Review of Nokia T20 - an inexpensive metal tablet with pure Android

The Nokia T20 tablet is best described by two words - unpretentious and practical. You won't play games with powerful graphics on it, you won't process a video, you won't draw a complex illustration. The novelty is conceived as a typical representative of inexpensive tablets that are used for study or on the road.

The device comes in two versions: the younger one supports only Wi-Fi, the older one - with LTE and GPS, this is exactly what we had on the test. NFC support is missing in both. Standing out from the competition for the Nokia T20 will not be easy.

Specifications
Design and ergonomics
Screen
Software and performance
Sound
Camera
Autonomy and charging
Outcomes

Specifications

Operating system	Android 11
Screen	10.4 inches, IPS, 1200 × 2000 pixels, brightness up to 400 cd / m²
CPU	Unisoc T610, 8 cores; graphics - ARM Mali-G52 MP2 614 MHz
Memory	RAM - 4 GB, ROM - 64 GB; support for memory cards (512 GB)
Cameras	Primary: 8 MP, autofocus Front: 5 MP, autofocus, face detection
Communications	Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.0, 4G LTE CAT 4 (LTE version)
Navigation	GPS / AGPS (LTE version)
Battery	8,000 mAh, wired charging up to 15 W (USB Type ‑ C)
Sound	Stereo, 3.5mm headphone jack
Moisture protection	IP52
Dimensions (edit)	247.6 × 157.5 × 7.8mm
The weight	470 g - LTE version; 465 g - Wi-Fi-version

Design and ergonomics

The Nokia T20 tablet itself is small, but weighty - almost half a kilogram, you can't hold it in one hand for a long time. The body is compact, with rounded edges, neat connectors, no gaps and no protruding camera block. The only decoration is the brand name on the lid.

For the rear and ends, a deep blue matt aluminum has been selected. It doesn't look quite as corny as the black or silver metal commonly found in inexpensive tablets. But the matte surface quickly becomes covered with fingerprints, and all specks of dust and stains are visible against a dark background.

The display is even worse. It's normal for a tablet to be spattered, especially around the edges where your hands are wrapped around it. But in the case of Nokia T20, this is just a misfortune: fingerprints appear on the glass of the screen quickly, but they are not erased well.

Tablets are usually held horizontally, and the design of the Nokia T20 follows this rule. The front camera is located on the long side, at the end above it there are two microphones, volume buttons and a card slot. In the LTE version, you can install not only a memory card, but also a SIM card.

The speakers are placed on the side faces, there is also a power button and a USB Type-C port for the cable. The headphone jack is located on one of the corners of the case. It looks unusual and not very comfortable: you rest your palm on the plug.

Screen

The screen resolution of the Nokia T20 is modest - 1,200 × 2,000 pixels, but for an inexpensive tablet with a diagonal of 10.4 inches, this is normal. The display bezels are wide, which is good - there are fewer false alarms.

The display brightness is low. The stated 400 nits indoors is enough if you turn off the automatic brightness adjustment and unscrew the slider almost to the maximum.

It's worse outside. The display of the Nokia T20 has a lot of glare and is difficult to use. If you tilt it 45 °, in the bright light of the sun, the image on the screen becomes completely invisible.

The color rendition is slightly shifted towards the cold side, you can correct the white balance in the settings. There is also an option to enable dark mode or eye protection mode (the Nokia T20 screen turns yellow).

Another option in the settings allows you to increase the sensitivity of the touchscreen so as not to remove the gloves, but it is useless. The display does not respond to a touch with a finger in a thick glove, but through a thin fabric it recognizes a touch and so on.

Software and performance

The Nokia T20 runs pure Android 11 OS. The manufacturer promises that the tablet will receive operating system updates for two years and monthly security updates for three years.

Home screen Nokia T20

Nokia T20 Notification Panel

Tablets are often given to a child and used for entertainment. Therefore, the Nokia T20 is equipped with Google Kids Space, which contains books, videos recommended for children, as well as applications and games that can only be downloaded with parental permission. In addition, if the tablet belongs to a child, you can set parental controls and specify how long the device is allowed to be used during the day.

For adult entertainment, the Google Entertainment service is intended, where you can read, watch films or play. Some of the apps and games support Quick Launch so they don't even need to be downloaded to your device.

Screenshot: Google Kids Space

Screenshot: Google Entertainment

The inside of the Nokia T20 is simple. The tablet received a budget eight-core Unisoc T610 processor and a maximum amount of 4 GB of RAM. With them in synthetic tests, it shows mediocre results, comparable to the results of budget smartphones.

In real conditions, the Nokia T20 is also leisurely. Applications are loaded slowly, the tablet starts to slow down on complex tasks. Running modern games on it, given the low screen resolution and modest hardware, is uncomfortable, although possible.

The internal memory of the tablet is small - up to 64 GB, but it can be expanded with a memory card up to 512 GB.

Sound

The Nokia T20 has two loudspeakers located at the short ends. The sound they give is not the loudest, with distortion at maximum values. "Panoramic" sound should be provided by the proprietary technology of Nokia OZO Playback, but in practice you will not get really surround sound with the help of the built-in speakers.

The situation is saved by headphones, especially since you can connect both wireless via Bluetooth to the Nokia T20 and ordinary ones via a 3.5 mm jack.

The microphones of the tablet perfectly pick up the sound; during the video conference, the interlocutors hear you perfectly.

Camera

As with all inexpensive tablets, the main camera with a single 8-megapixel lens in the Nokia T20 is just for show. It makes sense to use it if you need to make a purely utilitarian picture, without pretensions to artistry.

Shooting in auto mode with the main camera. Photo: Lyudmila Murzina / Lifehacker

The front 5-megapixel camera is positioned so that you can only take selfies if you hold the tablet horizontally. But it is convenient for video conferencing, although the image that your interlocutors will see is far from ideal: indistinct, with color distortions.

The front camera is also used to unlock the tablet. Face recognition is triggered a couple of seconds after turning on. Accuracy does not degrade even when holding the device vertically.

Autonomy and charging

The Nokia T20 has an 8,000 mAh battery. The manufacturer's declared operating time is 7 hours of online communication, 10 hours of watching movies and 15 hours of surfing the web.

In fact, when watching videos, the tablet is discharged by 10-12% per hour, and with normal use - the Internet, social networks, a few games - the charge is enough for about a day. You can increase the battery life by turning on auto brightness and power saving mode with the limitation of some background processes.

The Nokia T20 supports charging up to 15W, but comes with a regular 10W charger. From such a tablet is charged from zero to 100% in about 3.5 hours.

Outcomes

The retail price of the Nokia T20 tablet with LTE support is below the psychological border of 20 thousand rubles. This is less than competitors with similar characteristics. But do not expect miracles from the novelty. A low-brightness screen, a modest processor and weak multimedia capabilities are the main things to come to terms with.

The strong points of the Nokia T20 are its attractive appearance, good ergonomics, and a well-known brand. And "pure" Android 11, which allows you to count on regular updates over time and stable operation of the tablet as a whole. Whether these advantages make up for the disadvantages of the Nokia tablet, everyone decides for himself.