Nokia 9 PureView review

Display

The Nokia 9 PureView has a 5.99-inch P-OLED display with QHD+ resolution and 18:9 aspect ratio. Having such a high-res screen and 538ppi density the Nokia 9 has the means for seeing all those photos taken with the PureView camera in full glory.

The screen is protected by a Gorilla Glass 5 and has no cutouts whatsoever. There are noticeable bezels at the top and bottom, but those should be a great place to rest your thumbs while taking shots with the PureView camera, so we won't hold them against the Nokia 9.

So, the Nokia 9 screen looks quite bright and our display test confirms it. When set on Auto, the screen pumps out 727 nits of brightness, while the maximum manual brightness you can achieve with the scrubber in settings is 530 nits - all great numbers for an OLED screen.

The minimum brightness we measured on the Nokia 9 display was just 2.1 nits.

The sunlight contrast on the Nokia 9 PureView is stellar and it did set a new record in our all-time chart just like the first 808 PureView did back in the day.

Sunlight contrast ratio

• Nokia 9 PureView
  5.981
• Apple iPhone XS
  5.171
• Huawei P30 Pro
  5.119
• Apple iPhone X
  5.013
• Huawei Mate 20 Pro
  4.965
• OnePlus 5T
  4.789
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  4.768
• Asus ROG Phone
  4.765
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  4.658
• Samsung Galaxy S9
  4.63
• Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+
  4.615
• Samsung Galaxy S9+
  4.537
• Samsung Galaxy Note9
  4.531
• Apple iPhone XS Max
  4.516
• Samsung Galaxy S10+
  4.514
• Sony Xperia XZ3
  4.502
• Samsung Galaxy S10
  4.498
• Motorola Moto Z2 Play
  4.459
• Oppo R11
  4.454
• Samsung Galaxy S7 edge
  4.439
• Oppo RX17 Pro
  4.434
• OnePlus 3
  4.424
• Samsung Galaxy S7
  4.376
• Google Pixel 3
  4.35
• Huawei Mate 20 X
  4.337
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2018)
  4.324
• OnePlus 6
  4.321
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 3
  4.291
• vivo NEX Dual Display (second display)
  4.289
• HTC One A9
  4.274
• LG V40 ThinQ
  4.256
• Oppo R15 Pro
  4.251
• Samsung Galaxy Note7
  4.247
• Samsung Galaxy A3
  4.241
• Nokia 8
  4.239
• Google Pixel 2 XL (pre-update)
  4.234
• OnePlus 3T
  4.232
• Samsung Galaxy A9 (2018)
  4.22
• Google Pixel XL
  4.164
• ZTE Axon 7
  4.154
• Samsung Galaxy Note8
  4.148
• Meizu Pro 7 Plus
  4.147
• OnePlus 6T
  4.138
• Samsung Galaxy S6 edge
  4.124
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  4.124
• vivo V11
  4.113
• vivo NEX Dual Display
  4.108
• Samsung Galaxy S10e
  4.106
• Huawei Mate 10 Pro (normal)
  4.096
• Samsung Galaxy Note5
  4.09
• Huawei P20 Pro
  4.087
• Xiaomi Mi 8
  4.086
• Meizu 15
  4.082
• Nokia 6 (2018)
  4.052
• Google Pixel 2 (pre-update)
  4.023
• LG V30
  4.022
• Huawei Nexus 6P
  4.019
• vivo NEX S
  4.012
• Honor Magic 2
  4.01
• Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
  3.998
• OnePlus X
  3.983
• Vivo Xplay5 Elite
  3.983
• LG G7 ThinQ (outdoor)
  3.978
• Oppo R7s
  3.964
• Apple iPhone 7
  3.964
• Apple iPhone 8 (True Tone)
  3.957
• Huawei P9 Plus
  3.956
• Oppo Find X
  3.954
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  3.935
• Lenovo Moto Z
  3.931
• Xiaomi Mi 9
  3.921
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2016)
  3.918
• OnePlus 5
  3.914
• Samsung Galaxy C5
  3.911
• Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
  3.901
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  3.896
• Samsung Galaxy A5
  3.895
• Samsung Galaxy J7 outdoor
  3.879
• Samsung Galaxy J2 outdoor
  3.873
• Motorola Moto G6 Plus
  3.865
• Samsung Galaxy A8
  3.859
• Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
  3.842
• Apple iPhone 6
  3.838
• Microsoft Lumia 950XL
  3.837
• Samsung Galaxy A6+ (2018)
  3.834
• Sony Xperia XZs
  3.818
• Samsung Galaxy A9 (2016)
  3.817
• Motorola Moto X (2014)
  3.816
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
  3.812
• vivo V15 Pro
  3.806
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
  3.804
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) outdoor mode
  3.802
• Xiaomi Redmi Pro
  3.798
• LG V20 Max auto
  3.798
• Sony Xperia XZ
  3.795
• Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016)
  3.789
• Apple iPhone 6s
  3.783
• Meizu Pro 5
  3.781
• Microsoft Lumia 650
  3.772
• Xiaomi Mi 6
  3.767
• Sony Xperia XZ1
  3.765
• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016)
  3.756
• Nokia 8 Sirocco
  3.745
• Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact
  3.729
• Apple iPhone 8 Plus (True Tone)
  3.725
• Samsung Galaxy A7
  3.679
• Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact
  3.675
• Meizu PRO 6
  3.659
• BlackBerry Priv
  3.645
• Sony Xperia XA1 Ultra
  3.597
• Huawei Honor View 20
  3.597
• Apple iPhone 7 Plus
  3.588
• Sony Xperia XZ2
  3.58
• LG G6
  3.556
• Apple iPhone 6s Plus
  3.53
• Motorola Moto Z Play
  3.526
• Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016)
  3.523
• Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) outdoor mode
  3.523
• Acer Jade Primo
  3.521
• Microsoft Lumia 950
  3.512
• Oppo R7 Plus
  3.499
• Nokia 7 plus
  3.479
• nubia Z11
  3.466
• Huawei P10 Plus
  3.456
• Samsung Galaxy J7
  3.422
• Motorola Moto G6 Play
  3.419
• Meizu MX5
  3.416
• LG V20
  3.402
• Samsung Galaxy A6 (2018)
  3.397
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 AI Dual Camera
  3.393
• LG G7 ThinQ
  3.39
• Huawei P10
  3.379
• Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016)
  3.378
• Sony Xperia 10 Plus
  3.358
• Oppo R9s
  3.352
• Honor Play
  3.349
• Honor 8 Pro
  3.341
• Oppo F7
  3.333
• Oppo R7
  3.32
• Lenovo P2
  3.316
• Archos Diamond Omega
  3.305
• Honor 9
  3.289
• Nokia 6 (Global version)
  3.238
• Samsung Galaxy J2
  3.235
• Oppo Realme 2 Pro
  3.235
• Sony Xperia X Performance
  3.234
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  3.228
• Motorola Moto X Play
  3.222
• Oppo F3 Plus
  3.218
• BlackBerry KEY2
  3.212
• Huawei Mate 9 Pro
  3.206
• Huawei P9
  3.195
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2
  3.19
• Motorola Moto G7 Play
  3.18
• Motorola Moto G7 Power
  3.176
• Honor 8X
  3.113
• HTC U11 Life
  3.108
• Motorola Moto X Force
  3.105
• Samsung Galaxy M10
  3.093
• LG Nexus 5X
  3.092
• HTC U11
  3.089
• Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite
  3.087
• HTC U12+
  3.085
• Xiaomi Redmi S2 (Y2)
  3.077
• Huawei Mate S
  3.073
• Oppo F9
  3.069
• Huawei P Smart 2019
  3.069
• Microsoft Lumia 640 XL
  3.065
• Xiaomi Mi Max 3
  3.061
• Xiaomi Pocophone F1
  3.059
• Huawei Mate 20
  3.052
• Huawei Mate 20 Lite
  3.051
• Motorola Moto G7
  3.011
• Motorola Moto G7 Plus
  3.01
• Oppo Realme 2
  3.006
• Sony Xperia L1
  2.994
• Sony Xperia X
  2.989
• LG Q6
  2.987
• Huawei P10 Lite
  2.974
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  2.97
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro
  2.966
• Samsung Galaxy M20
  2.96
• Huawei P20 Lite
  2.952
• Xiaomi Redmi 5
  2.951
• Huawei Mate 8
  2.949
• Sony Xperia XA2
  2.938
• Oppo Realme 1
  2.932
• Razer Phone 2
  2.932
• Xiaomi Redmi 4
  2.92
• Realme 3
  2.918
• Huawei Honor View 10
  2.896
• Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime
  2.893
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
  2.893
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  2.884
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium (sRGB)
  2.877
• Sony Xperia XZ Premium
  2.877
• Sony Xperia Z5
  2.876
• Nokia 3
  2.871
• Sony Xperia XZ2 Premium
  2.867
• Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
  2.862
• Microsoft Lumia 550
  2.851
• Nokia 3.1
  2.837
• Realme U1
  2.815
• Nokia 2
  2.752
• Meizu MX6
  2.751
• LG V10
  2.744
• Huawei Mate 10 (normal)
  2.742
• Motorola Moto G5S Plus
  2.737
• Xiaomi Mi A1
  2.689
• Huawei P9 Lite
  2.679
• Xiaomi Redmi 4 Prime
  2.679
• vivo V7+
  2.671
• Vivo V3Max
  2.659
• Xiaomi Mi Mix
  2.658
• Huawei Mate 10 Lite
  2.654
• Oppo F5
  2.653
• Doogee Mix
  2.642
• Xiaomi Mi 4i
  2.641
• Xiaomi Redmi 4a
  2.635
• Xiaomi Mi Max 2
  2.561
• HTC U11+
  2.556
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A (Y1)
  2.556
• Lenovo Moto G4
  2.544
• Lenovo K6 Note
  2.544
• Oppo F1
  2.528
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  2.525
• Sony Xperia Z
  2.462
• Lenovo Vibe K5
  2.459
• Meizu m3 max
  2.447
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  2.424
• Razer Phone
  2.328
• HTC One E9+
  2.305
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  2.272
• Apple iPhone 4S
  2.269
• Sony Xperia L2
  2.266
• Lenovo Vibe K4 Note
  2.254
• Sony Xperia C5 Ultra
  2.253
• HTC U11+ (EU)
  2.253
• Huawei Honor 6
  2.169
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 2
  2.166
• OnePlus Two
  2.165
• HTC One X
  2.158
• LG Aka
  2.145
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (X20)
  2.145
• Archos 50 Diamond
  2.134
• Xiaomi Redmi Note
  2.119
• Xiaomi Mi 4S
  2.095
• Acer Liquid X2
  2.084
• Huawei P8lite
  2.078
• vivo V5
  2.059
• Moto G 3rd gen max manual
  2.026
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  2.001
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  1.996
• Sony Xperia E4g
  1.972
• OnePlus One
  1.961

