HMD Global, official maker of Nokia-branded smartphones, has unveiled a refreshed version of last year’s Nokia 6 smartphone at Mobile World Congress. This year’s update brings some modest specification improvements, as well as slight design changes and the introduction of Android One.
The phone launched in China earlier this year, but the model announced at MWC is the global version. It’s unclear what countries the Nokia 6 will head to, but here’s what you need to know.
Design and display
The bezels on the 2018 Nokia 6 are marginally smaller than its predecessor, but it still improves the look greatly. The fingerprint sensor has moved to the rear to accomodate for the smaller bezels on the front. We recently saw Honor bring the bezel-less future to the budget market with the Honor 7X, and mid-range phones like the OnePlus 5T have seen the bezel-less trend expand beyond flagship phones like the LG V30, the Galaxy S8, and the iPhone X. There are plenty of options here for mid-range or budget bezel-less phones.
While the body of the 2018 Nokia 6 is slightly smaller than its predecessor, you wouldn’t notice the difference unless you held the devices side by side. The Nokia 6 is still made from a single aluminum unibody, with a metal frame surrounding the body.
The display in the 2018 Nokia 6 is similar to last year’s model. It sports the same 5.5-inch FHD display with a 16:9 aspect ratio. Screen resolution comes in at a standard 1,920 x 1,080 pixels.
Specifications and software
The internal changes on the 2018 Nokia 6 aren’t as subtle. The Snapdragon 430 core on last year’s Nokia 6 has been upgraded to a Snapdragon 630 for 2018, which should offer up to a 60 percent bump in performance. Two different configurations are available: One with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, or 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. A MicroSD slot is available and can support up to 128GB of external storage. There’s also a 3,000mAh battery on board.
Don’t expect a huge change for the camera on the updated Nokia 6, though. The rear camera is the same 16-megapixel lens, now with Zeiss optics. The 8 megapixel front-facing camera features an 84-degree wide-angle lens. You’ll also find Dual-sight technology on the Nokia 6. With Dual-sight you can use the front and rear-facing cameras simultaneously to create “bothies,” which is a photo take with both cameras.
The Nokia 6 will be a part of the Android One lineup, which means it features stock Android 8.0 Oreo with no bloatware, and access to fast software updates.
Pricing and availability
The Nokia 6 will launch in April 2018, and it will cost 280 euros. There’s no word on a U.S. launch just yet, but it’s likely considering the 2017 Nokia 6 was one of few to make it stateside.
Updated on February 25: Confirmed information with HMD for global release.