Xiaomi and HMD Global are two brands that promoting Google’s latest Android One programme. The search engine giant revived its programme, after a failure it faced in 2014 when it first introduced it.
Xiaomi introduced its first Android One smartphone, the Mi A1 last year, which is followed by Mi A2, which got unveiled last month. The phone comes with a price tag of Rs 16,999. Coming to HMD Global, all its Nokia smartphones fall under the Android One programme and the latest Nokia 6.1 Plus is no exception. The phone comes with a price tag of Rs 15,999 and it will be exclusively available in India on Flipkart.
Both the smartphones cater to the mid-budget segment and both of them comes loaded with the latest display trend, some really interesting hardware and Stock Android experience. However, the question here is: Which Android One smartphone is better? Is it Xiaomi Mi A2? Or is it Nokia 6.1 Plus? To clear these thoughts, we have pitted both the device against each other to know which one is better.
Design
Starting with the design, both the smartphones come with a different build. On one hand, Xiaomi Mi A2 features a metal unibody that looks sturdy. There is a slight ergonomic curve at the edges of the phone that makes it easier to hold. On the other hand, Nokia 6.1 Plus gives a premium look thanks to its glass design, while the edges are made of aluminium. There is a notch at the top and the bezels surrounding the display are kept minimal.
The first thing you will notice about both the devices is that Nokia 6.1 Plus is compact and lightweight as compared to Mi A2. Further, the Nokia 6.1 Plus fits perfectly in your hand, while the Mi A2 looks a bit wider. However, being a glass body on the former, there will be fingerprint smudges and it is surely less durable for day-to-day usage as compared to Xiaomi Mi A2. But, overall, if you ask us then we will go for the Nokia 6.1 Plus as it looks much refined as compared to the Xiaomi Mi A2.
Winner: Nokia 6.1 Plus
Display
On the display front, the Xiaomi Mi A2 features a 5.99-inch Full HD+ display with a screen resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels that gives a pixel density of 403ppi. The Nokia 6.1 Plus is loaded with a 5.8-inch Full HD+ IPS LCD display with a screen resolution of 2280 x 1080 pixels. On papers, the display of Nokia 6.1 Plus looks slightly better (and you can thank the notch for it). However, in real terms usage, the difference is quite visible.
The Nokia 6.1 Plus display is brighter and colour reproduction is better than the one present in Xiaomi Mi A2. Further, in our review of Mi A2, we found out that the display has a yellowish and warm colour. Plus, there is no option to change the colour temperature as well. On the other hand, the display present in Nokia 6.1 Plus is also prone to being a bit reflective in nature. This means you will struggle with looking at your screen when the sun is bright. That said, the display present in Nokia 6.1 Plus is much better as compared to Xiaomi Mi A2.
Winner: Nokia 6.1 Plus
Hardware
The Xiaomi Mi A2 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 octa-core Processor clocked at 2.2GHz coupled with Adreno 512 GPU. The phone comes in 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. The Nokia 6.1 Plus is powered by an older Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor that is clocked at 1.8GHz along with Adreno 509 GPU. The phone comes with 4GB of RAM and 32GB/64GB internal storage.
Judging by the sheer specs sheet, the Xiaomi Mi A2 comes with a much powerful processor as compared to the Nokia 6.1 Plus. The same is reflected in the daily performance as well. While both the devices run smoothly in day-to-day usage and the multitasking is impressive as well. However, when it comes with some really high-graphics hungry games like PUBG Mobile, both of them shimmers a bit. However, we noticed that the Xiaomi Mi A2 was able to handle the game slightly better than Nokia 6.1 Plus. So, the Winner Winner Chicken Dinner, right?
Winner: Xiaomi Mi A2
Software
On the software front, both the smartphones come runs on Android 8.1 Oreo and both of them falls under the Android One programme. This simply means that there is not much difference in the user interface in both the devices. Both of them gives you a stock Android experience. However, in Nokia 6.1 Plus you get slightly more gesture controls and there is an option of Face Unlock as well. But apart from that, you get the goodness of stock Android on both the smartphones.
Winner: Tie
Camera
On the camera front, both the smartphones come loaded with the dual-camera setup at the back. The Xiaomi Mi A2 houses 12-megapixel primary sensor (f/1.8, 1/2.9″, 1.25µm) and 20-megapixel secondary sensor (f/1.8, 1/2.8″, 1.0µm, PDAF). For the front, there is a 20-megapixel shooter for selfies.
The Nokia 6.1 Plus comes loaded with a 16-megapixel primary shooter and a 5-megapixel secondary sensor. For the front, you get a 16-megapixel lens for selfies and video calling. In terms of camera performance, the Xiaomi Mi A2 delivers better performance as compared to the Nokia 6.1 Plus. The photos taken from Mi A2 came out to well-detailed, while the colour reproduction was slightly better in Nokia 6.1 Plus. Further, in low light condition, the Xiaomi Mi A2 goes a much better job as compared to the present in Nokia 6.1 Plus. In terms of selfies, the Mi A2 once again does a decent job and bokeh effect looks much more natural in this phone as compared to Nokia 6.1 Plus.
Winner: Xiaomi Mi A2
Battery
On the battery front, the Xiaomi Mi A2 is backed up by a 3010mAh battery and it supports Quick Charge 4.0 fast charging. On the other hand, Nokia 6.1 Plus features a 3060mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0 Fast charging support. The difference is only of 50mAh juice. In our testing, we found out that both the smartphones deliver almost similar battery output, so we are going to tie this round as well.
Winner: Tie
Conclusion
To conclude, the Xiaomi Mi A2 comes loaded with a pretty good hardware and the camera is certainly better than the Nokia 6.1 Plus. However, the Nokia 6.1 Plus comes loaded with a compact design along with the crisp display, which certainly adds some brownie points to it. Both of them comes with Android One programme, meaning that you will get timely updates as compared to other smartphones available in this price range. So, which one should be your next Android One smartphone? It’s up to you to decide.