Another entry level affordable smartphone that host modern features for light business and on the go entertainment
Introduction
The Honor brand has yet again amaze us with budget minded smartphones. This time is the short review of the HONOR 9S, a smartphone which mainly targets the ultra affordable range price, yet you will get most of the features that you would use on a smartphone.
Specifications
| Processor | MediaTek Helio P22, Octa-core 2.0Ghz |
| Graphic | PowerVR GE8320 |
| Display | 5.45 inch IPS LCD, 720 x 1440 HD+ |
| Camera | Rear : 8MP Front : 5MP |
| RAM | 2GB |
| Storage | 32GB |
| Battery | 3020 mAh |
| OS + UI | Android 10 + MAGIC UI Ver 3.1 with HMS |
| Price | RM349 |
Design
The front on the phone is equipped with a 5.45 inch LCD panel with a front facing 5MP selfie camera while the back material is plastic with only one 8MP rear camera without a fingerprint scanner, featherweight of 144grams, holding up the HONOR 9S just feels nice, easy, yet very simple. It comes in 2 colors, Blue and Black. Micro USB slot for charging on the bottom, 3.5mm audio jack on top while the speakerphone is all on the earpiece.
Display & Sound
The HONOR 9S comes with a 5.45 inch LCD display with an aspect ratio of 18:9 at 720P HD+ display. For the price that you paid for, I would say it’s bang for the buck. Display quality wise, judging from the price, the viewing angle is clear and good. Viewing a couple of streaming videos has close to no stutter. YouTube playback can go up to a maximum of 720P at 60FPS. On the sound portion, the top earpiece and plugging in a headphone all works well and clean, just that there is no bottom firing speaker.
Camera
Rear : 8MP
Front : 5MP
Rear Camera wise, I took pictures and a video on it. Well, the quality is just as expected with normal quality capture , with certain details able to be captured properly accompanied with noise as well. Apart from it, rear camera capture during night time seems abit blurred, hope that this can be optimised via software. Video capture can go up to 720P locked at 30FPS only. No option for 60FPS recording .
On the Front camera, selfies taken are normal, whether it’s indoor, outdoor or in a room, unless if the environment surrounding the selfie capture is bright, it does the job well. VLogging is not recommended for this phone, however rest assured your selfies capture will be just fine.
Performance
The HONOR 9S is running on a low to mid range MediaTek Helio P22 Octa-core 2.0Ghz processor with 2GB RAM and 32GB of internal memory. Gaming wise, simple and light games will work fine, games like Mobile Legends and Rise of Kingdoms will work, set the graphic settings to lowest possible.If you plan to use it for Social Media and light streams, go for it as its tested to work well with it. Internal memory wise, if it’s not enough, there is always an option to slot in a micro SD card for memory expansion, which comfortably enough, another 64GB will do. Connectivity such as Bluetooth, WIFI (BGN) 2.4Ghz, LTE, 3G is also available, suitable for those who want to connect to their headsets, WiFi routers and social media on the go with 4G connectivity. On the battery and usage wise, it lasts for about a day, but recharging it back from 0% to 100% will roughly take 2.5 hours.
The HMS journey continues with alternative solutions
Applications and game downloads are no issue (at least for me), since there is Huawei App Gallery, which hosts a large number of apps and games in it. You can download from productivity, entertainment , social, games without any issues. If you missed any applications from the App Gallery, there is always an alternative such as AuroraOSS which is an alternative app store that pulls applications and games directly from Google Play, this ensures no malicious apps are downloaded to your device. For Youtube, you can use Vanced with MicroG and your existing Google Account for your streaming needs.
Conclusion
The HONOR 9A is definitely a great device for those who look for an affordable device, with a host of Android with Huawei Services features built into it. If you wished to get a secondary phone for backup or just for leisure light weight use, this could be your choice as well. At RM349, it comes with Microsoft Office 365 mobile app and Microsoft Translate app.
Pros
- Great affordable device
- 3020mAh Battery
- Great for social media and light gaming
Cons
- Micro USB connector
- Fingerprint magnet
- No Fast Charging
- WiFi 2.4Ghz only