To say that the launch of the
POCO F1 (
review) disrupted the smartphone market, would be an understatement. While it obviously doesn’t live up to the same standard Nokia smartphones have set in terms of their aesthetics, the Xiaomi phone certainly has enough juice under the hood to give offer tough competition. In the end, the Snapdragon 845 powering the POCO F1 undoubtedly trumps the Nokia 7.1 Plus’s Snapdragon 710 chipset. One could argue that the Nokia smartphone can be better with its stock Android experience as opposed to the customized version of MIUI that runs on the other Xiaomi handset. But this matter becomes subjective and comes down to an individual’s personal preference. The only tangible aspects where the Nokia 7.1 Plus has the potential to beat the POCO F1 is with its camera, battery, and pricing. The POCO F1’s rear 12MP + 5MP setup and 20MP front shooter performed marvelously in our testing. So did its 4000mAh battery. If the Nokia 7.1 Plus is able to offer comparatively better camera prowess and battery life, then it has a chance to provide enough incentive for customers. But these two aspects will be rendered useless if the Finnish brand isn’t able to match up with a comparable price tag.