the Nokia 8 has tremendous expectations on its shoulders and deservedly so - it is not only the first high-end smartphone from Nokia in years but is also the first ever Android flagship from the iconic Finnish company's stable. HMD Global, the company behind Nokia's comeback into the smartphone game has already released the Nokia 3, Nokia 5 and Nokia 6 - three budget smartphones which have met with positive reactions from both critics and consumers alike.
With the Nokia 8 however, the stakes are at a completely different level. The Nokia 8 has to compete with heavyweights like the Samsung Galaxy S8, Google Pixel, OnePlus 5 and to an extent even the iPhone 7. HMD Global has left no stone unturned in making sure their first ever Android flagship smartphone is up to the task - it is made out of premium materials, is powered by top of the line internals, comes with Carl Zeiss optics at the front as well as the back and runs on the latest version of Android out of the box.
Nokia 8 in a nutshell
Nokia's comeback into the smartphone market has revolved around three key factors - a laser sharp focus on design and build quality, stock Android and user experience. Having used the Nokia 8 for the past 5 days, I can, without any hesitation, say that Nokia has delivered on all these fronts with the Nokia 8. The smartphone does not have any killer feature or USP - no striking bezel less design as found on the Galaxy S8, no HTC U11 like audio features or an S Pen to take notes or perform nifty tricks a.l.a the Galaxy Note 8.
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That might be a downer for some. However, what the Nokia 8 does offer is a very solid, fluid and complete package wrapped in a gorgeous frame craved out of a single block of series 6000 aluminum. Apple proudly advertises the iPhone 8 with the tagline - "It just works" and no matter how cliched it sounds, that is the best way to describe the Nokia 8.
Nokia 8 not be as cutting edge as its rivals, but it surely feels special and does a lot of things, including all the essentials, right
The smartphone looks impeccable, is incredibly durable, has a very good in-hand feel thanks to its rounded corners and curved edges and is extremely fast, slick and fluid both in day to day use and when pushed thanks to stock Android and the powerful internals inside.
Elegant design
Let us break down every aspect of the Nokia 8. First, let's talk about the design. The Nokia 8 looks very classy and elegant - very Scandinavian so as to speak. There are no gaudy finishes or tacky paint jobs to be found here - just a slab of metal milled to precision. The antenna lines are very subtly integrated on the top and bottom of the rear panel which also houses the vertically mounted dual camera setup with the Carl Zeiss branding.
The front in an all-glass affair protected by Gorilla Glass 5 which has the Nokia logo on the top right, the 5.3-inch screen in the middle and the capacitive keys for home, back and multi-tasking on the bottom. Just like the Nokia 3 and Nokia 6, the 8 feels incredibly solid and sturdy and fit and finish is also top-notch. The ergonomics are also on point - everything falls to hand easily and the metal volume rocker and power button have a nice travel and feel.
The lack of a bezel-less design and an edge-to edge display are a bit disappointing. So is the lack of proper waterproofing - the Nokia 8 is only IP54 splash proof. However, keeping those qualms aside, the Nokia 8 looks very classy whilst being extremely durable. With the Nokia 8, HMD Global has managed to make a smartphone that looks modern while retaining the soul of Nokia smartphones of old.
Pure, untouched Android
When it comes to performance, the Nokia 8 does not disappoint. The combination of the Snapdragon 835 processor (which is arguably the best chipset available for Android smartphones currently) + 4GB of RAM + stock Android delivers fast, fluid and snappy performance across the board. We will have to see how the performance holds up with time in our full review but for now it seems that Nokia has delivered a smooth user experience.
The combination of the Snapdragon 835 processor and stock Android delivers fast and snappy performance across the board
The Nokia 8 comes with the latest version of Android - 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box with an update to Android 8.0 Oreo already in the works. In fact, Nokia claims that it will amongst the first, if not the first Android manufacturer apart from Google to update its smartphone line-up to Oreo. The software in board is butter smooth and free of any unneeded gesture, gimmick or bloat. It is Android in its purest sense. And that is how I and countless other folk like it.
In my 5 days of use, the Nokia 8 was also rock solid when it comes to reliability - no app crashes, bugs or any untoward behaviour.
Crisp, vivid and pixel-dense display
The display on the Nokia 8 is also very crisp, vivid and pixel-dense. The smartphone comes with a 5.3-inch Quad HD IPS LCD display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 and 700 Nits of maximum brightness. The display is one of the highlights of the smartphone - the viewing angles are on point, colours are punchy and the high brightness level ensures the screen is visible even in harsh sunlight. The relatively compact size of the display ensures that the smartphone has a higher pixel density (544 ppi) than most competing smartphones with Quad HD displays.
Nokia has also very cleverly implemented an always-on display on an LCD screen. Nokia's 'Glance Screen' shows the time and notifications whilst the screen is off which is a very nifty feature to have. This feature is usually implemented on an AMOLED display in which it is possible to switch individual pixels on and off which saves battery life.
However, even with the Glance Screen turned on, I got quite great battery life with the Nokia 8. I consistently got more a day's use out of the smartphone's 3090mAh battery. While a day's battery life is nothing to scoff at, some smartphones like the Galaxy S8 Plus and Pixel Xl offer better battery life. However, the Nokia 8 will also cost quite a bit less than these smartphones when it eventually launches in India.
