Nokia X30 2022 – Specifications, Reviews and Price
The tagline for the Nokia X30 suggests that it cares a lot about the environment, and Nokia calls it its “most eco-friendly phone yet.” That includes recycled (and recyclable) materials wherever possible, as well as a 3-year warranty and software support.
And since the others don’t think the X30 is the best phone in the line-up, it kind of has to take on that role.
The Snapdragon 695 is not a top-of-the-line chip, it is what powers the X30. A camera system that doesn’t have a telephoto also doesn’t scream “high-end.”
Some small things, like the lack of stereo speakers and wireless charging, keep the X30 in a traditional midrange spot.
But for about 4,305.28 Ghanaian Cedi for the base model with 6GB of memory and 128GB of storage, you get a pretty interesting list of features. Proper protection from dust and water is still rare in the midrange, as is Gorilla Glass Victus display protection.
Both of these features are found on this phone. And since we brought it up, the screen is now OLED. The last screen like this on a Nokia was three and a half years ago.
Now that prices have been taken into account, and we’re back to the cameras, things don’t look so bad after all. The 50MP main unit on the back uses the same sensor as the Galaxy S22, which is enough to make it a flagship.
The other two cameras aren’t as impressive—the 13MP ultrawide camera doesn’t have autofocus and doesn’t have a dedicated “macro” sidekick, so it seems like close-ups are out of the question, and the 16MP selfie camera is neither here nor there—but all in all, it’s a very good set-up.
Other things about the X30 can also be called “reasonable.” At first glance, the phone seems pretty small. However, the battery capacity should be enough for the not-too-demanding internals, and the 33W charging seems like it will provide decently fast top-ups without going too far.
Along with the OLED screen, the fingerprint sensor under the screen is also back.
Nokia X30 specs at a glance:
- Body: 158.9×73.9×8.0mm, 185g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), aluminum frame, plastic back; IP67 dust/water-resistant (up to 1m for 30 mins).
- Display: 6.43″ AMOLED, 90Hz, 450 nits (typ), 700 nits (peak), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 409ppi.
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM6375 Snapdragon 695 5G (6 nm): Octa-core (2×2.2 GHz Kryo 660 Gold & 6×1.7 GHz Kryo 660 Silver); Adreno 619.
- Memory: 128GB 6GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM; UFS 2.2 – 128GB, UFS 3.0 – 256GB.
- OS/Software: Android 12.
- Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.9, 1/1.56″, 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 13 MP, f/2.4, 123˚, 1/3.06″.
- Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 1/3.06″, 1.0µm.
- Video capture: Rear camera: 1080p@30/60fps; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
- Battery: 4200mAh; 33W wired, PD3.0.
- Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC; FM radio.
As part of Nokia’s promise to be environmentally friendly, the X3 comes in a half-height recycled brownish cardboard box. You know what that means.
The charger is not included, but a cable is. That’s about it. Nokia sells a clear soft silicone case that is packaged in recycled paper separately from the phone. This case is not included with the phone.
There is a lot of paperwork inside the box, which took time and paper to make and may have added to the overall size. A one-page Quick start guide and a QR code with a link to the rest of the information online would have looked (and may have been) more sustainable.
Then again, different regulators may require this or that piece of physical literacy, which gets in the way of saving trees, so we can’t put it all on Nokia just yet.
Design, build quality, handling
Nokia’s greenest phone so far looks and feels just as good as phones that don’t make such a big deal about being green. We’re starting with that to make sure we don’t sound like people who think healthy food can’t be tasty, which is a highly debatable point of view. The X30 is well put together and looks like a real flagship phone.
All the aluminium used to make the phone’s body is recycled, which is a good thing. The exposed flat rails all around the X30 give you the feel of metal when you hold your phone, which is probably just as nice.
The satin finish on the large aluminium surfaces will hide scratches better than a high-gloss finish, but the frame’s thin chamfered edges are polished just enough to stand out but not so much that you have to worry about how well it will hold up over that long game.
The back panel is also recycled, but only 65% of it is, and it’s made of plastic instead of “something premium.” Even so, it’s good enough, and it will help the X30 last longer because it’s less likely to crack if it falls on the ground by accident.
One thing that isn’t so great about the back is that, even though the material is matte, it tends to get dirty. Our Ice White review unit does a good job of hiding them from most angles, but they are there, and you can see them if you look in the right way. The Cloudy Blue colorway might be more willing to show how dirty it is.
