Nokia 7.2 is one of the latest entrants in the Nokia smartphone portfolio. It is the spiritual successor to the very well-received Nokia 7.1 but takes its game a few notches higher with a better processor, better display and a 48MP triple-camera module on the back.
It is the first Nokia smartphone to pack this 48MP rear camera. Read all about Nokia 7.2 at our dedicated page.
We have used Nokia 7.2 4GB Indian variant as our daily driver for over 25 days and this is our detailed review of the smartphone. It may help you in deciding whether you should really go for Nokia 7.2 as your next if you really wanted to own one and are still undecided.
Nokia 7.2 design:
Nokia 7.2 is certainly a beautiful looking smartphone. Its new polymer composite frame + Gorilla Glass on back and front feels quite premium in your hand. The best part is that the back has light-diffusing satin glass and metallic finish that gives it a more robust feel over Nokia 7.1 and 8.1 which came with a metal frame but didn’t feel as robust in hand.
Due to the back design and satin finish, the Nokia 7.2 feels steady in your hand even with a glass back. The HDR10 supporting display looks gorgeous and is very bright. The blacks are deep, in fact, deeper than Nokia 7.1 and 8.1.
Nokia 7.2 Display & audio output Quality review:
Nokia 7.2 comes with an improved PureDisplay with enhanced HDR10 support and options. Compared to the Nokia 8.1 display, not only it has more clarity and better contrast but also offers more options to tweak the display properties.
We already demoed the new and more powerful PureDisplay options that Nokia 7.2 comes with. You can now toggle on and off the PureDisplay effect completely and if you want to you can go to granular PureDisplay settings to control features individually. You can control Dynamic mode, white Balance and SDR to HDR conversion.
Viewing angles are excellent. The best that you will see on any of the displays out there. Fingerprint resistance is a very nice feature of Nokia 7.2 display and you don’t need to wipe it time and again. The display is very bright and ideal brightness level is around 40-45% in most of the cases. Adaptive brightness learns your choices quickly. Outdoor readability is excellent on Nokia 7.2.
We even streamed the same video on both smartphones to compare both display and audio output quality. Nokia 7.2 impresses with its slight edge over Nokia 8.1 every time though the difference is not big.
You can watch the video below to see the review and comparison in action.
Nokia 7.2 detailed camera review:
For your information here are the Nokia 7.2 camera details,
Rear camera:
- Rear Triple camera with a large 1/2” sensor with 48MP resolution.
- Pixel-binning is combined with image fusion and stacking
- HDR shots combine up to 6 photos
- Dedicated Night mode can combine up to 20 images on a tripod (10 if handheld)
- The second camera is an 8MP ultra wide-angle shooter (118°)
- The third camera is a 5MP depth sensor enables some ZEISS-branded effects, namely three bokeh styles – Modern, Swirl and Smooth
- Selfie Camera: The 20MP selfie camera can also utilize 4-in-1 pixel binning to enhance image quality.
You can check our detailed Nokia 7.2 camera review and comparison to and Nokia 8.1 camera by clicking here. Nokia 7.2 rear camera with its bigger sensor and pixel-binning impressed us with capturing detailed images that also capture accurate colors in all cases.
While all Nokia smartphones are known for capturing natural colors in some cases Nokia 8.1 camera got the color wrong but Nokia 7.2 camera shined by capturing true colors. Also, Nokia 7.2 images keep exposure and White Balance correct and better than Nokia 8.1 Camera.
The selfie camera on Nokia 7.2 works very well and in most of the case captures very good selfies, though it again sharpens the faces. But it is as if you won’t need to manually beautify your selfies before sharing so we didn’t mind it.
Nokia 7.2 Camera UI, Night Mode, PureDisplay options, LED notification & gestures demo:
Nokia 7.2 being an Android One smartphone comes with pure unadulterated Android Pie out of the box. Android Pie is stable, smooth and addictive on Nokia 7.2 with its new gesture navigation.
Coming to new features Nokia 7.2 packs a new Camera UI with Night Mode and camera settings for the first 48MP triple-camera on Nokia smartphones. And video capturing can be paused and resumed, a feature that we failed to inform being present on Nokia 2.2, 3.2 and 4.2.
There are new and more powerful PureDisplay options that Nokia 7.2 comes with. You can now toggle on and off the PureDisplay effect completely and if you want to you can go to granular PureDisplay settings to control features individually. You can control Dynamic mode, white Balance and SDR to HDR conversion.
Nokia 7.2 Performance review :
Nokia 7.2 is powered by the Snapdragon 660 processor and this processor has proved its potential on Nokia 7 Plus. Still, it is time to test it on Nokia 7.2 as many apps and games get updated and better tuned to newer processors with time. We have also compared the Nokia 7.2 performance against Nokia 8.1 too to give you an idea about the Nokia options in the mid-range.
Nokia 7.2 is good at handling basic and advanced tasks including browsing, gaming and handling many apps and games open in the background. But if you push it to the limit with three heavy games open in the background apps and games start restarting rather than resuming. HMD needs to fix memory management when the load is high.
Compared to Nokia 8.1 while Nokia 7.2 gives it a good fight most of the time, Snapdragon 710 shows its prowess in some cases. Check the video for more.
You can watch the video below to see the review and comparison in action.
Nokia 7.2 Battery Life, Fast Charging & Call quality:
Nokia 7.2 surprised us with an excellent battery life during our review. In real-life conditions, I have been getting around 34-36 hrs of battery life with heavy “blogger” usage of the device. This involves lots of browsing, apps testing, attending calls and daily chores.
It may be around 36-40 hrs for a moderately heavy usage scenario and that is really very impressive. Screen-on time typically varies between 6.5-7.5 hrs for heavy usage scenario. Nokia 7.2 supports charging via USB-C port and the fast charging really feels like a must-have feature nowadays.
Nokia 7.2 comes with a Glass unibody design and offers stellar call quality because of its innovative Antenna design. Call reception is usually very good. I didn’t face any issue like call drops etc and it holds well even during long conversations.
Nokia 7.2 Positives & Negatives:
Negatives
- While the Glass body design feels robust in hand, but certainly needs a cover to protect the Glass body from falls, scratches etc.
- A better processor could have added to its desirability
- Camera algorrithms need tweaking to lessen the sharpening
Positives
- Premium looking glass unibody design with new polymer composite frame
- Enhanced HDR10 PureDisplay with best-in-class color interpretation, contrast, high brightness, and outdoor readability.
- Performance wise capable with Snapdragon 660 processor
- Both Cameras show their potential in our tests. Much improved camera over Nokia 7.1 and does better than Nokia 8.1 too
Nokia 7.2 Conclusion:
We subjected Nokia 7.2 to a rigorous and detailed evaluation and after using it as our daily driver for over 25 days, we whole-heartedly reccomend it as a premium smartphone that ticks all the right boxes from design, display, camera to pricing. It is an ideal smartphone for those who want more from their smartphone on a mid-range budget.
Nokia 7.2 comes with a high-end premium design, enhanced HDR10 PureDisplay, quite capable camera (s) and good performance. Being an Android One smartphone, Nokia 7.2 has guaranteed two years of Android OS update and 3 years of monthly security updates. Keeping HMD’s track record in mind one can expect Nokia 7.2 to be in the league of very first Android smartphones to receive OS updates.
Nokia 7.2 is officially priced at Rs 18,599 for the 4GB RAM variant in India though it is available at good discount on retailers like Amazon. It is priced at USD 349 in the US, starts at EUR 289 in Germany and £249.99 in the UK. You can read all our Nokia 7.2 coverage here.
