Nokia 2.2 Price in the Philippines and Specification

Pros

• Nokia 2.2 uses a stock android version which is smoother and easier to use
• The processor is a Quad-core 2.0 GHz Mediatek Helio A22 Processor
• Nokia 2.2 comes with a 3GB of RAM and 32GB internal memory

Cons

• The processor used is pretty weak compared to other android smartphones
• The camera is pretty low in terms of image quality

A Classic Design of The Ages

Having used several Nokia branded phones in recent years, most of which consisting of solid aluminum and glass builds, it was interesting to be holding a plastic unit with the Nokia 2.2. The build is light, and some people who saw it felt it was cute. The test unit that Nokia released for the Nokia 2.2 was black and had prominent Android One branding on the back fo the phone. The Nokia 2.2 is the third phone from HMD that was made in India to have an amazing waterdrop display. As far as notches and bezels go, the droplet-shaped heading of the phone is easy to accept and won't be interfering with a users viewing experience. The front also looks a lot like its predecessor which was the Nokia 4.2, which is coming from Nokia, which is not a bad thing. The bezels around the display are also a lot slimmer compared to its predecessors, which came with its own thick top bezel. But because of Nokias choice of reducing the bezels, the Nokia 2.2 now is able to fit in more display which is surprising because of it having just roughly the same footprint as its predecessor the previous Nokia 2.1. The rear of the Nokia 2.2 though is actually quite similar to its predecessor in a way that it has a plastic shell around it and having a glossy finish. However, the Nokia 2.2 does not get any updates on different contrast of accents on the logo and around which made the frame that made the Nokia 2.1 look just a bit more attractive. The Nokia 2.2's rear cover just like its predecessors can also be removed, which would reveal the battery and card slots. The Nokia 2.2 comes with its own unique waterdrop style U-shaped notch display.

There are some bezels around the display screen which in comparison to its predecessor Nokia 2.1 is thinner. Due to the thinner bezel, the smartphone's display screen looks much bigger.At the back of the phone, Noki has placed the Nokia 2.2 with a plastic cover that has a glossy finish like previously mentioned. The back cover can also be removed which is a common thing for previous Nokia phones just so that users can add and remove the battery and SIM cards and memory cards. The main issue though is that the glossy back panel tends to attract a lot of smudges. This time around though, HMD Global has allowed users to remove the battery as previously mentioned for the reason that you can swap it for a newer one whenever you need a new one. While the card slots near the rear camera module can support two nano-SIM cards and a single microSD card. The Nokia 2.2 comes in Steel and Tungsten Black colors, but if that's too simple for your taste, you can swap them out for Xpress-On covers in Taurus Green, Pink Sand, and Ice Blue. The Nokia 2.2's glossy rear panel as previously mentioned can easily leave marks and smudges. Although that being said, as always you can trust Nokia phones to give you a solid build and durability just like it's predecessors the Nokia 2.2 is no different from them. The phone itself feels sturdy enough and the weight is light enough.

A Performance of Display Like No Other

The Nokia 2.2 sports a 5.7-inch display. The display that Nokia 2.2 has good colors that look deep and pleasing to one's eyes. Brightness levels as well are quite decent indoors, but will leave you wanting more when you are outside or under sunlight. The Nokia 2.2's hardware and software has received the biggest upgrades compared to its predecessors. Last year's Nokia 2.1 was actually offered the Snapdragon 425 chipset that also comes with 1GB of RAM. It also ran on an Android Go system that ran on a forked version of Android and it came with a much lightweight and toned down Go-based apps. But now things have changed up a notch the Nokia 2.2, on the other hand, gets a slightly faster MediaTek Helio A22 chipset which is paired with its very own 2GB or 3GB of RAM. Depending on your RAM of choice the options that you have depends on you because you can either get,16GB or 32GB of internal storage.

Nokia is known for its very own Android One experience, which means it has a clean stock Android 9 Pie that has already been pre-installed, and free of any bloatware or apps that are pre-built in. But not to worry because this is further upgradable to Android 10, but if you are used to other EMUI then getting comfortable with Android One will really take some time to get used to. The Nokia 2.2 also features it's very own Face unlock, but the implementation is still quite slow, which usually takes about five seconds before it unlocking. Even after the five seconds, it sometimes fails, which usually happens when lighting is poor or your face is moving around too much. On the performance side of the device, the Helio A22 doesn't do anything that much to make the phone extra snappy like other budget phones out on the market these days. Apps are also slow to open and the general touch response felt very slow when being done multiple times. Even when the phone running on its day-to-day tasks like messaging on WhatsApp, and browsing through some social media apps, by either opening, reading, or responding to a mail always felt sluggish and often very tiresome to wait. Even when you're trying to quickly open the camera app from the lock screen it would always fail, which could be a software issue that has not been handled well. But the Nokia 2.2 is one of the most affordable Android One phones that has ever been released.

