The Nokia 6 is powered by the Snapdragon 430 chipset - a midrange Qualcomm SoC built on a relatively outdated 28nm process. Much like the bulk of processors priced in this segment, the 430 packs 8 Cortex-A53 cores, which tick at a frequency of up to 1.4GHz. The GPU is an Adreno 505.
Again, we have the Chinese version of the smartphone, which comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage as standard. The global version will be available in both 3GB/32GB and 4GB/64GB configurations.
We subjected the Nokia 6 to the usual set of benchmarks, starting off with GeekBench. A single Cortex-A53 core clocked at 1.4GHz can only do so much, and the Nokia posts one of the lower single-core results. It's nothing to do with Nokia's implementation though - the Zenfone 3 Max and the Lenovo K6 Note we've tested before score virtually identical numbers.
The Snapdragon 617 in the Moto G4 Plus is marginally faster (same Cortex-A53, but at 1.5GHz), while the Helio P10-powered Moto M is even better (A53@1.8GHz). Both the Honor 6X and Snapdragon version of the Redmi Note 4 should also whiz through single-core tasks more quickly than the Nokia 6. Then again, it's hard to beat the Helio X20's vastly superior Cortex-A72 cores.
GeekBench 4 (single-core)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 1551
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 1546
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 832
Huawei Honor 6X 801
Lenovo Moto M 771
Meizu M5 Note 683
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 669
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 641
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 638
Lenovo K6 Note 635
In multi-core, however, the S430 in the Nokia 6 performs above its pay grade. It leaves the K6 Note and Zenfone 3 Max way behind and matches the Meizu M5 Note's Helio P10. This isn't the highest scoring of P10s though, and the Moto M still outperforms the Nokia 6. The Honor 6X and its Kirin 655 can't compete with the Helio X20s, but those aside, it remains undefeated in this test.
GeekBench 4 (multi-core)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 4456
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 3885
Huawei Honor 6X 3351
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 3011
Lenovo Moto M 2921
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 2719
Meizu M5 Note 2690
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 2040
Lenovo K6 Note 2027
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 1822
The Nokia 6's less than impressive benchmark run continues into crowd favorite Antutu. Again that's not due to poor optimization on Nokia's part - that's just what the hardware is capable of, as evidenced by the similar numbers from the Zenfone 3 Max and the Lenovo K6 Note. Here we observe larger gaps between the various chips, though the Helio X20 is again undisturbed at the top.
AnTuTu 6
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 85162
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 77442
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 76186
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 61616
Huawei Honor 6X 57012
Lenovo Moto M 51831
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 49094
Meizu M5 Note 47806
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 45474
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 45190
Lenovo K6 Note 44972
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 44062
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 43957
Oppo F1s 30657
Basemark X shows the Chinese 6 in better light. Here, the Nokia beats the Exynos 7870-powered Galaxy J7 (2016), the K6 Note (S430), Moto G4 Plus (S617), and the lowly Helios too - Redmi Note 3 and Meizu M5 Note. The Moto M makes better use of its P10 though, and pulls ahead of the 6. The Honor 6X is again on top of the Nokia.
Basemark OS II
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 1914
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 1648
Huawei Honor 6X 1307
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 1290
Lenovo Moto M 1127
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 1041
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 999
Lenovo K6 Note 967
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 956
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 951
Meizu M5 Note 944
Oppo F1s 888
Moving on to graphics-only benchmarks, and since we're already into the Basemark suite, it's Basemark X first. Very little to split the different Snapdragon 430s here, and they are all ahead of the Helio P10s, so there's that. The Helio X10, on the other hand (Redmi Note 3), matches the Honor 6X (Kirin 655), and both are somewhat ahead of the Nokia 6. The S650 is the clear winner here, inside the (other) Redmi Note 3.
Basemark X
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 14717
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 13666
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 12190
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 10446
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 8540
Huawei Honor 6X 8458
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 7522
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 7510
Lenovo K6 Note 7480
Lenovo Moto M 6732
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 6380
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 5383
Meizu M5 Note 5276
Oppo F1s 419
GFXBench comes next with some framerates to judge gaming performance. None of these devices is a true 3D powerhouse really, but some are obviously better than others. The Helio X20 and Snapdragon 650 lead the way, clearly. The Nokia 6 with its Snapdragon 413 is in the middle of the pack, inching ahead of P10s and the S617 (with the previous-gen Adreno 405).
GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 15
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 15
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 14
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 9.9
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 8.5
Huawei Honor 6X 8.4
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 7.2
Lenovo Moto M 7.1
Lenovo K6 Note 7
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 6.9
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 6.4
Meizu M5 Note 5.5
Oppo F1s 5.1
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 4.9
GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 15
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 15
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 14
Oppo F1s 10
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 9.7
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 9.5
Huawei Honor 6X 7.9
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 7.9
Lenovo Moto M 7.6
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 7
Lenovo K6 Note 7
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 6.9
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 6.6
Meizu M5 Note 5.5
GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 9.5
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 9.5
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 9
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 7.2
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 6.2
Huawei Honor 6X 4.8
Lenovo Moto M 4.7
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 4.6
Lenovo K6 Note 4.4
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 4.4
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 4.1
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 4
Meizu M5 Note 3.6
Oppo F1s 2.4
GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 9.5
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 9.4
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 9
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 6.2
Oppo F1s 6
Lenovo Moto M 5.2
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 4.6
Huawei Honor 6X 4.6
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 4.4
Lenovo K6 Note 4.4
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 4.4
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (Helio X10) 3.9
Meizu M5 Note 3.6
Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) 3.2
GFX 3.1 Car scene (offscreen)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 5.4
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 5.4
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 5.3
Huawei Honor 6X 4.6
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 3.4
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 2.6
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 2.5
Lenovo Moto M 2.5
Lenovo K6 Note 2.5
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 2.4
Meizu M5 Note 1.9
GFX 3.1 Car scene (onscreen)
Higher is better
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650) 5.5
Xiaomi Redmi Pro 5.4
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (Helio X20) 5.4
Huawei Honor 6X 4.8
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625) 3.4
Motorola Moto G4 Plus 2.8
Lenovo Moto M 2.7
Nokia 6 (Chinese version) 2.5
Lenovo K6 Note 2.4
Asus ZenFone 3 Max ZC553KL 2.4
Meizu M5 Note 1.9
As far as current chipsets go, the Snapdragon 430 at the heart of the Nokia 6 is a modest performer, and there's no going around its inherent limitations. Still, the Nokia engineers have managed to squeeze the most of it (or not mess things up, depending on the perspective), and the phone scores on par or better than other similarly equipped devices. That being said, more capable smartphones are available for the 6's asking price.
Tip us
1.7m 126k
RSS
EV
Merch
Log in I forgot my password Sign up