Nokia 7.1 vs Nokia 6.1 Plus: Which one to go for [Video comparisons]

A comparison between two devices that at least on paper want to achieve more or less the same, is always tough. The launch of 7.1 to many made no sense given how ridiculously close it is to the 6.1 Plus in terms of specs. This is quite similar to a Lumia 930 vs Lumia Icon scenario which to me was even worse.

While I am of the belief that HMD did no harm in launching the Nokia 7.1 in markets where the 6.1 Plus already exists, the company should have done a bit more hard work to make the former more powerful in terms of performance and specs. That said, HMD covered the basics well and in the 7.1, it made only a few yet important up-gradation which is enough considering the difference between the price point is just Rs.4000.

Comparison Videos:

Nokia 7.1 vs Nokia 6.1 Plus: Price

The 7.1 is currently priced at Rs.19,999 and the 6.1 Plus now costs Rs.15,999. Both of them have some free stuff to offer. The 6.1 Plus in partnership with Airtel is now offering extra Rs.1800 cashback and 240GB of data(Rs.50 cashback per month for 36 months on Rs.199, 249 & 448 plans. 20GB per month for 12 recharges). Mind you that this remains valid when you purchase it from the Nokia website.

The 7.1 on the other hand, in association with Airtel, offers 1TB of 4G data on selected plans starting from Rs.199. Moreover, Airtel postpaid customers with the Nokia 7.1 get 120GB additional 4G data plus three months of Netflix subscription and one year of Amazon Prime subscription on plans starting from Rs.499.

Nokia 7.1 vs Nokia 6.1 Plus: Display and Design

A well-captured image cannot convey the message well when the display is bad. Thus, making the display a crucial factor while choosing devices. While both of them have a good display, the 7.1 is better, thanks to the PureDisplay technology. This reminds me of Windows Phone days where you had Lumia with a ClearBlack display which was exclusive to the Nokia Windows Phone. The difference was subtle yet important.

Nokia 7.1 features a 5.84-inch IPS LCD, and 19:9 with 2244×1080 resolution. The 6.1 Plus also comes with 5.8-inch display and tries to mimic the display resolution as well with 1080×2280. 

Design-wise, the Nokia 7.1 feels more premium as it should, plus there is one important distinction that is worth mentioning – the 6.1 Plus has a body made out of glass whereas the 7.1 has a metallic frame along with the glass, giving it some edge over the 6.1 Plus when it comes to protection against physical damages. Otherwise, both of them rock a notch design and have Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for screen protection.

Nokia 7.1 vs Nokia 6.1 Plus: Camera

The 7.1 has 12MP+5MP dual rear camera with Zeiss Optics, 8MP front-facing camera coupled with EIS(Electronic Image Stabilisation technology), and bothie. Inside the 6.1 Plus, you also find 16MP+5MP at the backside and 16MP at the front and similar to the 7.1, it has EIS and bothie.

But what makes the 7.1 superior to the 6.1 Plus is the quality of camera lens as the former comes with Zeiss optics which always helps in capturing photos with great detail. Check our Nokia 7.1 vs 6.1 Plus detailed camera comparison here.

Nokia 7.1 vs Nokia 6.1 Plus: Performance and battery

There is no significant difference in performance. Both of them come up with the same processor, Battery, RAM, storage. We are talking an Octa-Core Snapdragon 636 processor clocked at 1.8GHz coupled with 4GB of RAM, 64 GB of inbuilt storage, and a 3060mAh of battery.

Nokia 7.1 vs Nokia 6.1 Plus: Price, specifications, features compared