Over the past few years, Nokia phones have been making a comeback in the United States, with phones designed and sold through HMD Global available as unlocked devices. However, that is not the common way people purchase smartphones in this country. Instead, the majority of mobile handset sales are made through wireless carriers.

HMD Global understood this message. Its latest handset is the first Nokia device in many years to be sold through a carrier. Moreover, the Nokia 8 V 5G coming to Verizon will offer 5G connectivity to the carrier's high-speed network.

The Nokia 8 V 5G UW was announced on November 9 and will appear on Verizon as of November 12. This 5G phone costs $699 on Verizon and is available in Meteor Gray. It can also be purchased at Best Buy.

The Nokia 8 V 5G is essentially the Nokia 8.3 that was released in other parts of the world earlier this year, but this version was developed for Verizon's 5G network. This means that this Nokia phone can be used on the mmWave-based high-speed 5G towers that Verizon has launched in some 55 cities.

Verizon has also switched on a nationwide network covering 1,800 cities and towns, and download speeds in these areas are close to what one might experience with LTE.

The Nokia 8 V 5G has much in common with the Nokia 8.3 5G announced by HMD Global earlier this year. Like its unlocked phone, this new Verizon offering is powered by a Snapdragon 765G chipset supported by 6GB of RAM. Storage is 64GB, which is quite small by 2020 standards, but there is a microSD slot and support for 1TB of additional storage.

The new phone has a 6.81-inch screen with a 20:9 aspect ratio and FHD+ resolution; don't expect the fast refresh rate displays found on the OnePlus 8T and Pixel 5, which are found on other phones in this price range.

Instead, HMD Global is talking about the Nokia 8 V 5G UW's camera with Zeiss optics: a 64MP main shooter, a 12MP ultra-wide-angle sensor, and a quad camera array with a dedicated macro lens and depth sensor. The Zeiss cinema mode can add anamorphic and blue flare to images.

HMD Global describes the phone as Android 11 compatible, but it will be available with Android 11 installed; there is no word yet on when Android 11 will be included on the Nokia 8 V 5G UW, but updates for Android 11 and 12 will will be provided.

The Nokia 8 V 5G UW enters a very competitive market for 5G phones, especially with regard to the upper end of the mid-range model. Samsung's Galaxy S20 FE is also $699, while the LG Velvet and Galaxy A71 5G are $100 cheaper; models like the OnePlus Nord N10 5G seem to be even less expensive than competent 5G phones.

Stay tuned for a review of the Nokia 8 V 5G uW coming soon.