The entry-level department of the smartphone market is an interesting segment, especially nowadays when tech brands have become extra competitive in including decent specs and features offered at an affordable price. With the Nokia 3.4, HMD Global managed to hit just the right spots to make the said smartphone one of the most ideal picks from the budget lineup, and it’s a very impressive proof of improvement compared to older models released under the revamped Nokia branding. Let’s take a closer look and discover why.
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| Nokia 3.4 Review; Entry-Level Leader? |
Get yours now via Lazada at https://bit.ly/nokia34ph or Shopee a https://bit.ly/nokia34phs!
DESIGN AND DISPLAY:
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| Vibrant Fjord |
The unit we got for testing comes in a beautiful Fjord color. If you want to own a Nokia 3.4 that’s more leaning to a minimalist look, the device is also available in Charcoal. Out of the box and as expected from an entry-level smartphone, the Nokia 3.4 is mainly made up of plastic, so there’s a lack of premium feel to it. However, we appreciate that its back cover has some kind of ribbed texture that adds aesthetics and protection to the rear part of the device. On its back is also where you can find its circular camera module, fingerprint scanner, and that familiar Nokia emblem. Its camera module sticks out on its back so if you’re the kind of user who usually rests the phone with its front-facing up, expect the cameras to have some scratches, but if you will use the free case, then there is nothing to worry about.
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| Ports and Buttons |
It's laudable that HMD Global decided to put a dedicated Google Assistant button on the Nokia 3.4, a feat that's rare for budget phones. Other physical buttons found on the smartphone are its power button and volume controls located on the right side. On the left side, along with the Google Assistant button, is the dual nano-SIM card tray with a microSD slot. At the top, there's the 3.5mm audio port -- which in our preference would have been better if placed at the bottom -- and the noise-canceling microphone. Found on the base of Nokia 3.4 are its main microphone, speakers, and USB Type-C port, which is another good inclusion considering that most entry-level smartphones still carry a dated MicroUSB port for charging.
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| Punch-Hole HD+ Display |
Another thing that we liked about the Nokia 3.4 is that it has a more modern punch hole for its front camera. Usually, entry-level smartphones and even mobile devices that fall under the lower mid-range category still flaunt the rather outdated waterdrop notch. For its screen, the Nokia 3.4 comes with a 6.39-inch HD+ display which in all fairness does a good job in producing vibrant colors, enough to enjoy a binge-watching session. The screen is also visible when used outdoors, and we appreciate that HMD Global has put Adaptive Brightness and Night Light features on the display.
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| Retail Package |
The retail package consists of the unit itself, free clear case, USB Type-C cable, 5W desktop charger, wired earphones, ejector pin, and lots of documents.
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PERFORMANCE and BATTERY LIFE:
One thing about the Nokia 3.4 being an outstanding affordable mobile device is that it’s pretty straightforward and along with this comes ease of use. It runs on Android 10 out of the box, although HMD Global is set to roll out an Android 11. Its UI is pretty much standard as it is stock stock Android, which we really like and we didn’t encounter any hiccups when we used the device for the usual social media and Google apps as well as for casual gaming. In fact, the Nokia 3.4's combination of 4GB RAM and 64GB ROM paired with a Snapdragon 460 can handle popular games like Mobile Legends and Genshin Impact as long as you keep the settings at low or medium at most.
What’s special about the Snapdragon 460 chipset of the Nokia 3.4 is that it’s designed to promote more efficiency in terms of battery life. And true enough, the Nokia 3.4 with its 4,000mAh battery appears to have good endurance and efficiency as we were able to use it for a day and a half on moderate usage before it required recharging. This is close to what HMD Global advertised of two-day battery life. And since this is Nokia we’re talking about, this is something that isn’t surprising at all.
