Nokia G60 5G Review. The Nokia G60 5G is the company’s best effort to yet in the low-cost 5G market. Nokia is back with another attempt.
It has a large front display and a distinctive rear panel that gives it a stylish appearance.
Nokia G60 5G Review:
It runs Android 12 out of the box. Its only real drawbacks are a pair of mediocre cameras that flank the much more spectacular 50Mp option and average performance.
Even yet, it’s difficult to picture anyone being especially dissatisfied with it for $329.99/£249.99.
Design & Build:
- Feels great in the hand
- Unique back panel texture
- Large display
The Nokia G60 5G is simply a step up from the Nokia C21 Plus and Nokia G21, which we evaluated last year and the year before, respectively.
It is solid, with no noticeable creaking to be heard anywhere, and at 190g, it is a perfect weight—not too light to feel cheap, but also not too hefty to feel like a brick.
The layout itself is rather standard: a large 6.58-inch display dominates the front, while a camera for selfies and facial recognition is hidden inside the bezel. A USB-C connector and a headphone jack (the latter of which seems to be exclusive to budget and mid-range smartphones these days) are located on the device’s bottom.
The rear panel itself is the main element that draws the eye, despite the vertically stacked trio of cameras that are contained under a fairly polished hump. It’s difficult to photograph, but I’ve tried with the Black colorway review unit. It has a slightly rough finish and what appear to be tiny bits of reflective metal inside the panel.
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Even while it’s not a typical “feature,” it undoubtedly makes the Nokia G60 5G stand out among many identical, cookie-cutter smartphones.
It’s also fantastic to notice that the back is made entirely of recycled plastic (with 60% going to the frame) and that a three-year warranty is included. Also, it has an IP52 rating, but that simply makes it splashproof
Screen & Speakers:
- 6.58in IPS panel
- 120Hz is a mixed bag
- Mono speaker lacks nuance
As 5G technology becomes more accessible, we’re starting to see larger and larger displays on entry-level and midrange 5G smartphones, but the Nokia G60 5G regretfully lacks OLED technology.
The IPS display’s 24001080 resolution, which is just above what you’d consider Full HD, makes it less easy to criticize than the C21 Plus or G21 before it. This makes it much easier to watch YouTube or your most recent Netflix binge on the train, but you’ll inevitably find more beautiful gadgets at higher price points. The colors are consistent throughout, but the blacks never quite have the correct depth (something OLED is wonderful for).
The Nokia G60 5G’s 120Hz refresh rate is a huge plus, but the implementation should be improved. The phone decides when you need that smoothness, so you can’t currently push that refresh rate to its maximum.
It implies it’s acceptable to scroll through websites and social media feeds, but you depend on your phone to track your activities to fully realize your potential. I suppose it’s mainly to prevent the battery life from dropping precipitously (more on that later).
Regrettably, you’re better off connecting your headphones for music playback, as we’ve observed with many Nokia phones (and mid-range options from other manufacturers). The single-bottom speaker simply lacks the necessary power to pick up any subtleties in the sound at all.
Specs & Performance:
- Snapdragon 695
- 4GB of RAM
- Up to 128GB storage
The higher network speeds and capabilities of mid-range phones, especially those with 5G chips like the Motorola Moto G82 5G, can make up for a lack of on-device power.
The Nokia G60 5G won’t rival flagships or more expensive options, it’s true, but I’m happy to report that there’s enough power there that the phone feels adequate.
This has been made possible by Qualcomm’s mid-range Snapdragon 695, which comes with 64GB or 128GB of storage. Make sure not to load too many apps at once because there is only 4GB of RAM available.
I was most impressed with the gaming performance, but scrolling through emails, tweeting, and responding to messages were all as fluid as you’ll find anywhere else.
Although I was able to wind down with some Genshin Impact, Wild Rift, Legends of Runeterra, and Marvel Snap at the end of the day without the phone ever feeling sluggish, you won’t be hitting 120fps on that enormous screen.
Cameras:
- 50Mp main camera
- 5Mp Ultrawide
- 2Mp depth camera
- Solid night performance
- The main camera is great for this price range
On the attractive rear panel, there may be three cameras, but alas, there is undoubtedly one that stands out as the golden child.
The 5Mp ultrawide is good at framing your intended subject with sufficient detail from the background, but the depth camera isn’t very helpful for capturing portrait photos.
Luckily, the 50Mp main sensor more than lives up to expectations. The amount of detail it was able to capture both in the daytime and on a cold night amazed me when I tested it in snowy Montreal. I would admit that getting the perfect alignment for those dark-mode images takes some work.
software & Apps:
- Stock Android 12
- Three years of updates to come
The fact that Nokia doesn’t bloat its more cheap hardware with bloatware is one of its better features. Many manufacturers add a lot of items to delete, including strange third-party partner apps and social apps you may have never heard of.
The nokia g60 5G offers stock Android 12 and is still highly user-friendly (although 13 is the latest version). Positively, the programs are neatly uncluttered even after the first setup, and they are immediately usable.
The drawback is that, unlike the minimalist Moto overlay, it doesn’t provide anything genuinely novel on top, but I’ll take the straightforward design over potential gimmicks any day.
In contrast to many more expensive phones, Nokia offers three years of OS upgrades. Cheap phones frequently don’t get upgrades as promised.
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Price & Availability:
For the features offered, the Nokia G60 5G is quite inexpensive at just £249.99 when purchased from Nokia.
In the UK, you can also get it through John Lewis, Argos, and Amazon.com. Although it isn’t formally offered in the US, you may get an international version from Amazon for $329.
There are two variations, each with 64GB and 128GB of storage space. The extra capacity will cost you a bit more, but even then it’s still a wonderful deal, and you may choose between Black or Ice as your color. No matter which version you choose, 4GB of RAM is included.
This indicates that the less expensive model only qualifies as a budget phone. Nonetheless, there are many excellent midrange phones available at a reasonable price.
Specs:
- Android 12
- 6.58in 20:9 LCD display with 120Hz refresh rate
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G
- 4GB RAM
- 64/128GB internal storage
- 8MP front camera
- 50MP main camera, 5MP Ultrawide camera, 2MP depth camera
- Fingerprint scanner
- Face Recognition
- 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax-ready (2.4/5G dual band)
- Bluetooth 5.1
- GPS
- NFC
- 5G
- Headphone jack
- USB-C
- 4500mAh non-removable battery
- 20W fast charging
- IP52 dust & waterproof rating
- 8.61mmx165.99mx75.93mm
- 190g
- Launch colours: Black or Ice
