Nokia X30 review

28 November 2022

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Minu
ter
02 Dec 2022

Muthu, 30 Nov 2022I assumed you are from India and did not realize that the s... moreIt's ok, and you're welcome Muthu 😊

The biggest downside to non-competitive markets is that you don't get good value for money.
For example, the Nokia 5.4 and Poco M3 with similar specs and same or similar configurations retail for the same price, with the only differences being stock Android with better cameras on the Nokia 5.4 and the Poco M3 with a 1080p display, no ultrawide camera and MIUI with a price difference upto $30 in competitive markets. And the realme C11 2021 with the same price tag as the Nokia C21 Plus, where the Nokia has a fingerprint scanner and higher RAM compared to the C11, while the C11 has a nice-looking finish to it. Another example is the Nokia G11 Plus and the Samsung Galaxy M02s (which is 2 years from launch now) being sold at the same price with a massive difference in specs. The X30 and the Moto Edge 30 Neo being sold at the same price is a bit too hard to swallow too.
And the S22 Ultra that retails for the exact same price as the OnePlus 10 Pro, Xiaomi Mi 9 with the same price as the Galaxy S10 is also worth noting.

It's all about the brand loyalty here in our particular market since the same parent company retails every single phone brand unfortunately. And the import taxes, as well as inflation are high here, so we use our phones for as long as we can use them.

In case you noticed, I had recommended the X30 to someone in the comment section using a Galaxy J5, which is 7 years old at this day and age (imagine using a phone with low end specs for 7 years!), because you aren't saving any money by choosing a viable alternative. If someone says that the already high price is good, chances are that person is also from a non-competitive market.

And the fact that there aren't many GSMArena users from non-competitive markets, so it would be difficult for them to buy phones based on GSMArena user comments and reviews, so I try my best to help them 😁

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Carol
n@x
01 Dec 2022

Tom209, 01 Dec 2022This really really made me laugh. You talk of manipulat... moreIgnorance? Why? Cause i do not live in the past? Don't tell me, where you come from, country or contries, region, whatever that is, was full of saints and good dids, and this european did only bad things to you, right?
The past has nothing to do with now, i have nothing to do with what happened 600 years ago, or more or less. Do you?
I am talking about now, this moment, this comments in gsmarena. So chill down your frustration. Have nothing against you or anyone, wel against what you say and think, maybe. Two different things. Don't play the rasist card with me, it ain't working.

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Swaraj
Hkt
01 Dec 2022

Tom209, 01 Dec 2022Eco based "principles" are nothing more than a ma... moreit's true that sustainability is just a marketing term to push sales . but it's important. you laugh at it because you haven't seen the flash flood in Uttarakhand India in flesh . of course brands are misusing it . but at least they are doing something... what are the Chinese manufacturers doing ? enslaving poor people to feed the tyrants . that's what .

about cheap labour. EU don't have silicon to make cpu , for mobile phone that means whole main board has to be made where the cpu is. battery is Cheapest in China. imagine all parts being shipped to EU the import duty alone will cost as much as the phone

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AnonD-1065015
nIv
01 Dec 2022

Carol, 29 Nov 2022Not the opinion is the problem, the problem is the fact tha... moreThat's big of you picking on my name on here you pathetic person, you keep defending this rubbish company what ever makes you happy.

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Tom209
0p}
01 Dec 2022

Carol, 30 Nov 2022Suit yourself. I am not hostile or against people, i am aga... moreThis really really made me laugh.

You talk of manipulation, theft, abusing people etc etc etc but completely ignore the very sinister and dark history of American and European colonization and its direct and indirect impact on work ethics & manufacturing practices worldwide.

It's absolutely drenched in those aforementioned points you've raised, and was often far far worse.

But I guess ignorance is your bliss.

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Tom209
0p}
01 Dec 2022

Anonymous, 01 Dec 2022You know about Eco-Vadis? Only 2 phone companies got platin... moreEco based "principles" are nothing more than a marketing stamp to appease to the current trend of "environmental sustainability".

