Which Honor smartphone to choose in May 2022

A former rising star in the world of smartphones, Honor unsurprisingly suffered greatly from the US embargo against Huawei. Now independent, the brand returns to the telephone market.

The two best Honor smartphones

At a time not so long ago when Huawei was smashing sales records and seemed on track to become the world’s number one smartphone, Honor was a more affordable subsidiary of the Chinese manufacturer.

Flourishing, the brand has logically been hit hard by the American technological embargo. So much so that the two companies were separated to allow Honor to escape sanctions. However, we still do not know if this maneuver will be enough to avoid the wrath of the American government.

In 2022, the manufacturer presented a battery of new phones, like the Magic series which aims to be ambitious. More importantly: the Honor 50 is now available and all these people have Google services on board, which are absolutely essential in our region. Other models, especially entry-level, such as the Honor X8, have also just landed in France.

Still, despite the desire to appear as fully separate from Huawei, the reality is that this first generation of independent Honor smartphones looks like two drops of water to the models of the former parent company…

For a wider choice, take a look at our guide to the best smartphones.

Honor Magic 4 Pro The best Honor smartphone

This is the model that marks the return of Honor to the fore. The Honor Magic 4 Pro is the manufacturer’s standard bearer with a high-end technical sheet. The prestige starts from the design with generous dimensions and an assured grip. The camera on the back gives the phone real cachet. On this point, Honor ticks all the high-end boxes.

Above all, the construction of the phone highlights its superb touch screen. The Magic 4 Pro is equipped with a 6.81-inch OLED panel with adaptive refresh at 120 Hz. Color fidelity is good provided you favor normal temperature mode. The brightness reaches 837 cd / m2. In short, the touch interface is the strong point of the phone.

In animation, the Honor smartphone revolves around the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor aided by 8 GB of RAM. It is able to launch any game, be careful with heat management. MagicUI 6.0 software offers everything new in Android 12 for everyday use. Total battery life is a day, but the Magic 4 Pro comes with 100W fast charging.

A final word on the photo part of the phone. This one placed in the circle on his back is made up of three complementary lenses offering excellent versatility whatever the conditions. With its performance, it is one of the best in its category.

The Honor Magic 4 Pro test written by Titouan is available for reading to learn more.

Honor 50 Honor returns

We are not going to lie to each other, we were waiting for this Honor 50! It is indeed the first smartphone of the brand to be officially entitled to Google services since 2019. Let’s start with the elephant in the china store: its design is identical to that of the Huawei Nova 9. This does not mean for as bad as it is. If some colors are a little flashy, the device itself is light, thin and pleasant in hand.

Honor offers a good screen here: the adaptive 120 Hz OLED panel is bright and offers relatively decent colors. The brand has chosen the Snapdragon 778G as its SoC, a mid-range chip with solid performance. We can thus play in good conditions and the user experience is generally good. On the endurance side, it’s pretty average, count a good day of use and a fast charge which will need 45 minutes to fill the battery.

As for the photo, the Honor 50 is not up to its very prominent photo block with 4 sensors. In question, a main sensor with frankly ridiculous colorimetric shots and disappointing additional sensors. The rendering at night is on the other hand very correct.

There remains the question of software. The phone uses Magic UI 4.2 and we’re not going to lie to each other: it’s a carbon copy of EMUI, Huawei’s interface. That said, the experience is enjoyable, with polished aesthetics and plenty of customization. Google services obviously complete the whole thing.

With the Honor 50, the brand is making a solid, if not revolutionary, comeback. Honor gives us a balanced phone, but one that struggles to stand out from the competition. We also see that the umbilical cord with Huawei is still present for the moment, both from a hardware and software point of view.

We tell you more in our Honor 50 test.

Honor 50 Lite The Honor smartphone too light

This lighter version of the Honor 50 range offers a slightly less well-endowed technical sheet with the desire to aim for excellent value for money. This version relies on 4G and is sold for less than 300 euros. A few negative points should be taken into account, starting with the design of the phone. The Honor 50 Lite looks just like the Huawei Nova 8i, which is damaging.

The major advantage of this smartphone lies in its autonomy. The 4300 mAh battery ensures more than a day and a half of use without the slightest problem. A 66W charging technology allows the Honor 50 Lite to be charged in just 38 minutes. In terms of animation, the phone is based on a Snapdragon 662 and comes with a 6 GB RAM. The major problem with this configuration is the fact that it is only compatible with 4 G. A significant handicap in the market.

On the back four cameras are set up with a main lens of 64 megapixels. This results in fairly average photography performance with an obvious lack of contrast, but above all quite little precision overall. A word on the touch screen too. It is a 6.67 inch LCD panel which is set up with a Full HD definition.

The Honor 50 Lite is placed in the smartphone sector under 300 euros. However, it lacks real arguments in comparison to other mobiles to really compete. Its fast charge is the only element that can change the balance.

All about Honor smartphones

Who is Honor?

It is important to explain where this Chinese manufacturer comes from. From China, yes, but more precisely? Honor is actually a brand created in 2013 by Huawei. The two entities were however separated in 2020, although the details regarding the new owner of Honor are unclear.

For whom are Honor smartphones intended?

Honor products have historically targeted the entry and mid-range, with some more ambitious models, however. The goal is still to offer smartphones at an affordable price. It remains to be seen whether the new Honor will retain the same orientation as its original incarnation: it is very possible, especially with the arrival of the premium Honor Magic 4 Pro smartphone shortly.

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