Friends+Design
- Feels more expensive than it is, and is well-designed - it's that rare budget Android phones that will elicit responses such as “wow” and “this looks great”
- Has a polycarbonate back, and the matte texture makes it great to hold the device - the rounded edges and the slightly curved spine help too
- The metal frame only goes on to accentuate the premium feeling and adds a generous amount of solidity to the overall structure
- This could have been a big phone, with a 6-inch display, but the footprint has been kept well in check, with minimal bezels
Display
- Good, modern, notch-less 6-inch HD+ display - it impresses from the outset in terms of vividness, brightness, viewing angles and crispness
Software
- On the software side of things, the Nokia 3.1 Plus comes with clean, simple, stock Android out of the box - the software experience itself is identical to what you'd find on any HMD device today, and like all Android One devices, the Nokia 3.1 Plus will receive platform updates for two years and three years' worth of security updates
Performance
- Decent performance in day-to-day use - with a Helio P22 processor at the core (similar to a Snapdragon 625) - daily use is reasonably smooth and generally lag free (having a bloat-free stock Android version helps) - having said that though, there are definitely better performing phones in this bracket such as the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro and Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1
Camera
- While the rear dual cameras and the front camera do pretty ok in good lighting conditions with good colors, the low light performance is weak - focus also doesn’t always lock in correctly, and you need to manually force the issue - also, if the lighting is inconsistent, the camera’s capture speeds slows down a bit, which means you need to hold the phone steady for a second longer after tapping the shutter button - overall the camera performance is the weak link in the Nokia 3.1 Plus package - and it leaves you looking for more
Battery
- Very good battery life - the combination of a 3500mAh battery, a 720p screen, and simple software - means that the Nokia 3.1 Plus does quite well in the battery life department - even with heavy use, the phone will last over a day, and with lighter use, you can make it last 2 days, and that for a big screen phone, is a genuine positive
More
- Overall, while the Nokia 3.1 Plus is quite likeable on account of it's design, and software, and excellent battery life - it's not the most competitive phone in this price bracket (especially in terms of performance, and camera) - and it will face some stiff competition from the top phones in this price bracket - the likes of the Mi A2, Redmi Note 5, Redmi 6 Pro, and the Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1
