The HONOR 200 Lite is release as a phone that stands between a budget and starter mid tier phone that covers most base used features with performance combined into a phone that we are going to have a quick review today, lets find out as we cover most of our thought and features of the HONOR 200 Lite.
Design
From the looks of it, from the back to the front of the phone, the HONOR 200 lite outlook is flat with a matte touch to it. The material used is mostly polycarbonate plastic but for the most part, it still retain the elegance and the premium look that is inherited from the mainline HONOR 200 series which means, you dont lose much out from this department with good curved edges, and the camera bump is quite slim there too, just a minor bump only while then, all the essential camera sensors are still fitted in just nice.
Measuring at 6.78mm thickness and the weight of just 166 grams, the phone is definitely light to hold and use with balanced ergonomics and a flat slate screen that is symmetrical and cater to easily kept in your pocket or handbag. The fingerprint sensor is located on the power button and all the other usual placement such as USB C port, speakers and microphone is nicely situated with close to no blocking or disturbance while using the phone.
As for the color choices, you do get Midnight Black and Starry Blue, with the same matte finish with an overall glass like covering the back of the phone, and the frame of the phone matches the overall color.
Display & Audio
The HONOR 200 lite houses a 6.7-inch, 1080 x 2412 pixel AMOLED display running at 90Hz which is still a good value in a smartphone when factor in the price which in return gives a good vibrant display and good response in both touch and visual. The bezels are still thick but not obstructive while still gives a good view overall with a 20:9 aspect ratio that is looking great while streaming your favourite movies. Furthermore it has dynamic PWM dimming at 3240Hz which is eye friendly and SGS low blue light filter certified. While HONOR did not specify the max brightness, during test, it is adequate enough to view and operate, whether it’s day or night, however there is no native HDR support but one can live without HDR anyway since some of the smartphone that we review today still has missing HDR within the price tier.
Going over to the audio, yes, you only get a single speaker setup, and that is pretty much expected but then, it does sound quite loud and audible across small size room setup with HONOR Histen audio customisation that allows one to adjust the audio modes to the liking. There is no 3.5mm audio jack but wired audio can be connected via USB C jack or just use Bluetooth headphones/TWS should you need a more personal audio enjoyment and HONOR Histen can still be used alongside the options given.
Camera
Within the price bracket, the HONOR 200 lite offers a surprising camera setup, a main 108MP rear camera with 5MP wide lens and 2MP macro camera, to me that sounds pretty much on par with most of the lower mid tier smartphones out there and it achieve what it does with good photo outcomes over most environments tested. Night photo can be looking very representable with some faint lighting surrounding the area of capture as a support while the AI post processing will do the rest. To be fair sometimes there could be noises over the processed photo but it is fairly minimal still with shadows and able to identify wordings. Day time wise, it’s no issue at all with good details and colors overall.
Portrait photo wise, and this should be the strongest suite on the HONOR 200 lite, the portrait details is well represented on the foreground while the background is separated subtly retaining overall color and less jagged edges between it. With that said, its a good fast photography shooter that does not require much manual settings or control, just a few taps and you are pretty much ready to snap and save.
Performance & Software
The inclusion of the MediaTek Dimensity 6080 octa core SOC with 12GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 512GB of internal storage is a good combination of hardware with reasonable balance in performance when it comes to multi tasking and gaming combined. Day to day use is a joy with multiple applications open and switched over with ease and smooth sailing. Since this is a 5G capable phone with multiband 4G support, one should not be worried about data and calls since the antenna can switch over from cell to cell quite fast. Should you need more RAM, the phone allocates an additional 8GB of the internal storage as Virtual RAM. There is no expandable storage there but 512GB is plenty there to store and install what you need with photos and videos.
It is running on the latest MagicOS 8 with Android 14, and yes it comes with the latest security patches as well. In fact within the segment, some phones even came out with Android 13 till this date, so I’ll take that as a great effort from HONOR on taking care of the customers with the latest software and it has on hand, and experience wise, there is close to no differences when it comes to UI or base functionality when compared to the higher end HONOR 200 pro and HONOR 200 such as HONOR Share, Wireless Projection and Multi-Window, just to name a few. The inclusion of 4500Mah battery capacity will last you moderately around 13 hours without issues, and a 35W HONOR SuperCharge adaptor is included that allows you to recharge back to full in less than 1.5 hours. From the gaming perspective, the phone can perform pretty well over games like Genshin Impact provided if you are willing to lower down the settings, and it should be able to hover at 45FPS or above without sacrificing much.
Benchmarks
Verdict & Conclusion
The HONOR 200 lite brings a much needed essentials to the mid tier ranger phone. A definite aspects that brings the compelling factor to this phone is the price at RM1299, which is pretty much targeting the mass users wanting for something that just works comfortably efficient over processing power, multitasking and still, a set of camera that still does not disappoint, combining some of the base of the HONOR 200 features without sacrificing too much out from the features. With that said, if you wanted something that can goes on without breaking the bank, this is worth a shot without deep consideration, since this is also alternatively available via various telco as part of the postpaid plan bundle from CelcomDigi and Yes.my