HMD Global’s much-anticipated event was held today in the Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Finnish company was expected to launch the Nokia 3.1 Plus, 5.1 Plus and Nokia 8.1 for the global market. Surprisingly, the event was devoted exclusively to Nokia 8.1 as no mention of the duo of Nokia 3.1 Plus and 5.1 Plus was made during the event. The Nokia 8.1 has been officially unveiled and just as expected, it is the global version of the Nokia X7
which was announced in China not too long ago.
The Nokia 8.1 strives to fit in as a successor of the Nokia 7 Plus. The device comes with a premium design and a very decent hardware, including the latest Android 9.0 Pie software. It features a metallic body forged from a series-6000 magnesium alloy frame wrapped with glass panels on both the front and rear end w-th a copper rim. This gives the device a premium look. The Nokia 8.1 utilises the latest display technology which HMD calls Pureview display technology. It is actually a 6.18-inch IPS LCD screen with a notch at the top and an 18.7:9 aspect ratio. The display features an FHD+ resolution of 2246 x 1080 pixels and an impressive 86.5-percent screen ratio. The Nokia 8.1’s display also comes with a 96-percent NTSC color gamut, DCI-P3 color gamut, HDR video playback, 1500:1 contrast ratio and 500nits of brightness. 
The device is powered by the latest 10nm based Snapdragon 710 chipset paired with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage. The memory options could be expanded to include the 6GB RAM variant in other markets. The device is dropping under the Android One program and runs Android 9.0 Pie out of the box. Perhaps, the most outstanding feature on the device is the photography capabilities. The device packs a dual camera setup at the rear. The main sensor is a 12MP Sony IMX363 sensor paired with aa 13MP depth sensor. The rear camera comes with features such as Optical Image Stabilization, Electronic Image Stabilization, dual PDAF, AI scene detection and optimization for low-light photography. Up at the front, housed on the notch alongside an earpiece and other sensors, is a large 20MP selfie shooter.
The Nokia 8.1 packs a 3500mAh battery which Nokia claims can deliver up to two days of battery power. You also get a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, Quik Charge 3.0, dual-SIM support, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS, USB-C and 3.5mm audio jack.
Pricing and Availability
The new Nokia 8.1 will be available in three colours; Blue Silver, Steel Copper and Iron Steel. The device is announced with a retail price of 399 Euros and will go on sale in the UAE on December 15 and other parts of the Middle East on December 20. However, it is now open for pre-order for the Middle East market. The device is also billed to enter other markets like India in no distant time.