It's currently in vogue, and what the media want people to hear.

This allows these manufacturers to increase their prices as a result of their "portrayed" sustainability efforts, but this is nothing more than an outright fallacy.

I like to dig beneath the surface when researching companies, because once you do, you'll realize there is a reason why HMD outsource their production to China, India, Vietnam etc, and don't manufacturer in the EU.

It's all due to cheap labour/costs.

If true authentic sustainability was considered, they wouldn't be shipping parts from all over the world (carbon footprints), and they would pay EU employees EU pay rates, in EU production sites, and then sell to EU/Worldwide customers at EU costs, acquiring EU profits.

Once this is achieved, then I'd be impressed, as this is true authenticity, otherwise currently, it's all gimmicks and gaslighting.

The reason we have "cheap" labour to even begin with in countries like China and India, is due to the West's involement, politically, financially and often atrociously, as documented in history books. (Are you even familiar with events such as the opium wars or colonization related topics?)

It's utter hypocrisy how western countries are now calling out low working conditions/forced labour, when they were the ones that initially set these standards, expectations, and engraved this type of work related culture in eastern countries, which continues to this day and has unfortunately become synonymous with manufacturing.

What's comical is that even HMD devices are "designed" by ODM's in China, as referenced in articles years ago.

What I value is innovation, especially in terms of the complex relationship between technology and health implications.

Companies like Samsung, Xiaomi, Honor etc actually factor in health concerns when developing and designing devices, as we're recently seeing with implementations of DC dimming modes, lower SAR values and Advanced eye care modes.

They also cater very well to those with health and disability conditions, with advanced accessibility options embedded in UI's for those with auditory issues (extra volume), visual issues (speech recognition and control), and advanced display color modes and configuration.

Generally, they offer all of this along with the latest technology and specifications.

None of these types of direct to consumer matters have ever been focused on by HMD in any of their devices. They can't even get the basics right, yet have some how jumped all the way into "environmental" concerns. (Even though they still include chargers and TPU cases in specific regions).

HMD have also not listened to consumers, as we continue to see underspecced underwhelming products being released. This isn't what people want, and they've been made very well aware of this for years.

Yes, the majority of smartphones manufactured in the East arrive with swathes of bloatware preinstalled, and this presents an issue, but this type of subsidiary helps keeps costs low and competitive.

Unfortunately, in this present day and age, no device is truly secure. The moment anyone uses a smartphone, they have to accept that their data is going to be shared when their device connects to the internet. This is unavoidable, however whether one is happy to share their data with America (google) or the East, it's a choice.

But it's very naive to think that HMD global/Android one devices are free of these privacy concerns or are fully "Environmentally sustainable".

The only selling point HMD have is offering an uncluttered basic UI (however this is also offered by other manufacturers, often on much better specced devices- Motorola/Pixel etc - and at a similar and often cheaper price).

The deeply invested marketing gimmick exhibited by HMD has indeed paid off, as I can see from some of the comments that people have obviously fallen for it. This allows HMD to charge high prices for cheap trash hardware, while creating a false "caring" for the "environment" image.

X
Xenotyro
3a4
01 Dec 2022

AnonD-546724, 30 Nov 2022I appreciate this little essay of yours. To which I'... moreLight Co did not go bankrupt, they just left consumer imaging and now work on autonomous vehicles. The 9 PureView was for them a proof of concept brought to market, but it was flawed and they didn't get any buyers for their camera modules (Sony and Xiaomi were both potential customers).

The 9 PureView was a failed experimental device, but I still regard it as one of the best smartphones for imaging over the last few years - if you know what you're doing. It's a shame the chipset and custom ISP struggled with processing the large about of data captured which caused high power draw and unstable software.

