With the 9i, Honor has given many firsts. First of all, let us tell you that this is the company’s first smartphone with an 18:9 FullView display. Apart from this, this is the first smartphone to be launched in India with two rear and two front cameras. But do these features really work? We got a chance to spend some time with the Honor 9i at the company’s launch event. Here’s how we found this device at first glance.
The device looks quite premium. Apart from that, it feels sturdy and is stable too. The phone has a 13-megapixel primary and a 2-megapixel secondary camera on the front. While there is a 16-megapixel sensor and a 2-megapixel depth sensor on the rear. The camera on the rear is raised and is placed in the center. There seems to be a metal ring around the sensor but we are excited to see how it will feel to hold during normal use.
The phone has a 5.9 inch display and the bezels are thin. Keeping up with the current market trend, Honor has chosen an 18:9 aspect ratio for the display. Due to this, the screen resolution has become FullHD + (1080×2160 pixels). At the bottom of the phone, an old style micro-USB port and a 3.5 mm headphone jack and loudspeaker will be found. Honor 9i has the company’s Kirin 659 processor which is octa-core. Apart from this, 4 GB RAM and 64 GB inbuilt storage are also provided. The same priced phones Xiaomi Mi A1 And Moto G5S Plus Both come in the same RAM and storage variants. With a hybrid-dual SIM slot, the phone’s storage can be expanded at the cost of not having a second SIM card.
Honor has packed a 3340mAh battery in the phone which is fine considering its thickness. In the short time we spent with the Honor 9i, we did not feel any heating. However, we will give any verdict on the battery life only after our detailed review.
Once powered on, you will find EMUI 5.1 skin on top of Android 7.0 Nougat. While the basic functionalities of the OS remain the same, Honor has added a few new features.
The phone also has multiple gestures and shortcuts for various tasks. Additionally, the higher resolution means most apps will have to be stretched to use the full screen.
There’s no doubt that the highlight of this smartphone is the cameras. With dual cameras on either side, Honor claims to have used hardware rather than software to achieve the bokeh effect, while most other manufacturers are using software. We’ll give our final verdict on this in our full review.
Priced at Rs 17,999, the phone seems to have good hardware. With an 18:9 display and four cameras, the Honor 9i is a good option for buyers looking for new features. Stay tuned for our full review of the phone.