Nokia G42 5G review: a sleek design

The fact that Nokia’s budget-friendly smartphone can be repaired adds a layer of intrigue to an item that, in and of itself, might not have been particularly noteworthy. Using the tools and components offered by iFixit, you can break the phone’s casing and replace components such as the screen, battery, and charging port on the device.

It is not Nokia’s first response to the raft of right-to-repair laws that have arrived across Europe and the United States; the cheaper, lower performance Nokia G22 is already available. However, it is certainly the most interesting response, as it combines performance, battery life, and the ability to rip out that battery should it fail. This is because it mixes performance, battery life, and the ability to rip out that battery.

Nokia G42 5G Specifications

The new Nokia G42 5G is a budget-friendly 5G phone that features a long battery life, a huge display that can refresh at a rate of 90Hz, and a camera that is above average. This review is essential because it provides prospective purchasers with information that will assist them in making an educated decision regarding whether or not to buy the phone.

Nokia G42 5G: Design and Display

The device is a standard-looking glass square with a plastic bezel and rear. Plastic has two important advantages over other materials: it is less prone to slip off a surface and it can withstand falls better than metal or glass, all of which contribute to the reduced weight. This robustness appears to have been improved by the relationship with iFixit. In principle, this is a repairable phone, meaning that you can swap out broken components yourself using the included tools and parts. This feature debuted on the Nokia G22 and is now available on the G42 as well.

The phone comes in purple or gray and both colors feel great in the hand. Three cameras, the primary one at 50 megapixels, and a back cover constructed from 65 percent recycled materials. Front and center is a 6.56-inch HD+ Gorilla Glass 3 screen. The screen is a bargain at this pricing. It looked sharp and crisp to me, and the 90 Hz refresh rate made it feel on par with more expensive models.

Nokia G42 5G: Cameras

On the rear of the G42 is a camera with a resolution of 50 megapixels and an aperture of 1.8 millimeters. There is also a 2 megapixel macro lens, a depth sensor, and an LED flash. It is generally excellent enough if you feed it enough light, but the image quality suffers as it darkens, particularly in places that are far from the point of focus — which is not surprising given the price. There is also a 2x digital zoom that can crop in on the image and create a tighter frame by taking advantage of the fact that the 50 megapixel sensor bins its files down to 12.5 megapixels.

The end product is not that impressive, particularly when looking at the video. If you try to utilize the zoom function in video mode, when your maximum resolution option is 1080p at 60 frames per second, smearing will occur very quickly. However, I discovered that the auto-HDR setting was quite effective of preventing the silhouetting of dark trees against a white sky, which was something that I didn’t expect to see.

Taking pictures during the day in broad daylight is the greatest option for photography with this phone. You also have the option to snap photographs with a full resolution of 50 megapixels; but, in order to do so, the lighting conditions must be ideal, as this mode does not take advantage of the image quality improvements that result from the binned capture process.

Nokia G42 5G: Performance

One thing that has been true of Nokia phones for the past few years is that the chipsets they use have become more uniform. In the past, each phone may have had a different SoC. Now, the company will release a line of phones that all have the same SoC, in this case the Snapdragon 480+ 5G. This chip looks like a slightly improved version of one that came out in 2021. Most of the time, performance was good enough for daily work. If you use social media, answer texts, and send the occasional email, the G42 will meet your needs. It has enough power for Candy Crush and other light games.

If, on the other hand, you like to play more complicated games on your phone, like PUBG, things take a different turn. Even though they work, they take a long time to open and can only run well at smaller resolutions and frame rates. If games is the most important thing to you, you might be better off with a phone made just for that. When it comes to software, the G42 stays true to Nokia’s usual style by not changing much at all. There is a “Help” app loaded, and software updates are promised for three years. Overall, the software is easygoing and a lot like what you might find on a Pixel device.

Nokia G42 5G: Battery Life

In our WLAN test, the Nokia G42 5G was able to maintain a respectable level of performance thanks to its battery capacity of 5,000 mAh. There are phones in this price range that have a battery life that is somewhat longer, but overall, the phone performs admirably in day-to-day use and can typically accompany you throughout the day without the need for a charging break.

The Nokia G42 5G is capable of being charged with up to 20 watts of power, although the box does not include a charger. When the battery has been totally discharged, it takes well over 2 hours for the battery indicator to return to its normal level of 100% The new Nokia G42 5G is a budget-friendly 5G phone that features a long battery life, a huge display that can refresh at a rate of 90Hz, and a camera that is above average. This review is essential because it provides prospective purchasers with information that will assist them in making an educated decision regarding whether or not to buy the phone.

Software & Apps

The software upgrades that a mobile device’s operating system receives are just as important to the device’s continued usefulness as the battery and the screen, and unfortunately for the G42, its future is looking a little bit bleak. Nokia will provide two years’ worth of operating system updates and three years’ worth of security patches.

It comes with Android 13 out of the box, which is a good operating system to work with, but the fact that it will never see Android 16 means that you will likely be considering a replacement long before the battery or charging port wears out. This means that you will likely be considering a replacement device. In spite of this, it is a relief to discover that the phone does not come with an excessive number of applications that are not needed or wanted by the user.

Nokia G42 5G: Pricing and availability

The G42 retails for £199 in the United Kingdom and AU$449 in Australia once it becomes available in “late July.” Whether or if it will be sold in the United States is still unknown. When we first saw the G22, we felt it might be one of the greatest budget phones of 2023 despite its lower price tag of £150/AU$349. Nokia’s newest phone shares the same qualities. Replacement components and do-it-yourself repair kits in Australia cost a minimum of AU$42.99. British prices are currently unknown.

There is only one configuration available, and it has 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage space. A microSD card can be used to expand storage by up to 1TB. The Nokia G42 features a 6.56-inch HD+ display that can reach a maximum brightness of 560 nits and a refresh rate of 90 frames per second. Both “So Grey” and “So Purple” are available as color options.

Final Words

Nokia did this with the G42 by giving it a unique color (called “So Purple”) and making it easy to fix. Both are good, but the G42 would still be a good phone even without them. Even though its screen doesn’t have the best clarity, its camera isn’t the fastest, and it isn’t the most powerful phone out there, it does have some interesting features.

The Nokia G42 has a unique look, great battery life, long support for updates, easy-to-use software, and is easy to fix. It’s a great choice for anyone looking for a good budget phone, as long as they aren’t also mobile players.

Nokia G42 5G review: The good and The bad

Featuring a one-of-a-kind look, exceptional battery life, extended support for software updates, laid-back functionality, and easy repairability