Home > Nokia N8 Vs Google Nexus S
Nokia N8 Vs Google Nexus S
By Phil Barker on December 14,
 2010 at 00:00,

It looks like the Nokia N8 has a new challenger in the form of the Google Nexus S – a handset with a range of impressive features. Can it match Nokia's finest – a handset that's proving an incredibly capable all-rounder? Join us after the break to find out...

We love the Nokia N8 – it's one of the most versatile handsets available, proving just as happy running the latest games as it is taking photographs with the stunning 12-Megapixel camera. What's it like in comparison to the new Google Nexus S, however?

Camera

The Google Nexus S is another smartphone that takes a back seat to the Nokia N8 in the camera stakes. At 5 Megapixels, and lacking the Carl Zeiss optics found on the Nokia N8, it's extremely unlikely that the Nexus S will get close to its rival when it comes to the quality of photographs.

Check out our Nokia N8 Review Roundup

Mapping

Along with the quality of photographs, Nokia has all of its rivals firmly beaten when it comes to navigation. With Ovi Maps pre-installed as standard, and offering a premium turn-by-turn navigation service for free, it's more than a match for the Google Maps app found on the Google Nexus S.

Display

Both the Nokia N8 and the Google Nexus S feature glass screens. Both are capacitive, but the Nexus S screen should be that little bit sharper, thanks to a higher resolution.

That said, at 3.5 inches rather than 4 inches, the Nokia N8 is also a much smaller handset, and one that promises to fit more easily into your pocket. If we were opting for a 4-inch device, we'd be tempted to wait for the Nokia E7 – a smartphone that also offers a large QWERTY keypad.

Battery life

The Google Nexus S features a larger battery than the Nokia N8 – at 1500mAH rather than 1200mAH, but then again it needs it. We've yet to come across an Android handset that can get anywhere near the Nokia N8 when it comes to battery life, with Android proving particularly power hungry. With that large screen it's unlikely that the Google Nexus S will change this.

Ports and features

Another close one, but again we're in favour of the Nokia N8. It betters the Google Nexus S by having an HDMI port, USB on the go, although the Nexus S bounces back slightly by offering NFC (Near Field Communication). Both feature GPS, Bluetooth and 802.11n Wi-Fi.

Build quality

If you're in the market for a super tough handset, few come close to matching the style and robustness of the Nokia N8. The plastic finish of the Nexus S looks slightly toy-like in comparison to the Nokia N8's anodised aluminium casing, and the uni-body design also gives the Nokia N8 a premium feel.

Operating systems

With the latest 'Gingerbread' version of Android installed, the Google Nexus S is the most cutting-edge of the Nokia N8's rivals. We like Android - it's very easy to use - but it does have its limitations. As mentioned above, it's very power hungry, and featured on so many devices it also lacks that special feel. The Nokia N8's Symbian ^3 operating system is more structured, and won't suit all users, but it's also incredibly versatile and it's easy to personalise it to your requirements.

Tags: Android Google Google Nexus S N8 Nokia Nokia N8 Symbian ^3
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  • Shiva

    So, this confirms there is no NFC in N8? Will there be any support for it in the future? Possible to upgrade or? Please clarify. Thanks.

  • SaDudE

    NFC is in the C7 so hopefully Nokia will flaunt this as google begins to roll out all of their NFC marketing

  • jim

    do you mean nexus one instead as a comparison ?

  • Aditya

    This is bullshit. The Nexus S has a Super AMOLED Screen which isn\’t even mentioned. The normal lousy AMOLED Screen on the N8 is no match. The Galaxy S screen resolution is not a little better, it\’s MUCH better.

    Also the Nexus S has a 1Ghz processor. The N8 has only a 600Mhz processor. Android unfortunately beats Symbian any day. With Gingerbread, the power consumption is much less, and gaming is better too. And the Android Market is wayy ahead of Ovi Store. I bought the N97 when it released and I could not be more disappointed.

