New Nokia P1 (AKA Nokia 8) WILL Launch Inside Q2 2017

Nokia returns to the mobile space with the Nokia 3, Nokia 5 and Nokia 6. But the Nokia 8 is the one we're all waiting for...

Nokia’s MWC 2017 campaign was pretty impressive. The company announced a trio of Android phones – the Nokia 3, Nokia 5 and Nokia 6 – that are designed exclusively to cause massive ripples in the mid-range segment of the market place.

This segment – the sub-£250 bracket – is a very lucrative segment for phone makers, though competition is fierce. Brands like the Moto G line and other equally impressive mid-range Android phones, like the one’s listed here, battle for supremacy and constantly redefine what constitutes an “affordable Android phone”.

Now the Nokia 3, Nokia 5 and Nokia 6 are present and accounted for, all eyes are on what Nokia’s doing for its BIG, flagship release – the Nokia 8 (which is apparently codenamed the Nokia P1, at present).

Nokia 8 (Nokia P1) Release Date & Price: What’s The Word?

Word on the street, this time from China, suggests the Nokia 8 – AKA the Nokia P1 – will launch in June and retail for around €539.

This will be Nokia’s flagship handset and it is expected to feature similar specs to what we’ll see inside the LG G6 and Samsung Galaxy S8, meaning QHD displays and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 CPUs paired with 4-6GB of RAM.

PureView imaging and Carl Zeiss optics WILL NOT feature inside this phone. Microsoft still owns the former and Nokia has confirmed the latter will not be appearing on this year’s phones already via Twitter.

The handset, according to the source, will be a metal unibody affair that’ll be available in two distinct sizes just like iPhones, Pixels and Samsung’s Galaxy S8 range. The Nokia 8, however, at just over €500 is decidedly cheaper and this could be where Nokia makes A LOT of new friends in 2017.

HMD has been good at getting its phones picked up by carriers, and we expect every single major player to carry the Nokia 8 once it lands.

However, a new report on March 7 claims the Nokia flagship will arrive in June 2017, in two size variants, and will be equipped with Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 processor. The word comes via Chinese source MyDrivers and is corroborated by sources on Twitter.

The report adds that the specs should generally be similar, if not identical, between the two sizes, and suggests that there may be options for 4GB or 6GB of RAM. It also states we'll see metal unibody design, at least one of the devices with a dual-camera (but NO PureView or Carl Zeiss branding) clocking at least 23MP.

One area where Nokia could potentially do A LOT of damage to Samsung and Apple is price. Samsung and Apple’s flagships this year are going to be VERY expensive – like $1000-expensive. And that price, for many, will simply be too much to spend on a phone.

The Nokia P1 – or Nokia 8, or whatever it is called – is widely believed to feature very similar spec to the Galaxy S8, as detailed below, however, one area where it could REALLY do the most for consumers is price.

Should HMD retail this phone for £500, or thereabouts, it will make it some £300-£400 cheaper than both the Galaxy S8 and iPhone 8, perhaps even more, as prices for these new phones are not yet concrete – they could cost even more.

If HMD goes this route, and I believe it will, it will be similar to what OnePlus did when it entered the fray: take on the established players by competing on price and value for money. To date, HMD’s releases have been very price-aggressive and I don’t see this changing with the Nokia P1.

The smaller mode will allegedly have an RRP of €549 while the bigger will be €617.

Below are five points on the Nokia P1 – AKA The Nokia 8

Nokia 8 (Nokia P1) Design & Display: It'll Be Premium Metal & Glass

In terms of the aesthetic, very little is known about the Nokia P1, however, we have already seen the Nokia 6 unveiled with a design language that does look familiar to fans of Nokia’s early Windows Phone days; clean, minimalist, quasi-industrial with a fairly squared-off shape.

It’s expected that the Nokia P1 will look similar to keep things “on brand,” so to speak, though of course it should be more refined as a higher-end model. Helping with this “premium” aesthetic will be a metal unibody build, according to rumours and leaks, topped with Gorilla Glass 5 reinforcement to the 5.3in display panel; as per the Nokia 6, the display bezels will likely be very narrow and the phone will probably feature a high screen-to-body ratio.

This is what I am most interested in – Nokia’s iconic design. Will the company still have what it takes to take on the big players in the space? I miss the days of the Nokia Lumia 1020 and Nokia Lumia 1520. I genuinely hope Nokia can bring something new to the table in this regard. Something different, unique and typically “Nokia”.

Juho Sarvikas, Chief Product Officer, HMD Global said: “We have set ourselves a mission to deliver the best possible smartphone experience, with a beautiful premium design touch, to everyone, at every price point. By building on true Nokia phone hallmarks of leading design and materials, an obsessive focus on the latest technology and solving real-life issues, we believe we have a unique proposition for consumers. The Nokia 6 marks the first step on our journey, with more to come in 2017.”

Nokia 8 (Nokia P1): Nokia's Photography Expertise Revived

Back in the day, Nokia was known for its camera prowess; it produced some of the best smartphone imaging hardware available on the market. A key component of that was its cooperation with Carl Zeiss for optics components, and that’s something that is set to continue on the Nokia P1.

