Ever since my full review on the Honor Play, I’ve been looking forward to getting my hands on the new Honor 8X. Now the time has finally come, and I took the 8X on a quick spin to see what the fuss is all about.
Read: Honor 8X Review
Design & Construction
Much like the Honor Play, the 8X is sleek and looks well constructed. It looks stylish and expensive with its glass back panel and smooth metal frame that comes in four different colors: Black, Blue, Red, and Pink. There is a fingerprint sensor at the back, with the volume control and power buttons on the right. On the left is the sim card tray. The bottom holds the speaker, a USB Micro-B port for charging, and a 3.5mm earphone jack.
The phone has a good weight to it, but the smoothness of the back panel coupled with its ultra-slim exterior makes it hard to grip comfortably while playing.
Display
The 8X is built with a 6.5-inch IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen that displays sharp text and crystal clear images. There is a tiny notch that holds the front camera, earpiece, a sensor and a small led for notifications. The display has a nice pixel desnsity at 396ppi, which is already at par (sometimes, even better) with other phones in the same price range.
Camera
The Honor 8X has a 20MP+2MP dual rear camera that can take amazing pictures with great detail and clarity. The AI enhancements help make the colors appear vivid yet not oversaturated, even in low-light conditions which makes the 8X a perfect companion during parties or outdoor events. The 16MP selfie camera doesn’t have AI features but has a beauty setting that softens out details in the face. When left on Auto, it can capture skin tones really well.
Performance
So far I am very impressed with the 8X’s performance. The Kirin 710 chipset together with the Mali-g51 MP4 GPU can handle graphics-heavy games smoothly. I’ve only played Mortal Kombat X on it and haven’t experienced any lags. Game assets loaded quickly and even with its online multiplayer mode, it was able to process matches well. One of the features I loved about it is the built-in screen recorder which you can activate by pressing the Volume Up and Power buttons at the same time. You can also opt for internal audio recording, which is very rare with Android devices, as most phones rely on the microphone as a source for audio when screen recording.
The 3,750mAh battery on the 8X was also a treat. Even after two hours of playing straight, the 8X still had enough power to do other things like casual surfing or watching videos. The power saving feature also allows you to conserve more energy when you’re not using the phone.
As for the biometrics, so far I can say that it’s the same calibre as the Oppo Find X and F9. The face recognition and fingerprint unlock are very reliable and makes unlocking the device not just secure, but also very convenient.
I’ve had high expectations for the Honor 8X, and it did not disappoint. I’m sure there’s more to it that I haven’t tested yet, but from what I’ve seen so far, the 8X truly is worth the buzz it’s generating. The Honor 8X is now available nationwide and retails for Php 12,990 (4GB RAM + 128GB Storage).
Also read: Honor 8X Review