But really, smartphone photography is a fun hobby. My 10 year old Fujifilm X-Pro1 with a kit lens and a brand new 35mm prime lens still outclasses smartphones and cost less than a flagship.

The demographics and country traffic of tech sites means certain features or issues are fixated on. It leads to very standardised ways of thinking and evaluating products.

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Anonymous
TXk
01 Dec 2022

David 040882, 01 Dec 2022All right fanboy. Won't argue with people who see thin... moreit's the back they're talking about not feeling premium lol

David 040882
spe
01 Dec 2022

Carol, 30 Nov 2022Have you touched the device, or talking out of not stoping?... moreAll right fanboy. Won't argue with people who see things only as they want to. I explained it once, there are many better and cheaper phones, better in absolutely every aspect, but a fanboy is a fanboy. Go on and buy the Nokia. And about touching the device, you could go and read the review if you can read and see that GSMARENA says that the build quality ain't anything premium.

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Anonymous
tVv
01 Dec 2022

Tom209, 30 Nov 2022The X30 has UFS 2.2 - and a rather slow performing one at t... moreYou know about Eco-Vadis? Only 2 phone companies got platinum score which is HMD/Nokia and Fairphone.. When you pick Chinese phone which has better price/spec according to you, actually it is subsidised.. by WHO? by the underpaid workers, by the child/forced labor mining raw materials, by the environments suffering from improper handling of industrial wastes.. Yes that is the reason chinese company can provide you cheap powerful phones - by not spending on these costs.. There is no free stuff in this world.. HMD can never match the pricing of Chinese phones.. But I stand by HMD because of its principles

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Carol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

Tom209, 30 Nov 2022I'm sensing an underhand discriminatory sentiment from... moreSuit yourself. I am not hostile or against people, i am against stupidity, wickedness and foul play, against manipulation, trash-talking with no knowlege, better said talking with no knowlege, stealing and destroying other peoples work, taking advantage of people, the List goes and on, and on. This does Not include east only but the whole world, yeah i have strong fealings against companies that do businesses the apple way. Resentiments against eastern brands? I have all my respect for Asus, Acer, Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic and many others, so Nope, i do not have resentiments against eastern brands, more like against crapp floading the markets with reverse enginiert devices , seeling them cheap to make a name. So, it has nothing to do with east, it could have been North for what i care, as long as there are no ethics and foul play they ain't going to have respect nor support from me. As for Europe, i will always support european brands, against any other as long as quality and ethics are in sync with me and what i want. If not, they go to the bin too...

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Carol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

AnonD-546724, 30 Nov 2022I appreciate this little essay of yours. To which I'... moreSo you do like to read yourself, probably also like to hear yourself talking. But your "FACT"'s are to wipe the floor with, as they are as precise as Scient Fiction movies. Good that your troll friends agree with you, pretty much proves how herd thinking works, and why a palm count of people can rule over 8 Billions...
Nokia 9 was never planed to run on android 12, it was 11 actually. Light is not gone, they abandoned Mobile Photography, and not because of Nokia 9, but all together, their unique camera setup was not quite there, so they just gave up. They had agreements with Sony and xiaomi, and retreat not long before starting a new prototype, that was a year after nokia 9 release. Yeah they promised but could not deliver, but i do not blame them of nothing and am a proud owner of the 9. Nokia 9 takes way better and natural photos then you ever think, yeah it needed some improvements that never came and killed android 11 update, but the amont of detail it can capture blows pretty much every phone out of their own software and sends them back to Medievals. The device was never intended for the mass. It was also not close to a disaster but more like a show off of what a phone can do. So yeah, it is a niche device, by the way, it has 5 cameras, not 7, so you got that FACT also " right". Being tired of going throughout your long comments that mostly depend on what you read 3 comments before yours, having no real facts all together but mostly only bulls... i say have a nice one, go with you xiaomi whatever, see who cares😉

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Anonymous
64i
30 Nov 2022

479 euro this is a good price

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Tom209
0p}
30 Nov 2022

Carol, 30 Nov 2022The 6GB/128GB version has 2.2 The 8GB/256 version has 3.0 a... moreI'm sensing an underhand discriminatory sentiment from your replies. You're very defensive of "EU" brands, and very hostile towards eastern brands & people.