It will allegedly pack a 23MP primary camera featuring Carl Zeiss hardware.

Nokia 8 (Nokia P1) Battery: Big Cell, Better Optimisation, Longer Life

So far, we only know that the Nokia P1 will have a large 3,500mAh battery cell, which due to the unibody design is unlikely to be removable.

Aside from this it’s believe the battery optimisation features on Android Nougat will help give the handset some pretty impressive stamina.

Nokia 8 (Nokia P1) Hardware Specs: Qualcomm Snapdragon And More

There have been a lot of rumours surrounding the Nokia flagship but we do know it’ll pack a high-end Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU. The most likely candidate is the Snapdragon 835 as the lead model at the moment, and there have been a few leaks which support this idea. The one spanner in the works is the rumour that Samsung has hogged all the supply of S835 chips, a situation that isn’t expected to change until after April, but if the Nokia P1 doesn’t hit the market until after that month it may not be an issue.

In terms of other hardware, it’s rumoured the Nokia P1 will feature a physical Home key below the display, fitted with an integrated fingerprint scanner for biometric security and payment applications.

Nokia 8 (Nokia P1) Software: It WILL Run The Latest Android Nougat Build

We know Nokia has fully embraced Google’s Android operating system for all its forthcoming phones, so it’s a given that the Nokia P1 will use this OS. Persistent rumours have strongly suggested it will run the “latest” build of Android, which is the current Nougat build.

We don’t know if that means version 7.0 as the base version, or one of the subsequent updates (7.1.1 or the current in-testing update 7.1.2, which may be ready by the time the phone arrives). Either way it will enjoy a host of brand new Android features, including advanced support for split-screen, multi-window multitasking, better performance optimisations, MUCH better battery life thanks to Google’s further development of Doze and the like, and a bunch of new security features.

All of Android Nougat’s New Features

Performance

JIT compiler: The new JIT compiler improves runtime device performance, reduces the amount of storage space required for apps and makes app and system updates much faster.
VR mode: With VR mode, Android Nougat is ready to transport you to new worlds. Coming soon with Daydream and Daydream-ready phones.
Vulkan™ API: Vulkan API is a real game changer with high-performance 3D graphics. See apps spring to life with sharper graphics and eye candy effects.

Battery & Data

Doze: Doze is now dozier, with your device going into lower power usage when you’re on the move. That means your Android device will conserve battery even when it’s jostling around in your pocket.
Data saver: Limit how much data your device uses with Data Saver. When Data Saver is turned on, apps in the background won't be able to access mobile data.

Productivity

Split-screen mode: Now you can multitask with ease. Run two apps side by side in split-screen mode – watch a movie while texting, or read a recipe with your timer open.
Picture-in-picture mode: On Android TV, you can continue watching your current video while browsing or changing settings.
Quick switch: Double tap the Overview button to switch between your two most recently used apps.

Notifications

Bundled notifications: See what’s new at a glance with bundled notifications from individual apps. Simply tap to view each alert.
Direct reply: Direct reply lets you quickly reply to a message, directly from within the notification shade. So, you no longer need to launch the app to send a quick response.
Notification controls: When a notification pops up, just press and hold to toggle the settings. For instance, you can silence future alerts from an app in the notification itself.

System Improvements

Customisable Quick Settings: Rearrange your Quick Setting tiles so you can get to what you want faster.
Quick Settings bar: Quick Settings has been redesigned so that you can get faster access to top Quick Settings tiles directly in the notification shade.
Improved Settings navigation: Find the right setting faster with an updated navigation menu in Settings.
Settings suggestions: Within Settings, get suggestions for how to get even more out of your device.
'Clear all' in Overview: Instantly close all of your apps running in the background by tapping 'clear all' in Overview.
Emergency information: Emergency Information lets you add information such as name, blood type, allergies and an emergency contact so that emergency responders can view this information through your device's lock screen.
Lockscreen wallpaper: You can now have different wallpapers on your device's homescreen and lockscreen.

Privacy & Security

Direct boot: When restarting your device, Direct Boot helps it start up faster and ensures that important communications still run. So before you even put in your password, you'll still get that important text message and hear your alarm clock ring.
Seamless software updates: On select, new devices running Android Nougat, OS updates can download in the background, so you can go on with your day while your device syncs with the latest OS.
File-based encryption: Building on top of our security platform, Android Nougat introduces file-based encryption. By encrypting at the file level instead of the block level, Android can better isolate and protect files for individual users on your device.
Scoped folder access: Apps can request access to specific folders that you can allow or deny access to (just like app runtime permissions). This is a reduced-scope version of the Storage permission for Apps that only need access to certain folders. It can also allow Apps to request direct access to removable media (on devices with that hardware).
Trusted face: Trusted face, a part of Smart Lock, makes unlocking even easier thanks to a new face recogniser. The new recogniser is less sensitive to conditions like lighting, facial decorations (eyewear, facial hair, etc.), and how you hold your phone. Available on selected devices.

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