Nokia’s C30 smartphone offers a phablet-sized display (biggest on any Nokia) as well as the largest battery and consequently, best battery life of any Nokia smartphone, all at an affordable pricepoint. The device measures in at 177.7 x 79.1 x 9.9 mm and tips the mobile device scales at 237 g, making it still pocketable (skinny jean pockets notwithstanding) despite the big screen mobile experience. The build quality is good but definitely doesn’t feel premium in hand.
It packs a 6.82″ HD+ V-notch display that makes consuming media a treat such as catching up on the finale of Succession Season 3 or playing mobile games such as PUBG Mobile or WGT Golf. Backing up that big display is the large 6000 mA battery that offers casual smartphone users a battery life of up to three days, and power users over two days. This is however not just down to the big size of the battery but also the budget mobile processor setup opted for in the C30 which is a Octa-core 1.6GHz (4A55 1.6GHz+4A55 1.2GHz) that is paired with 2 GB of RAM. This CPU allows for added power efficiency, but is definately not the snappiest nor the smoothest while multitasking or playing the most demanding mobile titles.
Powering the device is Android 11 (Go edition), which includes 2 years of security updates. It is also worth noting that you get only 32 GB worth of internal storage but can expand this via MicroSD card slot with the C30 supporting cards up to 256 GB in size. Another notable feature is the inclusion of the 3.5 mm audio jack which most other smartphones are shunting these days.
In terms of optics, you get a 5 MP front camera mostly useful only for face unlock and video calls, and a rear camera setup that includes a 13 MP main snapper and 2 MP depth sensor. None of these cameras will set your Instagram posts on fire, but do the job.
All of this comes at a recommended retail price of just R2 299, which is well worth it for those whose priorities are affordability, large screen and excellent battery life.
