great successor to the Nokia G20

Last year in August we were allowed to extensively test the Nokia G20. Apart from a few hiccups, we were very satisfied with this device. We have extensively tested whether Nokia can continue this with the G21.

Nokia G21 review

Nokia has been releasing excellent devices for not too much money for some time now. Because the manufacturer’s devices fall under the Android One program, they can also count on monthly updates for three years and two Android OS updates. All nice and nice, in this review you can read how the device performs, because that’s what it’s all about in the end.

Sales package

The G21 comes in a rectangular box. You open this box by pulling out the inside of the box. Here we immediately see the device. Under the device are the books that no one reads and a sim needle. Below that we find the USB cable and a 10 Watt charger.

Design and interface

At first glance you would not say that we are dealing with a budget device. When we pick up the device, we immediately notice that the back is made of plastic. The front offers space for a 6.5-inch HD+ screen with the selfie camera at the top of the screen. The screen also has a refresh rate of 90Hz.

On the left we find the sim tray, together with a button to call up the Google Assistant. This button cannot be reprogrammed and we think that’s a shame. The right side offers space for the volume buttons and the power button. The fingerprint scanner is incorporated in this last button. At the top is a 3.5 millimeter connection and at the bottom is the speaker and the USB-C connection.

As mentioned, the back is made of plastic. This may feel a bit cheap, but it is less prone to staining and less prone to damage. The camera module is placed in the top left corner of the back. This module offers space for three lenses, which we will come back to later in this Nokia G21 review.

Interface

We can actually be very brief about the interface, Nokias come standard with a bare version of Android without a shell as we know from Samsung or Oppo, for example. We see this as a plus. What we find slightly less are the pre-installed apps such as ExpressVPN and LinkedIn. We don’t need this bloatware.

The home screen can be set up yourself to a certain extent. You can of course add widgets, set a wallpaper and add apps to the home screen, but it is not possible to set an alternative icon pack, for example.

Communication: calling, chatting and networking

Just like its predecessor, the G20, the G21 also offers support for two SIM cards. This is also not at the expense of an SD card with the G21, which can be placed next to the two SIM cards. And what can you do with two SIM cards in the device? Right, call. That goes well with the Nokia G21.

In addition to calling, you can of course also use the internet with this device. Please note that the device does not have 5G. That is a disadvantage compared to the competition. Think of budget devices from Xiaomi that do have 5G. In terms of connectivity, the device is equipped with Bluetooth 5.0, GPS and NFC. We have nothing to complain about here.

Multimedia: music and film

The G21 has a 6.5 inch screen with “only” an HD+ resolution. Nevertheless, watching videos is fine. The screen is still quite legible in direct sunlight and can be dimmed sufficiently in the dark.

The G21 is perfectly suited for listening to your favorite music. We recommend that you do this via a headset, the speaker of the device is OK, but no more than that. Because the device has a 3.5 millimeter connection, you have the option to connect the wired headset. If you have a Bluetooth headset, this is no problem either. The device also has an FM radio, but you will have to connect a wired headset for this, because it functions as an antenna.

Camera: photo and video

Nokia has equipped the G21 with three lenses, a 50MP main lens, a 2MP macro lens and a 2MP depth sensor. The camera app is nice and straightforward, there is not that much to set and what you can set is in a logical place. The app points for itself you could say.

We call the quality of the photos sufficient. With sufficient light the photos are reasonable, but as soon as the lighting conditions become less, this is immediately reflected in the quality of the photos. You have the option to zoom in up to three times. This is not really recommended because of the poor quality of the photos when you zoom in. Also photos that are made in the dark are barely sufficient. We have the feeling that there could have been a little more in this.

The photos we took with the Nokia G21 are collected in the online photo album.

Selfie and video camera

You take selfies with 8MP. Nokia has incorporated the selfie camera in a so-called drop notch. We don’t see that often with other devices lately. The quality of the selfies is the same as photos taken with the other lenses, the quality is sufficient.

We are less pleased with the video camera. Movies we shot are mediocre. Images are not sharp and colors are on the faded side.

Performance: battery, speed and memory

The Nokia G21 has been given a processor unknown to us. This is a Unisoc T606. Although this processor definitely doesn’t have the fastest clock speed, it’s not noticeable at all. The tasks are carried out quite smoothly and we have hardly discovered any hiccups. The device did, however, restart spontaneously twice during testing. The first time it was while using the device and the second time the device was next to my desk. The device has 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. The storage memory is an old type of memory, namely eMMC. This is not a big deal, but we would have preferred to see the UFS storage type. The storage space can be expanded with an SD card.

Battery

The battery is no less than 5050 mAh. This is good for, with not too intensive use, more than two days of use. A screen on time of more than 6 hours is possible. With more intensive use, we are left with more than 40% at the end of the day, so very neat. You can charge with the included 10 Watt charger. The device charges with a maximum of 18 Watts.

Update Policy

We have already discussed it a little earlier, the G21 falls under the Android One program. The manufacturer can provide the device with security updates and two Android OS updates for three years. The G21 still comes with Android 11 and will therefore be updated to Android 12 and Android 13. We would have preferred the G21 to come with Android 12, since this version has been out for a while.

Review

Apart from the camera, we are pleased with the Nokia G21. The device performs the tasks fairly quickly, the battery lasts a long time on one battery charge. Because the back is made of plastic, the device feels a bit cheap, but is comfortable in the hand. A plus is that in addition to the two SIM cards, an SD card can be placed in the device without this being at the expense of a second SIM card. The update policy is also fine.

We would have liked the G21 to come with Android 12 and without bloatware. Another downside is the camera. This one, even in this price category, could have been a bit better.

The Nokia G21 will cost you 199 euros and you can order it at Bol.com, Coolblue, Mobiel and Belsimpel.