Using the supplied 5W desktop charger, the phone will tell that it is charging slowly. True enough, refueling the Nokia 3.4 took around 4 hours before it reached 100% battery life. Thankfully, 10W charger is pretty common these days, which will bring down the charging time to just a little over 2 houts. Still, it is quite a unreasonable to include a slow power adaptor as the phone supports fast charging,
Here’s a rundown of how the Nokia 3.4 performed in terms of benchmark test:
- Antutu - 166,492
- Geekbench Single-Core - 257
- Geekbench Multi-Core - 1,286
- Geekbench Compute - 261
- PC Mark Work Performance - 7,495
- PC Mark Work Performance 2.0 - 5,703
- 3D Mark Wild Life - 241
- 3D Mark Wild Life Stress Test - 246
- 3D Mark Wild Life Extreme - 69
- 3D Mark Sling Shot - 1,419
- 3D Mark Sling Shot Extreme - 864
CAMERA:
The Nokia 3.4 has a triple rear camera setup consisting of a 13-megapixel main sensor, a 5-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 2-megapixel depth shooter.
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| 13MP Triple Rear Cameras |
For selfies, the smartphone comes with an 8-megapixel front camera.
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| 8MP Front Camera |
Daylight shooting is a strength for the Nokia 3.4. As you can observe on the sample photos we took below, the snaps have just the right amount of detail and color accuracy. They could definitely pass an upload on social media without enhancing. Photos taken at night and under dim environments appear cloudy, and turning on the night mode of the smartphone makes little difference to fix this. The Nokia 3.4 also didn’t impress us with the videos it recorded, and it lacks any kind of stabilization.
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| Buildings, Normal |
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| Buildings, Ultrawide |
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| Playground, Normal |
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| Playground, Ultrawide |
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| Night, Normal |
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| Night, Night Mode |
For photos taken using the front camera, selfies and groufies are decent enough when taken under well-lit areas, but just the same as its rear cameras, it struggles when it comes to low-light shooting.
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| Selfie |
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| Night Selfie |
While these are all areas for improvement for the Nokia 3.4, we can look forward to having these addressed in the future since HMD Global has been known to be very generous when it comes to software updates. And speaking of updates, a purchase of a Nokia 3.4 comes with 2 years of OS One and security upgrades,, so you can really expect that HMD Global will work on building up this smartphone more.
FINAL WORDS:
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| Nokia 3.4 |
The Nokia 3.4 has definitely earned itself a spot in the top ranks of entry-level smartphones. If anything, this device proves that HMD Global is stepping up its game to provide even better devices for its different types of consumers. With its triple rear cameras, a USB-C port, and a dedicated Google Assistant button, Php6,990 is a reasonable price for the Nokia 3.4.
How much is the Nokia 3.4 price in the Philippines?
- The Nokia 3.4 price in the Philippines was Php7,990 when it was initially released late last year. Now, consumers can grab it for only Php6,990.
- Check it out now at - https://bit.ly/nokia34ph (Lazada) and https://bit.ly/nokia34phs (Shopee).
When will be the Nokia 3.4 available in the Philippines?
- The Nokia 3.4 is now available in the Philippines since December 7, 2020.
Nokia 3.4 Specs Philippines:
- Dual SIM, dual standby, supports 4G LTE connectivity.
- 6.39-inch Punch-Hole HD+ (1560 x 720) capacitive touchscreen display
- Dimensions: 161mm x 76mm x 8.7mm
- Weight: 180 grams
- Android 10, planned upgrade to Android 11
- Octa-core Kryo 240 (4x1.8GHz + 4x1.6GHz), Adreno 610 GPU, Qualcomm SM4250 Snapdragon 460 chipset
- 4GB RAM
- 64GB eMMC 5.1 internal storage, expandable up to 256GB via MicroSD card, uses dedicated slot
- 13MP PDAF main + 5MP ultrawide + 2MP depth triple rear cameras with LED flash, 1080p video recording at 30fps
- 8MP front camera, 1080p video recording at 30fps
- Multimedia Player
- FM Radio
- 3.5mm audio jack
- WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
- Bluetooth v5.0
- GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS
- USB 2.0 Type-C with OTG function
- Sensors: fingerprint (rear-mounted), accelerometer, light, proximity
- Battery: 4,000mAh, non-removable, 10W fast charging
- Colors: Vibrant Fjord and Timeless Charcoal
- Price: Php7,990 (old); Php6,990 (new)