A Walkthrough Time

The cameras on the Nokia 2.2 is something you won't have to expect much from since it's a budget smartphone. It only gets a single 13mp primary camera on the back that comes with LED flash support and a 5mp front camera. The cameras though can still shoot and record videos, but that's pretty much you can expect from it. But you do get an HDR, panorama, a Google Lens. HMD has AI-powered low-light photography as well. Critics were just a bit skeptical about the feature on the entry-level phone Nokia 2.2, and their skepticism was spot on. The long exposure mode of the camera is supposed to automatically kick in when the camera detects that it's under low-light conditions, but during the time reviewers spent with the device, they were unable to tell when this exactly happened. Whether it successfully did or not, low-light shots are unusable because of this as they appear blurry and quite noisy. But the Nokia 2.2 can capture some good colors when exposed in daylight, but the image itself will look dull rather than a brightened image. The shutter speed as well is very laggy and the autofocus is slow so a lot of the shots you take will always lack detail and appear very shaky. Don't expect much from selfies as well because it won't offer a lot of detail, but the colors look very good.

The exposure level is balanced, but still on the dull side. The general UI is a bit slow, so switching between modes will take a couple of seconds. Overall, the cameras are pretty average and definitely not the best feature of the Nokia 2.2. They work fine for an entry-level phone, but once the Nokia 2.2 bumps up its price tag, you'll find better alternatives like the Redmi 7. The phone was slow to focus when shooting macros, and the results weren't as sharp as we expected. The camera was also slow to save shots and get ready to let us take the next one. Photos taken in low light were dark and had a lot of grain. However, the camera did manage to deliver brighter images using HDR. Since there is no night mode, we recommend that you take low-light shots with HDR enabled. here is no portrait mode, so you won't be able to take shots with blurred backgrounds. The selfie camera is also strictly average. Photos lacked detail and also looked washed-out. HDR is available for the selfie camera but it did not seem to make a difference in our experience. Video recording already maxes itself out at 1080p for both the primary as well as the front-facing cameras. However, video is saved in the old 3GP format, whereas most other smartphones save videos in the MP4 format. Since there is no video stabilization, you will get shaky results. We also noticed a focus hunting issue while recording video.

An Unbeatable Battery

The Nokia 2.2 actually has a 3,000mAh battery which is already sufficient enough for a phone that offers quite a low-powered chipset and a low-resolution display. You won't have to worry about power consumption as well because there isn't much on the phone that would drastically drain the battery, so the Nokia 2.2 in all aspects will easily last you a full day just on a single charge on the same day. And it is already clear to see that this phone is not recommended for gaming users because you're more likely to use the Nokia 2.2 for either messaging, social media and website browsing, and also occasional video streaming on low resolution. The Nokia also 2.2 offers a great standby time, which will help prolong the battery that it has. And it's good that the battery will last long, because charging the Nokia 2.2 will really take a lot of your time since it has such a slow process. Because the phone takes around 3 hours to charge from zero to 100 percent using the charger that comes with the box upon purchase. The phone as well does not support fast charging so the charger you have is all that you get in the end. The Nokia 2.2 also lets you remove the battery as this is a common thing on Nokia phones, which is very good to see. So if you're battery already wears out, you can always swap it for a new one.

A Final Verdict

The shift of the Nokia 2.1 to Nokia 2.2 change the in-built battery to a removable battery which something reviewers did not expect, and the cameras have improved considerably even with the current quirks that it has. While face unlock feels more like a gimmick rather than a real feature on the phone itself, the Nokia 2.2 is still an ideal device for those who need backup or weekend phones especially if their current phones breakdown. There is some value with the Nokia 2.2 and critics think that as the first-ever Android phone user to having a spare device, the Nokia 2.2 is pretty good and users can see this device being marketed for those who want a simple, somewhat hardware device that will go the extra mile. So in the end Nokia 2.2 is an ultra-affordable smartphone, meant for those who like budgeted smartphone seekers, looking for just the right amount of modest specs, and a decent running functionality, which is backed by Android One and the legendary Nokia reliability which they have proven time and time again to be worthy of their reputation. That being said, if you're the type who loves photography or multitasking then it's not well-suited for you. So that being said Nokia is still one of the thriftiest and a walk through memory lane phones so if all these features do not match the type of budget phone you're looking for then feel free to go look for your dream budget phone.

September 29, 2020