(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Here's a little pre-Christmas treat for those who want a sturdy smartphone but are a bit frugal. Well, actually, whenever Honor whips out a new device, it's really always a treat; the sub-brand of Chinese powerhouse Huawei always makes it a point that you'll be satisfied on all fronts.
So after in the not-so-distant past, here we are again with another tempting proposition: .
For those wondering why it's some steps back in terms of numbering, well, put it this way: the Honor phones without the letters are even more affordable than those with single-digit monikers - but they definitely won't allow themselves to be inferior.
The biggest news here is that the 7X is the first mid-range smartphone that has an 18:9 ratio, AKA a bigger screen crammed in a slimmer body - in this case, a 5.93-inch full-HD one, which is bright and has FullView tech, though I wanted to see lesser bezels on it as it makes the phone bigger. This innovation was first championed by the and , which were then followed by the likes of OnePlus 5T, Huawei's own and most recent , and some other thing called the .
Welcome to the big league of slim: The Honor 7X between the iPhone X and Galaxy S8.
(Okay, to be more specific, the G6, 5T and Mate 10 Pro have an 18:9 ratio, the Galaxy S8 has 18.5:9 and the iPhone X has 19.5:9. Still, you get it.)
Which makes the 7X more comfortable to use in your hands. I will admit, though, that having used 5.5-inch smartphones with the wider, garden-variety 16:9 aspect ratio, I could say I haven't fully-adjusted to this slimmer profile (anyone who knows me will tell you I love big phones).
However, there are a lot of apps that don't use the extended screen by default, as they still open to the 16:9 ratio. You will, though, find a 'full screen display' button below, which does the obvious when you hit it. However, it does cause certain apps to crash: I tried switching Facebook to full-screen mode, but it kept crashing and crashing until I gave up and just used its default size. That's our 'Beef of the Review'; pretty annoying, but we do hope updates will be there to adress it.
Anyway, on the 7X, you'll find the power button and rocker volume to the right, SIM/microSD card tray to the left, fingerprint scanner dead centre on the rear (which works fast and can unlock the phone from sleep), and 3.5mm audio jack and micro-USB port below. Wait, not USB Type-C? Uh-oh, not future-proof. And I'm really loving that blue hue on the device's metal-finish body, which gives it a rather premium look.
I have no general issues with the shots produced by the 7X's dual-lens 16MP/2MP camera - which can churn out images with bokeh effects, but it isn't as accurate as the Honor 9. But I noticed something: you will feel a lag before it takes the actual snap. Sure; pound-for-pound, that lag may only be a split-second, but if you're used to other higher-end phones, you may readily notice this. That's not surprising given the device's price point, but it does lead to this: that split-second lag may cause you to capture a blurry shot, especially if you move the phone right after taking it.
Battery's pretty sturdy, and you can do well over a day with not-so-savage use. Our usual one-hour video test at full brightness yanked 19 per cent of power out of it.
AND SO...
The Honor 7X is not a bad deal for its looks and offerings, though I think the inclusion of NFC would've been great as more users are leaning towards contactless payments. It's worth a shot if you're looking for your next decent smartphone - and to save money for all the Christmas presents you need to buy.
THE LOWDOWN
| Processor | Kirin 659, octa-core 4 x 2.56GHz + 4 x 1.7GHz |
| Memory | RAM - 4GB; storage - 64GB, microSD up to 256GB |
| Platform | EMUI 5.1 based on Android 7.0 Nougat |
| Display | 5.93" full-HD FullView, 407ppi |
| Camera | Main - dual-lens 16MP + 2MP with wide aperture; front - 8MP |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1; micro-USB, 3.5mm audio; fingerprint; dual nan |
| Battery | 3340mAh, good for over a day |
| Price | Dh999 |
Goodies: Good metal finish, affordable, decent battery life Baddies: Certain apps don't use 18:9 ratio by default, camera lags, takes a while to charge, no NFC
Editor Rating - 8.0/10
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