Nokia T21 Android tablet: Top-class hardware and features at an affordable price
Nokia T21 Android tablet. Picture: Noel Campion.
Buying a cheap tablet is easy, but finding one with decent specifications and good hardware can be a little more difficult. Nokia released the T20 in late 2021, their first budget-friendly Android tablet and at the end of last year, they announced its successor the T21, which I’ve been using since before Christmas to see if it’s a worthy upgrade.
The T21 looks more premium than the T20 and features a more premium look and finish. The charcoal grey colour has a matte finish with a two-tone effect with a band running across the top of the rear with the flash and camera module on the right and a chrome effect Nokia logo on the left.
I like that the corners are rounded, but not as much as the T20. The bezels are not tiny but are even all the way around and the front-facing camera is housed in the centre on the long edge of the top bezel.
On the left and right edges are two slotted holes for the stereo speakers which offer excellent sound for such a small and slim tablet — the sound quality is much better than I was expecting for such an affordable tablet.
On the bottom right is a 3.5mm headphone jack — a welcome inclusion. The internal DAC isn’t very powerful, so don’t expect power-hungry audiophile headphones to run well although I found more efficient IEMs worked fine in my testing. Also, using the 3.5mm audio cable as an antenna, you can use the T21 to receive FM radio channels.
On the top edge are two holes for the stereo mics. On the left is a volume rocker and on the right is a SIM and microSD card tray. My review variant of the T21 supported WiFi plus 4G — it also comes with a caller app and I was able to make standard phone calls with a SIM installed while at my desk — I’m not suggesting you do this when out and about with your tablet unless you’re using a headset.
The screen is 10.36 inches with a peak brightness of 360 nits, which is too dim for viewing content outside, but perfect for indoors. It supports Wacom Active pens, but I didn’t have one of those to test. Strangely, Nokia doesn't sell these on their website as an accessory although they’re readily available elsewhere.
The display is protected by toughened glass and has a resolution of 1200px x 200px and everything, including text, appears nice and sharp.
Thanks to the stereo speakers and vivid display, the T21 is a good choice for media consumption whether you're scrolling through social feeds or bingeing on the latest boxset.
Not surprisingly, the display is locked at a 60Hz refresh rate, which isn’t as smooth compared to more expensive models that sport higher refresh rates of 120Hz.
One of the most impressive features of the T21 is the ability to use it as a second monitor on a PC. You don’t need any special software on the PC as it’s built-into Windows 10/11. You just enable second-screen support on the tablet and then search for a wireless display on your PC — the tablet and PC need to be on the same network. The T21 showed up immediately and I was able to use it as an additional display and sound from my PC automatically switched to the tablet — of course, you can change this if you don’t want it to.
It worked incredibly well and I love that I could switch to other programs on the tablet while it was running in second display mode without disconnecting from my PC. Unfortunately, it doesn’t support touch on the tablet while in this mode which is a pity.
The onboard brains of the T21 feature the Unisoc T612 chipset (octa-core: 2 x A75 and 6 x A55 @1.8GHz). It’s sufficient for general tablet tasks, but it isn’t great for high-end gaming. It has 4GB of RAM, which is the bare minimum and 64GB of RAM, but you can increase the storage by using the microSD card slot up to 512GB.
Battery performance is excellent and Nokia claims up to three days of use on a single charge. It doesn't come with a charger although you do get a USB-A to USB-C cable in the box. It supports up to 18w charging, but I tried several chargers from 20w up to 140w and only managed 12w maximum, which made for relatively slow charging times. You can buy an official 18w charger from Nokia's site for €24.99
The rear camera is okay for the occasional document scan or quick photo, but it's really bad in low light but decent in good light. Although the front camera can capture video in 1080p resolution, it again suffers greatly in low light due to noise and soft details and when I compared it to the T20’s front camera, I found it wasn’t as sharp. In good lighting video call quality is decent and the stereo mics are excellent.
Nokia includes Google Kids Space, a trusted kids' mode for children to explore apps, books and videos to nurture their inquisitive minds. Google Kids Space works in parallel with your child’s Google Account, which parents can help manage with Family Link parental controls.
It’s good to see the T21 comes with a blue light certification, which means it’s not only kind to your pocket but also your eyes.
The T21 comes with Android 12 installed and a guarantee of two years of OS upgrades, along with three years of monthly security updates to help protect against the latest threats for some additional peace of mind.
The Nokia T21 is a stylish tablet with lots of great hardware and software features that make it a worthy upgrade from the T20. The second display for your PC is first-class and although Nokia doesn't include one in the box, it’s great to see Wacom pen support. Performance is good, battery life is excellent and the price is just right.
Nokia T21 — from €279 (Nokia T21 4/128 GB (WiFi + 4G) + Nokia T21 Flip Cover €299) Nokia.com
