When it comes to 5G smartphones, typically these devices tend to be limited to higher-end flagship smartphones where the 5G connectivity is sold as a feature. If you’d rather not drop $1,000 on a smartphone just for 5G, the HMD Global might have an alternative solution for you in the form of the Nokia 8 V 5G UW.
Yes, we know the name is kind of a handful, but it pretty much tells us what we need to know about the phone, such as how it is going to be a Verizon exclusive, and how it will take advantage of Verizon’s 5G mmWave Ultra Wideband network.
For those unfamiliar, when it comes to 5G there are currently two technologies that are in place. mmWave, like the one the Nokia 8 V 5G UW uses, and Sub-6GHz. With mmWave, users will be able to achieve much faster speeds compared to Sub-6GHz, but the trade-off is the range, where Sub-6GHz will have a wider coverage, albeit at the cost of slower speeds.
Both are still faster compared to LTE, but if you live in an urban area, then mmWave should not be an issue, but if you live in more rural parts, then you might run into some issues with coverage.
That being said, HMD Global is touting the Nokia 8 V 5G UW as being one of the more affordable 5G flagship smartphones in the market today. We’re talking about a price point of $699 and it will come with hardware specs like a 6.81-inch FHD+ display with HDR, the use of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 765 chipset, 6GB of RAM, 64GB of expandable storage, and a triple rear-mounted camera system consisting of a main 64MP sensor, a 2MP depth sensor, and a 2MP macro sensor, with a 24MP ZEISS Optics front-facing shooter.
There is also a 4,500mAh battery accompanying the handset with a 3.5mm headphone jack and a fingerprint sensor built into the power button.