Honor 7X review

Update: after Google suspended Huawei's future access to Android Play Store and security updates, there are serious question marks over the future of Huawei and Honor phones.

While Google and Huawei have promised to support phones currently on the market, it's not clear how long they'll receive Android updates or access to the Google Play Store, which would severely curtail their usefulness compared to the competition.

Honor has previously blown us away with what it can put in cheaper handsets. With Honor 7X, Huawei has made a big jump by bringing 18:9 bezel-less displays to the mid-range market for the first time.

This is especially surprising as the Honor 9 - which the company launched earlier this year - still has an older format 16:9 display, unlike most other flagship devices this year. Bringing a bezel-less display to the mid-range segment, Honor has given the 7X an edge over the competition.

The company knew that following on from the Honor 6X was going to be a hard thing to do for them especially since the trend of narrowing bezels on smartphones will catch up to the mid-range segment by next year. So, does the Honor 7X innovate enough to make it another great affordable phone?

Honor 7X price and release date

• Honor 7X launch prices start from Rs 12,999

The price for the Honor 7X in India starts from Rs 12,999 for the 32GB variant while users will have to shell out Rs 15,999 for the 64GB variant. The smartphone is available on Amazon India exclusively from December 7 through a flash sale.

Additionally, users will also be able to select between Blue, Gold and Black colour options.

Design and display

• Aluminum unibody finish feels premium
• 5.93-inch Full HD+, 18:9 aspect ratio display

Honor 7X is uses a single block of metal that looks and feels very premium for a Rs.12,999 phone. Even though the rear of the phone has a flat profile, which compliments its 7.6mm thickness, it doesn't exactly sit in the hand comfortably as a slightly curved back would have. That being said, the smartphone does look attractive with its aluminum chassis which might not be as pleasant as the glass back on other flagship smartphones, say the Honor 9, but does just fine in this price bracket.  

The fingerprint sensor is located on the rear of the handset, and we found it easy to reach when holding the phone. The fingerprint sensor is quick to identify the touch input and unlocks in a jiffy. 

The bottom edge houses a 3.5mm headphone jack along with a micro USB port beside the speaker grill. The left side of the smartphone has the hybrid dual SIM card slot which can either be used for two SIM cards or one SIM card and a microSD card.

At 165 gms and measuring 156.5 x 75.3 x 7.6 mm, the Honor 7X does feel like more than just value for money.

We have to commend Huawei and Honor for the 5.93-inch display that they have managed to cram into a body that would traditionally accommodate a 5.5-inch screen.

The FullHD+ (2160x1080 pixels) display as such provides a great experience overall and we found it to be bold and vibrant. Now, the 18:9 aspect ratio with a pixel density that equals to 407ppi, the screen isn’t anything like on a flagship smartphone, but at this price, it is more than what anyone could ask for.

Apps on the smartphone will run at 16:9 aspect ratio by default and users will get a pop-up of running a particular app in full screen 18:9 aspect ratio. To avoid that, there is an option in Display settings through which a user can enable the fullscreen mode on different apps.

The Honor 7X also comes with an Eye Comfort mode in Display settings to filter out excessive blue light along with options to modify the colour temperature and brightness.