Honor 6A review: budget phone, budget phone

The Honor brand (previously a budget sub-brand of Huawei, and now a full-fledged player with a good line of smartphones) is known for its inexpensive but high-quality smartphone models. For example, Honor 9 is not much inferior to more famous flagships except for price. Therefore, when you pick up the Honor 6A with a price tag of 8,990 rubles, you are pleasantly surprised by the metal body, bright IPS screen and fairly powerful Snapdragon 430 processor. As a result, we have a good workhorse at an adequate price.

Let's start with the stated characteristics:

• Processor: Snapdragon 430, 8 x 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53
• Graphics: Adreno 505
• screen: 5 inches, IPS, resolution 1280×720
• RAM: 2 GB
• Built-in memory: 16 GB
• battery: 3020 mAh
• Fingerprint's scanner
• OS: Android 7.0; EMUI 5.1 shell
• memory card support: microSDXC up to 128 GB
• SIM: two nano-SIM slots (one can be replaced with an SD card)
• cellular communication: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz; UMTS 900/2100 MHz; LTE Band: 1, 3, 7, 38, 39, 40, 41
• wireless networks: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1
• navigation: GPS, GLONASS
• cameras: front - 5 MP; main — 13 MP
• dimensions: 143.7x70.95x8.2 mm
• weight: 143 grams
• charging and synchronization: MicroUSB (USB 2.0)
• NFC: no
• fast charging: no

As can be seen from the specification, “budget” had an impact on screen resolution, the amount of RAM and the lack of NFC. On the other hand, it is almost impossible to find a device in Russian retail with a similar price and the same characteristics. Of the devices available for order on various websites, this device can only be compared in price to the Xiaomi 4X. But in Russia it costs about 11 thousand rubles, and when ordering from China, there is a problem with the guarantee and there may be difficulties with customs clearance.

Appearance

Thanks to the metal body, the device does not look like a budget device. But other than this, he is, perhaps, no different from thousands of his brothers along the diagonal.

The photomodule extends 1 mm beyond the body and is carefully surrounded by a metal frame. The fingerprint sensor is located slightly lower, it works quickly and flawlessly.

The screen cannot be called something outstanding. However, despite the resolution of 1280x720 pixels - which, frankly, at this diagonal is not much different from FullHD - it copes well with displaying both photos and text. The IPS matrix itself is quite bright and has good viewing angles.

Unfortunately, due to price restrictions, the manufacturer still had to save on something. Therefore, the screen has an air gap between the protective glass and the display and is completely devoid of oleophobic coating. This affects the image quality, but, again, the screen looks decent compared to its peers at the same price.

Automatic brightness adjustment also has a hint of budget and regularly makes mistakes.

Performance

As mentioned at the beginning, the “heart” of the smartphone is the proven Qualcomm Snapdragon 430. You don’t expect any performance records from the processor, but it copes with normal work well.

It is curious that CPU-Z identifies the chip as Snapdragon 435. It differs from the 430 in a slightly higher nominal clock frequency of 1.4 GHz versus 1.2 GHz, and big.LITTLE architecture (which allows for additional energy savings). Otherwise they are almost identical. However, the manufacturer could overclock the 430 to 1.4 GHz, which is why CPU-Z mistook it for the 435 chip.

The Adreno 505 GPU doesn’t have enough stars in the sky, but it confidently carries 3D games. For example, HearthStone starts without problems and hardly slows down, tanks also start up.

But what there are complaints about is the operation of the proprietary EMUI 5.1 shell. Huawei managed to make a very decent and beautiful add-on over regular Android, which compares favorably with many similar shells. There is also convenient navigation through applications with the ability to select shortcuts both in the iPhone style (all on the desktop) and in the usual Android form. And multi-window mode. Plus, EMUI 5 brings out a number of settings that are either hidden deep under the hood in stock Android or are completely absent. So, for example, EMUI analyzes energy consumption and itself advises the user which application is best to disable if it consumes too much energy. As a result, the convenience of managing the phone, especially for a less savvy user, increases noticeably.

https://youtu.be/9EmRPFC9FnA
?t=12s But, obviously, EMUI 5 was created for more powerful smartphones with more memory. As a result, freezing of the operating system is periodically noticeable, especially if the number of installed applications exceeds the second dozen.

Here, by the way, one caveat must be made - the friezes are noticeable until the application is launched. That is, as soon as the system’s focus shifts to the application, everything goes fine. Well, since we previously talked about a competitor in the form of Xiaomi 4X, here’s what their head-to-head comparison of operating speed looks like, made by Chinese users:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAnfSHr6Rqg

Huawei Honor 6A review

Huawei Honor 6A is a budget smartphone with modern capabilities. The device was introduced in May 2021. This model has high-quality hardware for its class, as well as a practical and stylish design.

Appearance and ergonomics

The Huawei Honor 6A smartphone has a classic body shape made of durable metal. The corners are slightly rounded, and there is a fingerprint scanner on the back. At the front there is a screen and a speaker along with a front-facing camera. There are no buttons for navigation, as they have become virtual.

The rear part, in addition to the fingerprint sensor, received a main camera module, a flash, a logo and two plastic inserts under which communication modules are hidden. Thanks to its practical design and compact size, the gadget fits perfectly in your hand. Available colors: gold, blue, silver and pink. Dimensions: height - 143.7 mm, thickness - 8.2 mm, width - 71 mm, weight - 143 g.