    And when it comes to video capabilities, the N8 takes HD videos at 25fps, the Nexus S takes HD at 30fps.

    The N8 doesn\’t even have multitouch when it comes to the keypad which makes typing tough. The Nexus S beats the N8 anyday. When you compare something, compare it fairly. Conveniently missing points is not going to take you anywhere.

  • nozepikka

    @Aditya – yea the galaxy s has S OLED and n8 has just an OLED. I’ll give you that but would you buy a phone solely for the display?. and about the processors.. sure the nexus s has a 1 GHz but the n8′s 680MHz is powerful enough to do whatever the nexus s can so what’s the point to the extra power? just a waste of battery life. plus the n8 will probably be overclocked later on for benchmarking. its like comparing a car with a 2litre engine (nexus) against a bike with a 0.6litre engine… the car’s chassis(android) is freakin heavy so it needs more power and a bigger engine to go fast while the bike’s chassis(symbian) is really light so it can go just as fast as the car without needing that much power. and the n8 can be modded to record 720p videos @ 30fps while the Nexus S records at 480p @ 30fps (check the website for specs).The n8 does have multi touch, it’s getting a keyboard update later on, and you could download swype for it. and before comparing the OS’s now, compare when android 3.0 and Symbian 4 comes out.. the n8 is due for an update in the summer.The only thing the Nexus S has over the N8 is the Android Market and NFC.. and the OVI store is catching up due to ease of porting apps. So no the Nexus S doesnt beat the n8 anyday.. I’d say they are fairly equal.. and if your going to criticize the writer, get ur facts straight first. btw I agree the n97 was EXTREAMELY dissapointing but i think the n8 more than makes up for that…

  • nozepikka

    @Aditya – yea the galaxy s has S OLED and n8 has just an OLED. I\’ll give you that but would you buy a phone solely for the display?. and about the processors.. sure the nexus s has a 1 GHz but the n8\’s 680MHz is powerful enough to do whatever the nexus s can so what\’s the point to the extra power? just a waste of battery life. plus the n8 will probably be overclocked later on for benchmarking. its like comparing a car with a 2litre engine (nexus) against a bike with a 0.6litre engine… the car\’s chassis(android) is freakin heavy so it needs more power and a bigger engine to go fast while the bike\’s chassis(symbian) is really light so it can go just as fast as the car without needing that much power. and the n8 can be modded to record 720p videos @ 30fps while the Nexus S records at 480p @ 30fps (check the website for specs).The n8 does have multi touch, it\’s getting a keyboard update later on, and you could download swype for it. and before comparing the OS\’s now, compare when android 3.0 and Symbian 4 comes out.. the n8 is due for an update in the summer.The only thing the Nexus S has over the N8 is the Android Market and NFC.. and the OVI store is catching up due to ease of porting apps. So no the Nexus S doesnt beat the n8 anyday.. I\’d say they are fairly equal.. and if your going to criticize the writer, get ur facts straight first. btw I agree the n97 was EXTREAMELY dissapointing but i think the n8 more than makes up for that…

  • ducki

    The nexus s has no easy way to show your videos on a TV, thats an important difference to n8.
    If s.o. has an USB stick or mp3 player you are able to connect it with the n8 directly and copy what you want…
    The quality of the n8 pictures are much better as the ones of the nexus s and the n8 has hardware buttons (camera, zoom). You have always your maps in the n8 and don´t need to have a connection to the internet. The price of the nexus s is about 40-50% higher than the n8.
    Nexus and NFC is a good idea like Nokia and PTT, but I have never used or missed it in my phone.

    But the software of the N8 is bad (I have 3 crash in a week) and the symbian os is often very hard to use.
    Sure you have the OVI-store to download apps, but you can´t really compare it with the Android-Market place.

    If you want to buy a “cheap” phone with good and complete hardware take the N8, if you want to buy a phone with a brilliant display and the newest OS and software take the nexus s.

    Sorry for typing mismatches…