Review: Huawei nova 8

If there is anything so stunning to look at that can literally turn heads, it’s the new Huawei nova 8. This smartphone fascinates me with its sleek-looking high-end design. Indeed, for a midrange smartphone, it gives off an impression of a flagship phone. Find out in this review whether there’s more to the nova 8 than meets the eye.

Design and build

The nova 8 comes in the colorway of blush gold. I’m not exaggerating but you can get really mesmerized by its sleek design. My color preference is normally toned down when it comes to phones but this one’s an exception. Also, if fingerprint marks on your phone are a pet peeve, worry not as the nova 8 has an anti-glare glass back making it less prone to fingerprint marks and smudges. The phone feels lightweight, weighing only 169g. Its size allows me to grip the phone comfortably as well.

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On top is the dual SIM tray, while on the left is the volume rocker and power button. And finally, you can find the charging port and speakers at the bottom. The phone comes with a case; and even then, it’s still delightful to look at.

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It has good speaker quality—producing clear and loud sound indoors. When listening to music and watching movies on Netflix, it delivers full sound that’s not distorted even at maximum volume.

Screen Display

Up front is a 6.57” curved screen that extends to the side for a wider view, which if you can recall, was only available in their flagship phone. But now you can enjoy this feature even in a midrange smartphone. Now that’s step up! It also boasts an OLED Display with 2340 x 1080 resolution. The 90Hz refresh rate allows for a smooth viewing experience.

Security Features

For its security features, it has facial recognition and an in-display fingerprint scanner at the bottom of the screen. Unfortunately, it could be a tad slow in detecting my finger sometimes. However, the former can easily unlock my phone regardless of the lighting.

Camera

The 32MP front camera is located top center. It features a Super Night Selfie 2.0 for improved portrait shots even in low-light conditions. One of the reasons I must commend nova 8’s front camera is that it naturally enhances selfies. I’ve tried selfie cameras in the past, and even at the lowest level of beautification, I can hardly recognize myself. 

Meanwhile, the rear comprises the super quad camera system—the 64 MP Main Camera, 8MP Ultra-wide angle camera, and 2MP for both depth and macro camera. The ultra-wide angle camera supports up to 120 degrees field of view. I am very pleased with the quality of the photos because of the vibrant colors, great contrast, and clear details, which for me made them appear more dramatic. 

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In favorable lighting, the depth camera was able to capture images of the subject in sharp focus with crisp details. Additionally, I observed a smooth and accurate transition of the blurring effect of the background from the subject. 

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Finally, the dual-view video feature allows you to take close-up and wide-view shots simultaneously.

Processor

The nova 8 operates on EMUI 12 and it is powered by the Kirin 820E processor, featuring the Mali-G57 GPU. Further, it’s equipped with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Another reason why it proves to be impressive is that I didn’t experience any frame drops even at the highest graphic setting of Asphalt 9—something I’m certain gamers will take delight in. 

Battery

It has a 3800mAh  battery, which for me, might be the downside of having a lightweight phone such as this one. However, with its 66W SuperCharge, you can get back to work immediately—be it for content creation, video call with friends, or even just stream movies on Netflix. Based on my experience, the nova 8 charged up to 45% in just 15 minutes, which is actually different from what Huawei claims, although it’s still not bad since that’s a significant battery increase in a short period of time. I was able to charge it fully in just 50 minutes and it lasted me about a day and a half with light to moderate usage. 

Petal Search

For downloading apps, it doesn’t have Google Play Store, but at least it has App Gallery and Petal Search. This helps you download through third party sites such as APK. With this, we can give Huawei some points for taking strides towards making apps more accessible. 

Verdict 

For 19,999, you get a supercamera, awesome screen display, and a powerful processor. It would have been great if the supercharger was partnered up with a more powerful battery life, but I’m not complaining given the short charging time. For a midrange smartphone, I’d say I’m still sold on its superior features above its stunning design.