The screen of the Nokia 9 has four Color modes - Basic, Cinematic, Vivid and Dynamic. The Basic corresponds to sRGB gamma, the Cinematic is DCI-P3, Vivid boosts the colors over Cinema, and Dynamic is the default setting that changes contrast and color saturation depending on the content and ambient light.

The average deltaE we measured for the screen on Basic mode against sRGB is 4.8 with a maximum deviation of 7.5, which is not the best accuracy, but still a very good one. On Cinema mode we measured an average deltaE of 5.1 against the DCI-P3 gamma and a maximum deviation of 7.8.

Battery life

The Nokia 9 is powered by a rather modest 3,320 mAh battery. The good news is the PureView supports both wired and wireless fast charging. The phone ships with an 18W-rated charger, which replenishes 50% of its dead battery in half an hour. It takes almost two hours for a full charge, though.

The Nokia 9 posted an endurance rating of 79 hours, which is about the average for a Snapdragon 845-packed smartphone. It has very good scores in the 3G call and video playback tests, and a good one for web-browsing. The average standby performance however accounts for the less than stellar final endurance score in our test.

Still, the screen-on-times (SOT) are pretty good - you can use it for 10 hours of web browsing or 13 hours of video playback.

Our battery tests were automated thanks to SmartViser, using its viSer App. The endurance rating above denotes how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the Nokia 9 PureView for an hour each of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. We've established this usage pattern so that our battery results are comparable across devices in the most common day-to-day tasks. The battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you're interested in the nitty-gritty. You can check out our complete battery test table, where you can see how all of the smartphones we've tested will compare under your own typical use.

Speaker

There is a single speaker on the Nokia 9, and it's at the bottom. It posted a Very Good score in our loudness test. Unfortunately, the audio quality is rather poor - it lacks in both highs and lows, and sometimes it can sound like an old radio. We've seen much cheaper phones do way better and we really felt like HMD has saved a buck or two with this speaker.

Audio quality

The Nokia 9 PureView did splendidly in the active amplifier part of the audio output test, getting the usual excellent scores and really impressing with its super high volume levels.

Headphones did a fair amount of damage to the stereo quality, but the output wasn’t affected in any other ways. And given that the loudness was among the highest we’ve seen lately, we’d call this an excellent showing by the 9 PureView.

Nokia 9 PureView frequency response

You can learn more about the tested parameters and the whole testing process here.