Cameras
And now I’ll tell you about the camera of this wonderful Honor 20. There are so many eyes on the back panel, air sho, some kind of Yog-Sothoth.
In fact, there are actually 4 modules installed here and the main one is Sony IMX 586 with an aperture of 1.8, there is also a 117-degree wide, and, most interestingly, there is a macro module, which, by the way, is not available from any manufacturer didn’t install it. Really, yes, this is some kind of super innovation.
Yes, in fact it seems to be 2-megapixel, but when you shoot macro, you get a 1600×1020 photo, which means viewing it even on TV is no problem. Here we did a full review of the twenty specifically in terms of macro photography.
And the fourth module is for the module for the bokeh effect. And in this sense, of course, it’s interesting to see what this smartphone can do, because even with zoom, which isn’t here, it demonstrates a 10x zoom.
In general, the Honor 20 smartphone takes pictures so interestingly that we already clearly understand that there will be a lot of comparisons of cameras with it and we will analyze a lot of nuances in subsequent reviews.
Now we will say that the quality of daytime photos is very interesting and artificial intelligence algorithms have been greatly improved, and where previously Honor and Huawei smartphones were not, let’s say, not the most advanced, now we see very great increase in quality, all basic scenarios are performed well.
However, we can say that there are some problems with shooting backlight if the light source is in the center of the frame. We will also reveal this in separate reviews.
They make simply wonderful cats! This is finally a breakthrough, Huawei fell in love with cats, and this is just generally wonderful, we will also look at this in the future.
There are some questions about the quality of the wide lens and its coverage angle, which we will probably compare with the flagship smartphones of the same Samsung and try to understand which of them shoots better.
There are also questions more about the artistic part of processing night photographs. As you can see, in them the sky seems really evening, it’s like a time machine that takes us back a couple of hours. Although it looks beautiful, we will continue to look and compare.
But what really surprised me was the quality of the video, more precisely, its stabilization, because the Honor 20 does not have optical stabilization, and it would seem that the video, well, at least in 4K, should shake a little.
But in fact, everything is really smooth, everything is really beautiful, and at the same time, even night photos that even the sky is visible, despite the fact that there is no optical stabilization, the algorithms can really pull out that sky! Although, maybe it’s out of place.
But then write in the comments with whom to quickly compare the Honor 20, we will have the opportunity to choose several smartphones for you, so we are waiting for your opinion! And this is the promised photo in super macro mode, and we are quite pleased with its quality. Again, we will look for someone to compare it with.
The front camera of Honor 20 has a resolution of 32 megapixels, aperture ratio is 2.0. The camera is good, it produces natural skin, the dynamic range works well in photographs, in principle, focusing works quickly and everything is very good.
Huawei honor 10 review: design, ergonomics
The new smartphone has such a bright and attractive appearance that it certainly deserves the nickname “handsome”.
At the top of its “high” screen there was a small neat “bang”, which, it seems, is already considered an essential ingredient of advanced design.
Thanks to the 19:9 aspect ratio and thin frames, the display occupies about 86% of the front surface of the smartphone. A distinctive feature of the new product is also the Ultrasonic fingerprint scanner, located on the front panel. The fact is that the fingerprinting device in Honor 10 is no longer optical, but ultrasonic, and is hidden under protective glass just below the screen.
The elegant back panel, which seems to have become traditional, effectively changes color when viewed from different angles. The so-called gradient aluminosilicate glass consists of 15 layers that refract light and create an iridescent multi-colored glow.
In addition to the strict colors “midnight black” and “ice grey”, Honor 10 is also presented in two new, “shimmering” colors – blue and green, created at the Paris Design Center. The developers did not bother to certify the case according to IPxx, therefore, Honor 10 does not provide any moisture protection.
An oval speaker grille, a front camera lens, an LED indicator, as well as proximity and light sensors were assembled on a small dark “bang”.
Under the protective glass below the screen, the outlines of the ultrasonic fingerprint scanner pad are visible. System navigation can also use a regular virtual panel and an on-screen navigation button.
The unchanged position on the right edge is occupied by thin, very different in size, volume rocker and power/lock button.
On the left edge there is a closed slot with a tray for two places intended for subscriber identification modules of the nanoSIM format (4FF).
At the bottom end, along with a USB Type-C connector (with support for the USB 2.0 interface), there was a decorative grille for a “multimedia” speaker, a hole for a “talk” microphone and a 3.5 mm audio headset connector. Considering current trends, the presence of the latter will undoubtedly please many.
At the top end, a dark “eye” of the IR port is attached to the hole for an additional microphone.
The lenses of the rear photo module along with the LED flash are placed horizontally at the top of the rear panel, closer to the left edge. So that no one, apparently, doubts the rudiments of machine intelligence in the new smartphone, next to the photo module there is an inscription — “AI Camera”.
