PERFORMANCE: While the Nokia G50 garners some high scores, many others score better. This phone could still be a good budget choice if you can get it at a good price or if you need only a basic smartphone. Ease of use on the G50 was very good. While not the best, the touchscreen was very good and it is easy to use. You should be able to get comfortable using this smartphone very quickly. Performance of the G50 was good. Some tasks on this phone may not be quick to respond but it will mostly be fast enough for most users. Call quality and convenience on the G50 were good. Many other phones we tested scored better. Sound while on a call was good in a quiet room and with background noise but you can get phones that do better. Your sound quality will vary due to many factors including background noise, if you are moving between cell towers, the quality of the phone on the other end of the call, and the quality of the cell tower and antenna.
DURABILITY: Overall, the durability of the G50 was Very Good. The phone scored a Very Good on our scratch resistance test. This phone passed our tumble test. The tumble test results are as follows: After 50 drops in the tumbler, our experts rated it as Excellent. The phone had some minor scratches and dents on the device frame. Overall, it was in good working condition. After our more strenuous 100 drops in the tumbler the screen and body are tough. Our experts rated it as Very Good. The phone had some scratches and dents on device frame. Overall it was still in good working condition. This phone passed our rain test where a gentle rain falls on the phone for 5 minutes. This phone passed its water intrusion test submerged at its rated depth and time.
PORTABILITY/BATTERY: The 6.8-inch screen on the G50 comes in a body measuring 6.9-inches tall, 3.1-inches wide, 0.4-inches thick, and weighs 7.7 ounces. Those measurements mean the phone is larger and heavier than most. At 42 hours, it has an above average battery lifespan. Its battery is not removable and the phone doesn't support wireless charging.
CAMERA: The main rear camera on the Nokia G50 measures 48-megapixels. The camera does not have optical image stabilization so handheld photos in low light may be blurrier than cameras with optical image stabilization. Overall the camera performance was good, below that of many other models but still good enough for most users to capture fine still shots. Images are evaluated on high quality LCD displays. The test photos are taken in a brightly lit studio and in a controlled studio simulating sunlight. In the viewing tests the images were rated very good overall. These images are among the best results for color quality, exposure level, sharpness, and image noise. The G50 comes with an 8-megapixel selfie cam. Overall the selfie camera quality was good.
DISPLAY: Overall the display quality was very good. The display resolution was high enough, close to or greater than 300dpi, so you see a smooth, crisp display but it didn't appear quite as crisp as our best displays. If the display does have a higher resolution, most people will not be able to tell the difference. Readability outdoors is a combination of brightness, measured in candelas per square meter, and reflectivity. The readability rating was very good. The maximum brightness level measured 1 meter from the screen was a high 432cd/m² and reflective glare was minimal.
