bhalla/Catch News)
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The #Nokia8 is a truly compelling smartphone that comes in at very competitive Rs 36,999
Nokia needs a winner on its hands. At Rs 36,999, the Nokia 8 may just be the one for HMD Global

HMD Global, the company now entrusted with bringing Nokia back into the limelight, had a grand launch in London on 16 August for the Nokia 8. Media from across the world was flown in and given the first chance to test out the flagship smartphone from Nokia. Most people, if not all, were mighty impressed.

A month later, Nokia set 26 September for the grand unveiling in India. All that was unknown was the price.

Fierce competition

OnePlus 5, the latest offering from the Chinese smartphone company was also launched to much fanfare on 22 June. They launched two variants. The 6GB + 64GB one went for sale at just Rs 32,999. The more expensive 8GB + 128GB version retailed for Rs 37,999.

The other recent launch was the Mi Mix 2 from another Chinese company Xiaomi. They haven't launched in India yet, but the smartphone has already wowed people with its gorgeous design. The price is expected to be kept under 40k.

Both Xiaomi and OnePlus have an immense number of fans across the country, a fact evidenced by the number of non-media attendees at these events, and the fact that they refuse to buy a smartphone from any other company. It's also worth it to point out that they've been able to capture a large market share by producing phones that are solid budget and mid-range devices.

Nokia had its fans back in the day, but after its Windows Phone fiasco, it lost almost all of them. Now that Nokia is back with a bang and touting stock Android, it'll take some time to win back customer loyalty.

Under the hood

Coming back to the Nokia 8. It has most, if not all, flagship features one can expect. It's got a 5.3-inch Quad HD display that is protected by 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass. It's got Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 835 processor. It's also equipped with 4GB RAM (6GB variant launching next month). It's got 64GB inbuilt storage (with a larger storage variant coming next month).

The phone comes with dual 13-megapixel sensors (with optical image stabilisation) and is powered by ZEISS. There is a single 13-megapixel shooter on the front.

It runs stock Android, which means it has Android Nougat 7.1.1, with a promise of Android Oreo 8.0 before the end of the year. Under the hood, it also has a 3,090 mAh battery, sufficient for a day's worth of juice and supports Quick Charge 3.0.

The only thing missing might be the bezel-less display that is all the craze these days among smartphone manufacturers.

When HMD Global announced that the Nokia 8 was coming to India, speculation was rife that it would be priced about Rs 40,000 and wouldn't sell as much as the company would like. Also, the fact that Nokia 6 was a 'laggy' smartphone contributed to the fear that Nokia 8, despite its flagship specifications, may fall behind the competition in terms of performance.

A winning return?

The Nokia 3, 5 & 6, were all budget and mid-range phones but were overpriced for what they were worth. Will the Nokia 8 fit into the same category?

HMD Global put all those fears to rest and surprised everyone with a price of Rs 36,999 for its flagship smartphone. Not one person was dismayed at that figure. Everyone was buoyed. The camera is far better than on any of the other 'comeback' Nokia phones and the performance is a true winner.

The only thing left for Nokia is to market the smartphone aggressively and win back customer loyalty in the Indian market.

First published: 26 September 2017, 18:58 IST
 
Sahil Bhalla @IMSahilBhalla

Sahil is a correspondent at Catch. A gadget freak, he loves offering free tech support to family and friends. He studied at Sarah Lawrence College, New York and worked previously for Scroll. He selectively boycotts fast food chains, worries about Arsenal, and travels whenever and wherever he can. Sahil is an unapologetic foodie and a film aficionado.