But from the inscription at the bottom of the back panel, decorated with the Honor logo, you can find out the model number, company name and country of production.
The smartphone settings provide tools to make it easier to control it with one hand (“Mini window” and “Move the keyboard”). Here it is appropriate to compare the weight and size characteristics of the 5.84-inch Honor 10 with the 5.11-inch Honor 9 (our review here) — (149.6×71.2×7.7 mm and 153 g) versus (147.3×70.9×7.5 mm and 155 g). Let us remember that the aspect ratio of the screen of the metal-glass predecessor is 16:9.
Huawei honor 10 review: hardware, performance
The HiSilicon Kirin 970 system-on-chip, already familiar from Huawei Mate 10 Pro (our review here) and Huawei P20 (our review here), was chosen as the mobile platform for Honor 10. The processor, which includes two quartets of cores (four ARM Cortex-A73, 2.4 GHz, and four Cortex-A53, 1.8 GHz), works in tandem with a 12-core ARM Mali-G72 MP12 graphics accelerator.
At the same time, the key feature of the Kirin 970 was a dedicated neural processing unit (NPU). Let us recall that, for example, the implementation of semantic image segmentation technology makes it possible to identify many different objects in one frame. Thanks to this, instantaneous setting of optimal shooting parameters takes into account not only lighting conditions, but also the nature of the subject. The Honor 10 has 4 GB of RAM.
Testing Huawei Honor 10. Results in the AnTuTu benchmark
Testing Huawei Honor 10. Results in the GeekBench benchmark
Testing Huawei Honor 10. Results in the 3DMark benchmark
Above are the results of the main tests. Note that HiSilicon Kirin 970 turned out to be a worthy opponent, including Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 and Samsung Exynos 9 8895 Octa.
We received a smartphone with 128 GB (there is also an option with 64 GB) of internal memory, of which about 111 GB was available. Unlike its predecessor — Honor 9 — it is no longer possible to expand this storage with microSD memory cards (there is no corresponding slot). Fortunately, support for USB-OTG technology allows you to connect regular flash drives to the device.
The presence of one radio channel causes alternate operation of two subscriber identification modules in DSDS (Dual SIM Dual Standby) mode when they are installed simultaneously. At the same time, 4G networks, as well as VoLTE, are available on both SIM cards. The developers focus on the Easy Talk function, which reduces background noise when talking through a headset and increases the volume when talking in a whisper.
Fourth generation cellular networks support frequency bands of 1800 MHz, 2600 MHz and 800 MHz (b3, b7 and b20). The LTE Cat.13 (DL) communication standard allows 4G networks to reach speeds of up to 400 Mbit/s. The wireless communications suite also includes a dual-band Wi-Fi module 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz), Bluetooth 4.2 (BLE)
The presence of an NFC interface makes it possible to use the Android Pay payment service, and also be aware of the balance of the Troika transport card at any time. In addition, the installed “Party” application suggests connecting several smartphones (on the same Wi-Fi network) via NFC to simultaneously play one track on them. As planned, the sound should be not only louder, but also really voluminous.
GPS, GLONASS and BDS satellite systems are used to determine the exact location and navigation. The A-GPS mode provides assistance in coordination over cellular and Wi-Fi networks.
Productivity
As usual, the Huawei phone has a chipset made by the company itself. This is the Kirin 960. You can argue for a long time whether it is more productive in comparison with Snapdragoon or loses to its competitor, but the main thing is that the smartphone can easily cope with a huge number of everyday tasks, and it will also give gamers the opportunity to have fun, albeit not everywhere at maximum settings. If previously there were questions regarding the quality of the video accelerator on Huawei phones, now the graphics have become much better. A Mali-G71 is installed here, thanks to which the load on the core will be significantly reduced and the system will not have to reduce fps, while at the same time wildly overheating. 
The device has 4 GB or 6 GB of RAM, depending on the configuration you choose. The drive is made according to the LPDDR4 standard, one of the best today. This means that you will not have problems launching or downloading programs.
Synthetic tests show very impressive numbers — more than 150 thousand “parrots” in Antutu. This is the level of Snapdragoon 821.
Comparison with competitors
A full review involves comparison with alternative models of gadgets in order to understand whether our smartphone differs from them for the better. This is exactly what we will do. On the Russian market, among phones with similar characteristics, we can highlight Mi 6 from Xiaomi and Honor 8 from the same company Huawei. The main difference is in the “filling”.
Xiaomi wins both in built-in and RAM. The default memory here is 6 GB, while Honor 9 provides this option only in the prime configuration. On the flash drive we see 128 GB versus 32 GB and 64 GB in both configurations. The Nine, of course, supports a memory card, but only on a combined slot for a second SIM card. Xiaomi Mi 6 does not support SD cards at all, and this is especially not necessary with such and such an initial volume.
