Nokia 6 (2018) review

Clean Android Oreo

The Nokia 6 (2018) is part of the Android One program - meaning it gets pure Android as seen on the Pixels but on the cheap. Indeed, the OS updates are timely and the unit we got for review is running Oreo 8.1 with the most recent April security patch.

Android as Google intended shows up when you wake up the phone - clock, notification cards, two shortcuts on the bottom. Ambient display will show you a clock and notifications when you pick up the phone even without waking it up but be sure to enable this feature first.

Fingerprint enrollment uses the standard Oreo interface. Unlocking works as advertised and is quick and reliable.

Past that is the standard Android 8 homescreen with a pull-up app drawer.

Lockscreen • Homescreen • Widgets • App drawer

The quick toggles and notifications shade changes color depending on the wallpaper - white for lighter ones, black for darker ones. The task switcher is the usual rolodex, and wouldn't it be great if Google put the 'clear all' button on the bottom instead of up top? Anyway, multi-window is supported natively since Nougat.

There are several gestures like double pressing the power button to launch the camera and a swiping across the fingerprint scanner to bring down the notifications.

Quick toggles • Notifications • Task switcher • Multi-window

As for multimedia, it's all in the hands of Google's default apps. Photos is in charge of gallery-related tasks and video playback, while Google Play Music is the audio player. There's a file manager with batch actions and Google Drive sync, and Google's Calendar is Nokia's calendar of choice.

Google Photos • Google Play Music • Equalizer • File manager • Calendar

Benchmarks and performance

The Nokia 6 (2018) employs Qualcomm's Snapdragon 630 chipset - the new rising star in the mid-range midst. It's a worthy upgrade over the previously widespread Snapdragon 625 with a more powerful CPU and a great graphics boost, but also a massive performance jump over the Snapdragon 430 chip powering the first Nokia 6.

The Snapdragon 630 chip offers a classic octa-core Cortex-A53 processor clocked at 2.2GHz. The GPU in charge of graphics is Adreno 508 and noticeably improves on the average gaming performance of its predecessor.

Just like the original Nokia 6, the 6.1 comes with either 3 or 4 gigs of RAM depending on the model you get - with 32 or 64 GB storage.

GeekBench is the best place for CPU prowess comparison. Here, the Nokia 6 (2018) scored the same as the rest of the S630 gang - the Xperia XA2, U11 Life and Moto X4. The Redmi 5 Pro and Galaxy A8 (2018) do better in the single-core tests as those two pack much more powerful Kryo 260 and Cortex-A73 cores.

GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
  1532
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
  1327
• Nokia 6 (2018)
  882
• Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
  874
• HTC U11 Life
  873
• Motorola Moto X4
  866
• Sony Xperia XA2
  865
• Motorola Moto G5S Plus
  848
• Xiaomi Redmi 5
  766
• Sony Xperia L2
  679
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  665

The multi-core processor performance is on par with the best in the class.

GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
  4696
• Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
  4418
• Motorola Moto G5S Plus
  4331
• Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
  4309
• Nokia 6 (2018)
  4225
• Sony Xperia XA2
  4215
• HTC U11 Life
  4140
• Motorola Moto X4
  4136
• Xiaomi Redmi 5
  4018
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  2841
• Sony Xperia L2
  1932

The Snapdragon 630 has a new Adreno 508 GPU and the tests shows its perfect for the class. It shows off some great scores and the only phones to match the Nokia 6.1 are the ones with the same Adreno model as the Xperia XA2 and Moto X4.

The Redmi 5 has a 720p display and that's the reason why it tops our chart.

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi 5
  18
• Nokia 6 (2018)
  15
• Sony Xperia XA2
  15
• Motorola Moto X4
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
  14
• HTC U11 Life
  13
• Motorola Moto G5S Plus
  10
• Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
  9.4
• Sony Xperia L2
  8.8
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  7

With comparable CPU performance and superior graphics results, it's no wonder the Nokia 6 (2018) excels in compound benchmarks. The only phones to beat the Nokia at overall performance are the ones powered by a superior chipset such as the Redmi Note 5 Pro (Snapdragon 660) or the Galaxy A8 (Exynos 7885).

AnTuTu 7

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
  107737
• Nokia 6 (2018)
  90918
• Sony Xperia L2
  45023

Basemark OS 2.0

Higher is better

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
  2030
• Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
  2007
• Sony Xperia XA2
  1545
• Motorola Moto X4
  1532
• Nokia 6 (2018)
  1517
• HTC U11 Life
  1342
• Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
  1226
• Xiaomi Redmi 5
  1222
• Sony Xperia L2
  816
• Motorola Moto G5S Plus
  389

The Nokia 6 (2018) earned some excellent marks for the class on the benchmark tests. In real life it will never disappoint - the cle,an Android runs flawlessly, while even demanding games are handled smoothly.

The metal body of the Nokia 6 (2018) gets warm under pressure, but not unpleasantly hot. We observed no throttling or stuttering, though.