Samsung Galaxy J8 vs Nokia 6.1: new-generation mid-rangers fight it out

“The new Nokia 6.1 and Galaxy J8 are priced similarly, yet are designed for two different niches”

Among the bevy of affordable smartphones available in the Indian market today, offerings by South Korean titan Samsung and yesteryear’s giant Nokia manage to stand out from the crowd. The latest phones from their stable, the Samsung Galaxy J8 and new Nokia 6.1, are no different as they bring strong specifications in the affordable segment. If you’re torn between which one to go for, you’re at the right place, as we’ll be giving you a detailed comparison between the two. So let’s get started.

Design and display

It’s immediately evident that the Samsung Galaxy J8 has adopted the design blueprint of the company’s S9 range. The smooth curves and dual-camera placement at the rear, and of course the Infinity Display at the front, all echo the flagship’s appearance. So there’s definitely a premium air to the device, despite the fact that it comes encased in a plastic body instead of using the glass-sandwich design of the Galaxy S9 and S9+.

The design is a strong suit of the Nokia 6.1 as well. Its aluminium unibody design with copper accents really does give out a first-rate vibe. To accommodate its tall Infinity Display at the front, Samsung’s J8 chooses to place the fingerprint scanner at the back. While the fingerprint reader on Nokia’s smartphone is also at the back, there’s no fancy 18:9 display on the fascia.

Speaking of displays, the Galaxy J8 features a 6-inch Super AMOLED panel with an 18.5:9 aspect ratio. While the AMOLED tech is a big plus, what’s disappointing is the screen resolution of 720 x 1,480 pixels. The 5.5-inch IPS LCD screen on the Nokia 6.1 offers full HD resolution in comparison, which makes it a better bet in terms of the sharpness.

Hardware and software

Handling the grunt work on the Nokia 6.1 is the Snapdragon 630 chipset with its 2.2GHz octa-core CPU and Adreno 508 GPU. And there’s 3 or 4GB of RAM to support them in their endeavours. Qualcomm’s SD630 has proven its might earlier, so there’s no doubt that you can expect smooth performance on the smartphone. As for the J8, it’s powered by the 1.8GHz octa-core Snapdragon 450 SoC and an Adreno 506 GPU, which is paired with 4GB of RAM.

For storage, Nokia’s handset is available in 32GB or 64GB options, whereas the Galaxy S8 is available with 64GB memory onboard. Both the phones ship with expansion slots, but the Galaxy J8’s dedicated card slot has a big advantage over the Nokia 6.1’s hybrid arrangement.

In the software department, the choice is going to be pretty simple. Fans of stock Android will prefer the Android One goodness of the Nokia 6.1. The beauty of stock Android is that it doesn’t slow down over time, and the 6.1 also comes with a guarantee of timely security updates and two years of main software updates. 

With the Samsung Galaxy J8, no such guarantee has been given. But it does have some interesting software additions to boast of. Chief among them is the Samsung Mall app which lets you click photos of products and discover their listings on e-commerce sites immediately. A Chat Over Video feature has also made its way into the J8, which renders a tiny translucent window when there’s a video playing so that you can reply to your chats without interrupting your viewing experience.

Camera and battery

The Nokia 6.1 just has one camera at the back, which is triumphed by the Galaxy J8 with its dual-camera array. Nokia has blessed its handset with a 16MP f/2.0 camera which clicks great photos and videos in well-lit environments. As for the J8, its 16MP f/1.7 + 5MP f/1.9 dual camera setup promises a portrait mode, among other things. If you want 4K video shooting, you might want to know that the J8 does not have this feature.

Selfies on the Nokia 6.1 are taken care of by an 8MP front snapper. Once again, it’s beaten by the Galaxy J8, which flaunts a 16MP selfie camera. Moreover, the Samsung handset even comes with a front-facing flash for better low-light imaging.

The Nokia 6.1 ships with a 3,000mAh battery at its core. Thanks to fast charging, the juice can go from 50 to 100 percent in 30 minutes. Unfortunately, fast charging is not part of the Galaxy J8’s offerings. But it does come with a bigger 3,500mAh cell.

Closing thoughts

The Nokia 6.1 can be purchased for Rs 16,999 for the 3GB RAM model or Rs 18,999 for the higher-end variant. The Samsung Galaxy J8 on the other hand, carries a sticker price of Rs 18,990. If you’re looking for smooth performance, Nokia’s offering will be a better pick, given its better hardware and stock Android software. But if cameras are more important to you, then the Galaxy J8 should be your phone of choice between the two.

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