The only thing in which the Mi 6 loses to the Honor 9 is in the camera modules. Huawei is generally one of the market leaders in this indicator, and its victory in this comparison does not surprise anyone. Nominally, there is also a dual main module, but the resolution is weaker (12 megapixels each), and the hardware is inferior to its competitor.
The differences between the “nine” and the “eight” are barely noticeable, and we have already talked about most of them. We only note that Huawei managed to improve its predecessor without radically increasing the price. And this is the main point. In Russia, Honor 8 can be purchased for about $340, and Honor 9 went on sale for $335 for the light version and $380 for the prime package. And here there is definitely something to pay extra for.
Specifications and design
Huawei is famous for its very powerful cameras, and Honor 9 will definitely please lovers of mobile photography. The main camera here is double, and there is a suspicion that soon the trend towards using two modules at once will be dominant for all Huawei smartphones. 
In addition to the main feature in the form of a dual camera, which we will talk about in more detail below, we note the nice design of the gadget. The case is made of tempered glass, which has undergone repeated heat treatment, and is housed in a metal frame. This immediately provides an expensive appearance and durability to the phone. The back cover can be painted in black, white or dark blue or in a champagne shade. We advise you to choose a blue color — it looks original and definitely more lively than classic black and white.
The IPS matrix has Full HD resolution with a density of 428 ppi. The screen does not produce unpleasant glare, and the image does not deteriorate at angles. White balance is at the right level.
The gadget is not particularly different from its predecessor, but there are several innovations. For example, the fingerprint scanner moved to the front panel and was located under the screen. The rear glass is slightly rounded, just like the Mi 5 from Xiaomi. Let us remember that Honor 8 had a flat one. 
If you think using glass with metal is not as practical as an all-metal body, then you should take the Pro version of the “eight”, but visually it loses to the “nine”. The difference in the location of the fingerprint scanner is insignificant and this, as they say, is purely a matter of taste. The main thing is that the smartphone looks expensive and attractive, and there is no shame in showing it off in any company.
Huawei honor 10 review: purchase, conclusions
The Honor 10 smartphone attracts attention, first of all, with its extraordinary appearance, especially thanks to its “shimmering” colors. But exterior alone is clearly not enough for success in the market. Therefore, the advantages of the new device include: a powerful processor with a neural computing module, a “tall” screen with a fashionable “notch”, an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner hidden under glass, advanced AI 2.0 photography functions, high-quality wireless sound, Huawei SuperCharge fast charging, an NFC interface and Infrared port, as well as Android 8.1 OS with EMUI 8.1 launcher.
The list of shortcomings is much more modest. Firstly, the cameras lack optical stabilization, secondly, the smartphone is left without moisture protection, and thirdly, there is no slot for microSD. However, the last two points can be considered as purely subjective claims. After all, case protection is not always considered one of the special advantages of the device, and a limited number of users regularly transfer digital content on memory cards.
At the start of sales, the price of Honor 10, painted in midnight black, ice gray and shimmering blue, in the 4 GB/64 GB configuration was 26,990 rubles. Similar devices in the 4 GB/128 GB configuration, which received the colors “midnight black”, “shimmering blue” and “shimmering green”, were priced at 29,990 rubles.
As for real competitors with “high” large-diagonal screens, for example, in a 4 GB/64 GB configuration, a 6-inch Nokia 7 Plus (our review here). This device boasts good cameras (12 MP and 13 MP, with Zeiss lenses and optical zoom), good battery life, fast charging, support for microSD memory cards and participation in the Android One program.
Its processor, however, is average (Snapdragon 660), and without a neural computing module. There is also no infrared port. By the way, for the same money (27,990 rubles) they also offer Asus ZenFone 5 (ZE620KL, 4 GB/64 GB), but with a 6.2-inch screen (18.5:9). Among its features was a duo of 12-megapixel rear cameras with optical stabilization and good aperture (f/1.8). Although the ZenFone 5 processor is also non-flagship (Snapdragon 636), it does support microSD cards.
Review results of the Huawei Honor 10 smartphone
Pros:
- Beautiful glass and metal case
- Powerful processor with neural computing module
- «High» screen with «bangs»
- Ultrasonic fingerprint scanner hidden under glass
- AI 2.0 advanced photography functions
- High-quality wireless sound
- Fast charging Huawei SuperCharge
- Availability of NFC interface and infrared port
- Android 8.1 OS with EMUI 8.1 launcher
Cons:
- Case without moisture protection
- The cameras lack optical stabilization
- No microSD card slot
