Nokia 5.1 Plus Review

Kevin Foley Avatar

Written by:

Updated 11:21 pm

Expert Rating

88

Nokia isn’t known for having the best smartphone options, but they used to be known for having some of the best small phones. They’ve continued this legacy with the Nokia 5.1 Plus. Although it’s easily outperformed by more modern phones, the device still holds its own and offers a relatively cheap smartphone experience that will satisfy most users with its 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage.

Nokia 5.1 Plus
89 Reviews

Why We Like It – Nokia 5.1 Plus

The Nokia 5.1 Plus may be an older phone, but it still packs enough power to keep up with more modern phones. A big step up from the original Nokia phones, the 5.1 Plus can browse wi fi, take HD pictures, run games, and video chat with ease.
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  • 8 MP Front Camera
  • Has LED Flash On the Rear Camera
  • Part of the Android One Family

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  • USB Type C Port Has A Tendency to Fail Over Time
  • Dual SIM Function Can’t Be Used With An SD Card
  • Short Battery Life

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Overall Performance

The Nokia 5.1 Plus runs on the Android 9 OS and is powered by the MediaTek Helio P18 chipset, which has 8 cores running at 1.8 GHz. This phone only has 3 GB of RAM, which is low by modern standards, but better than the 2 GB of the base model. It only offers 32 GB of internal storage, so if you need more space you’ll have to use the microSD card slot (which can support cards up to 400 GB).

Battery Life

Another spec that was good for its time, but isn’t so great today, is the battery life. The 5.1 Plus uses a non-removable 3060 mAh lithium-ion battery, which provides at least 8 hours of use per charge. You shouldn’t have any trouble making the battery last the day if you’re a casual user. Unlike the Apple iPhone 11 Pro, there aren’t any fast-charging features available for this phone, so expect to spend at least two hours charging this phone from dead to full.

Display

Visually, this phone is surprisingly decent! While it can’t compare to the FHD display of the Google Pixel 5, you’ll be impressed by how good this 720p display actually looks. This may be due to the unique aspect ratio of the 5.86” screen, which is 19:9. The actual resolution of the screen is only 720 x 1520, but the images seem sharp and the colors pop just fine. The camera is actually capable of taking pictures in a higher resolution than the screen can display, so you’ll have to export those to view them in full definition.

Durability

Both the front and back of this device are covered with scratch-resistant 2.5D glass. These will quickly pick up fingerprints, but the glass can be cleaned quite easily. The frame itself is made of aluminum, which gives the phone a premium feel, although it doesn’t give your hand much to grip onto. Unfortunately, this phone isn’t IP rated, so don’t place it anywhere near water. If you’re looking for a water-resistant phone, check out the Apple iPhone 12 Mini instead.

Value

At $289.48, this phone costs about as much as a used Samsung S10. That said, this phone offers much value than the Palm Phone PVG100, which is similarly priced. For that price, the phone you get is not new; it’s also used, so we think it’s priced a bit high. Still, the majority of people who bought this phone seem to be happy with it, as it scored 3.7 out of 5 stars (based on 71 Amazon reviews). We weren’t able to find any warranty information (presumably because it’s a used device), and there aren’t any protection plans available, so you will want to take the limited support in mind when purchasing this device.

Nokia 5.1 Plus Wrap Up

The Nokia 5.1 Plus is an older phone that’s still able to keep up with modern times. The specs aren’t the best, but they do the job and the phone itself looks quite nice. That said, we would only recommend purchasing this phone if you find it visually appealing. Otherwise, you can buy a better device for a similar price.

Kevin Foley Avatar