The Nokia 3.1 is, for lack of better words, a ‘real’ Nokia. It looks and feels like the Nokias of old… although we’d need to test if it could survive a tumble down a flight of stairs to be sure, otherwise is it really worthy of the Nokia name?
Now owned by a company called HMD Global, Nokia’s back on its smartphone game with the likes of the Nokia 8 Sirocco, Nokia 6.1, and the brand new, notch-touting X6 due later this month. The 3.1 continues the trend of Nokia making quality handsets and then pricing them well below many competitors’ equivalent offerings.
The 3.1 packs a large 5.2in HD+ Gorilla Glass 3 display — a similar size display to the Samsung A5 — and runs a MediaTek 6750 octa-core chipset, which should manage most apps pretty effortlessly.
Like its siblings, the Nokia 3.1 is part of the Android One group (basically Google’s endorsed handsets that run vanilla, unadulterated Android) and will ship with Android Oreo — yeah, a little confusing, we know.
Android Oreo gives users access to the whole Google Suite, like Google Assistant, YouTube, Maps and Google Photos — an essential for all phone users if you ask us, because if you’re willing to deal with a little compression you can enjoy unlimited image store for free. Although the 3.1 will ship with Android Oreo, it will be Android Pie ready (Google’s latest mobile operating system that’s not available to select devices, including the Nokia 7 Plus) straight outta the box.
The Nokia 3.1 is available in blue/copper or black/chrome hues, and is available for purchase from MTN and Vodacom and other retailers for R2,300.