The camera is in the top left corner, but it is a little further in than on most phones. The two-level island, which is made of the same aluminium, rises from the back panel, which gently washes its shores.
The words “50MP OIS Camera” refer to the main camera, which is more than just that, as we’ll see later. Having only two cameras helps keep things organized.
A small Nokia logo in the middle of the panel is a quiet way to show that you like the brand. The scary dustbin symbol and some other rules are down below, but they are not too obvious.
On the front, we’re back to more high-end features. The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus, which is Qualcomm’s latest version and is available to everyone (unlike the Victus+ version Samsung is getting). The cars that compete with the X30 are a generation or two behind.
The glass on top of Nokia’s first OLED screen since 2019 is also flat. The bezels aren’t the thinnest, and the one at the bottom is thicker than the one at the top, which is thicker than the black strips on the sides. This isn’t very high-end.
The X30 has a fingerprint reader under the screen, which is possible because it has an OLED screen, but it’s not required. Also, this is the first time since 2019.
Someone else might say it’s probably because of this that it doesn’t work as well as most other things in 2022, but we’re better than that and would never say that. But, yes, it did happen a little more often than we were used to.
The cutout for the selfie camera is in the middle of the screen, near the top. It wouldn’t be so interesting if it didn’t have an unnecessary ring around it that draws attention where it isn’t needed.
The earpiece is hidden behind a mesh that has been cut out of the frame. This makes the glass panel easier to make. Sad to say, the earpiece only works as an earpiece and not as an extra speaker.
The speaker itself is on the bottom, along with the USB-C port, the main microphone, and the card slot. The card tray can hold two nano SIM cards, but not a microSD card.
Back on the top, there are two more pinholes that we thought were mics, but the X30’s specs say it only has two mics, and there’s already one on the bottom, so… In fact, the X30’s manual only says that the left one (shown in the photo below) is a microphone, and says nothing about the other one.
What you can’t tell from looking at the X30 from the outside is that there are seals under the surface that keep dust and water out. The phone has an IP67 rating, which means it should be able to survive for up to 30 minutes if it is submerged in one meter of water.
Now, we know (from experience and from reading the fine print) that ingress protection tends to get worse with age and use, so if you drop the X30 in water by accident, do it when it’s new and not at the end of the third year of its warranty.
The Nokia X30 is 158.9mm wide, 73.9mm tall, and weighs 185g. This makes it slightly smaller and lighter than the Galaxy A53 or the Nothing phone (1) and almost the same size as the Vivo X80 Lite.
On the other hand, a Pixel 6a is noticeably smaller, though it is a bit chunkier. The X30 isn’t the best choice if you want a tiny phone, but it wouldn’t feel too big in your pocket, is what we’re trying to say.
Battery life, charging speed, speaker
The Nokia X30 has a 4,200mAh battery, which is a pretty average size for 2022. For example, the Galaxy A53 has a 5,000mAh battery, the Nothing phone (1) and the vivo X80 Lite have 4,500mAh batteries, and the Pixel 6a has a 4,410mAh cell.
Still, the number isn’t too crazy given that the chipset isn’t very demanding, and the screen is smaller than most at 6.43 inches.
The X30’s battery life was good, but the standby time was below average for the hardware and the class. This made the overall result worse. Besides that, we have no reason to be upset.
At nearly 21 hours of offline video playback (with the screen set to 60Hz), the Nokia is just as good as any other phone in its class, and if you want to be exact, it’s a half hour to an hour better.
The Wi-Fi browsing result of 14:13h (done at 60Hz because that’s what the Nokia defaulted to) is shorter than on the Pixel and the phone (1), but better than what the A53 managed. In the same way, the average length of a voice call was 27:23h.
So, the Nokia X30’s overall Endurance score is 94h, which is the same as the Pixel 6a but less than some other possible competitors.
Charging Speed
The Nokia X30 doesn’t come with a charger, but the phone can take in up to 33W of power through USB Power Delivery 3.0. We used a 65W adapter to test it, and our meter maxed out at 26W, which was close enough.
The speed at which the X30 charges is also pretty good. When we started with a completely dead phone and charged it for 30 minutes, the status bar read 69%. It took 1:03 hours to reach 100%.
The price ranges from 2,900 Ghana Cedis to 3,200 Ghana Cedis.
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