Display

To display images, Honor 6A uses a 5-inch screen, the resolution of which reaches 1280 by 720 pixels. This is an IPS matrix, occupying almost 68% of the front panel area. If we consider the viewing angles, they are quite large. The picture detail is quite good for this display size.

Hardware and performance

Honor 6A has a Snapdragon 430 processor from Qualcomm. This eight-core chip operates at a frequency of 1500 MHz, and the Adreno 505 acts as a graphics accelerator. It is worth noting that several versions of the smartphone are available to users - with 32 GB (3 GB RAM) and 16 GB (2 GB RAM) memory. If this free space is not enough, then you can use common MicroSD cards up to 128 GB.

There is also an Android 7.0 operating system, which has become even more beautiful and functional with the help of the EMUI 5.1 interface. The device can handle even very heavy applications without any problems. As for games, you can comfortably play almost all available projects at medium settings.

Communication and sound

Using the Internet and cloud services in Huawei Honor 6A is very convenient, as it supports LTE and VoLTE. There is a combination of GPS + GLONASS, as well as Bluetooth 4.1. The speaker sound is not particularly loud, but it is well designed for a budget device. You can hear your interlocutor through the speaker perfectly.

Camera

Huawei Honor 6A has a 13-megapixel camera with LED flash and phase detection autofocus. There are not a huge number of functions, but there is a basic set of tools for creating photos and videos. There is also a front 5-megapixel camera, which is suitable for self-portraits.

conclusions

If you need a very inexpensive smartphone under $130-150, then Honor 6A seems like an excellent option. There is everything you need for entertainment, relaxation and communication. This device absolutely returns every ruble spent.

Pros:

• Stylish metal body.
• Availability of LTE and fingerprint scanner.
• Good performance in any task.
• Fresh Android 7.0 Nougat + EMUI 5.1.
• Very low price.

Minuses:

• The front camera is slightly outdated.
• Not all games run at maximum.

Camera

The camera, alas, is the weakest link where the savings are especially noticeable. Stated characteristics:

• main camera 13 megapixels with f/2.2 aperture;
• front: 5 MP

In bright light conditions, the photos turn out quite well, especially if you look at them on the same smartphone.

If you expand the resulting image on a full-fledged monitor, it becomes obvious that the software built into the camera is diligently “washing up” the image.

This is done, apparently, so that photographs taken in low light conditions do not appear too noisy. Well, in general, the general Chinese trend towards a kind of retouching of the surrounding reality is affecting.

Evening or night photography is not possible for this smartphone at all. Alas, this is the price that you have to pay, pardon the pun, for the price of the phone.

However, by swiping left in the proprietary camera application, the so-called “professional mode” opens, allowing you to play with the focus or extend the photo a little due to more subtle settings.

As for video, everything is also standard: Full HD with 30 frames per second.

How to flash Honor 6C

Installation and updating can be done with your own hands using programs for firmware, free of charge, the links contain both original, that is, stock, official (not modified), and custom firmware, that is, alternative, all with instructions.

1. First you need to download the firmware by selecting one of the options below. Along with it in the archive is the necessary set of programs (TWRP and others).
2. Then extract the file “instructions_rootgadget.txt” from the archive. Using the archiver program...
3. The firmware file contained in the zip archive must be downloaded to a memory card or smartphone memory.
4. For other information and sequence of actions, see the text instructions.

Honor 6C firmware

Choose what you like, but it is best to download the most modern versions, they have more optimized energy consumption and other joys of life.

• Android Pie 9.0 is a flagship OS, one might say, but still a little unfinished. URL: yourtopfile.info/android9pie
• 8.0 Oreo is an excellent option, with a minimum of bugs and rich functionality, but version 9 is certainly better. URL: yourtopfile.info/android8oreo
• 7.0 Nougat is a stable version in all respects, it works even on low-power hardware. URL: yourtopfile.info/android7nougat
• 6.0 Marshmallow - versions 5 and 6 are already really old, although they were once the pinnacle of progress. But if you switch to them from versions 3 or 4, then of course the difference is very noticeable. URL: yourtopfile.info/android6
• Android 10 URL: yourtopfile.info/android10
• Android 11 URL: yourtopfile.info/android11

Network and GPS

The built-in Wi-Fi adapter works using Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n protocols, but despite the presence of the “n” index in the name, it does not operate in the 5 GHz band.
However, the sensitivity of the adapter is quite good - it easily clings to the access point even from the far corners of the apartment. With GPS, everything is also good - after a reboot, it took 16 seconds to find satellites.

As for LTE, there is a not very pleasant surprise here - the device does not support the fairly common Band 20. Fortunately, other bands work without problems, which allows the device to surf the network quite quickly.

Technical characteristics of Huawei Honor 6

Bottom line

Honor 6A turned out to be a very high-quality budget phone.
Where other manufacturers use MediaTek processors, here is the Snapdragon 430. Where other companies still use the old Android, the 6a uses the seven. And finally, where most have cheap plastic, Honor has a durable metal body. Yes, this phone has a number of objective shortcomings due to the desire to fall into the budget price range of up to 10,000 rubles. However, if you look around, it turns out that Honor 6A has practically no competitors. Well, these shortcomings are rather a distinctive feature of its class.