Going forward, I'll be refraining from replying to you, as your posts don't seem to be just about technology or manufacturers.....

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Catol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

Muthu, 30 Nov 2022I assumed you are from India and did not realize that the s... moreAh, you tought india is the world... Kind of like all commenters here, that are somehow frustrated that nokia s are more expensive then most of chinaware, therefor not good for them, trash, bla bla. But somehow the crapp they use is also not good enough, cause if it would be, they wouldn't be here, now isn't it? If what i say, does not make sense to you, don't worry, it is not only you, it is a d epidemic in the region.

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Carol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

cryoverspecsheet, 30 Nov 2022"Nokia 8.3 Snapdragon 765G, LCD screen, plastic frame... moreHe does not have a logic. Paper-specs and cheap is his logic. He probably does not understand what paper specs actualy means tough.

For him, Snapdragon 8 gen 1 is a good phone... If you know what i mean.

Also everything one can read, writen by whoever, is geniune as long as the device that person talks about, is not the device he owes, ah ja, and he also owns the facts, i mean they really belong to him... and his Sci-fi world that he probably filmed in "4k" with the great value for money Cyclopmi red 1 powered by android 14 with Private OS 00 on top.

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Carol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

Muthu, 30 Nov 2022Well said. Very detailed reply to a person who does not see... moreSay what? That was the most clueless answer that has the facts all over the place and none is true. Ah wait, you're a part of the flock. No worries, keep going...

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Carol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

David 040882, 30 Nov 2022What same quality? Same recycled-phone quality? Dude, Nokia... moreHave you touched the device, or talking out of not stoping? Right, don't need no answer. It is agreat build quality hands down, and comparing it with 200 euros phones make a whole lot of difference, straight from the get-go. But i am not refering only to that, i am refeting to prety much everything, for you a good phone is a cheap one with buffy hardware on paper, i get that. For me a phones is user experience, call quality, covarage and wi-fi quality, software quality, resistance, endurance and support, at the end but very import would also be the battery.

Now you go with your 200 euros chinaware and their 3 TB RAM, cause i noticed that you can't see the elephant in the room, and i'll stick to my decisions, we're all happy. Stay there until i call you.

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Carol
n@x
30 Nov 2022

Munem, 30 Nov 2022For $300 dollars you have A52s and many more powerfull phon... moreOr you can buy a bloatware free x20 with lesser.

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Carol
skK
30 Nov 2022

Tom209, 30 Nov 2022The X30 has UFS 2.2 - and a rather slow performing one at t... moreThe 6GB/128GB version has 2.2 The 8GB/256 version has 3.0 and costs like 30 euros more.
I have not said that you are a loyal fan to some brand, so there is that. But if you care so much about the people then you'll respect them and their decisions.
A company to ripoff someone has first to create some kind of entity that forces people to buy their products, never seen one till date. There are companies that can lock the customer into their enviroment, like apple, hmd is far away from anything like that. Also a small company like hmd does not have the power to stand against copy paste chinaware, nor the money to buy in bullk for way cheaper, and in this case nor the will, to make cheap devices so they can compete with chinaware. I do not care what you and the other bunch here think about hmd devices, as far as i'm concerned, i first look at software, clean as posible, then at brand location and Ethics and then at the brand itself. I was very close to buy a fairphone, probably another "ripoff" for you, i did not buy it because it has some problemes that i cannot live with, the rest of it is pure ingenious. So there is that again. To vome here and bash left amd right, iean, that has nothing to do with helping people, more like to puting the brand in bad light, the gain? I don't know, you tell me what's your gain... And stop pretebding, it ain't working.

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