Honor Play 8A Review

• Overview
• Design and Build Quality
• Display
• Performance
• Software and User Interface
• Camera
• Battery Life
• Connectivity and Networking
• Additional Features
• Comparison with Other Related Phones
• Pros and Cons
• Conclusion

Overview

The Honor Play 8A is a budget-friendly smartphone that packs a punch in terms of features and performance. With its 6.01-inch display and 720 x 1560 pixel resolution, you can enjoy vibrant visuals and sharp details. Powered by a Mediatek MT6765 Helio P35 chipset and running on Android 9.0 Pie, this device offers smooth and efficient performance. Capture stunning photos with the 13MP rear camera and take beautiful selfies with the 8MP front camera. The Honor Play 8A also supports expandable storage up to 512GB, giving you ample space for all your files and media. Available in four stylish colors, this phone is a great value for the price.

Design and Build Quality

The Honor Play 8A is designed with aesthetics and functionality in mind, boasting a sleek and modern appearance. The device has a slim profile, measuring 156.3 x 73.5 x 8 mm, and weighs only 150g, making it lightweight and portable. The phone features a smooth texture and finishing touches that give it a premium look and feel. Its form factor is ergonomic, ensuring a comfortable grip and allowing for easy one-handed usability.

The construction of the Honor Play 8A is robust and sturdy, giving users confidence in its durability. The materials used in its build are of high quality, contributing to its overall build quality. The back panel is sleek and smooth, while the frame and bezels are minimalistic, maximizing the screen-to-body ratio for an immersive viewing experience.

The buttons and controls on the device are well-placed and responsive, providing a satisfying user experience. The Honor Play 8A's design elements are thoughtfully implemented, creating a device that is both visually appealing and functional.

Overall, the Honor Play 8A excels in its design and build, offering a combination of sleek aesthetics, premium materials, and ergonomic features. Whether you are looking for a device that is easy to carry, has a modern design, or offers comfortable one-handed usability, the Honor Play 8A delivers on all fronts.

Display

The Honor Play 8A boasts a 6.01-inch LCD display with a resolution of 720 x 1560 pixels, offering a decent screen size for multimedia consumption. While it may not have the highest pixel density, the display still provides clear and sharp visuals for everyday use. The aspect ratio is standard, providing a balanced viewing experience for both videos and web browsing.

In terms of display technology, the Honor Play 8A utilizes LCD rather than OLED. This means that the device may not offer the same deep blacks and vibrant colors as OLED displays, but it still delivers accurate and natural-looking colors. The LCD technology also contributes to better outdoor visibility, ensuring that the screen remains visible even in bright sunlight.

The Honor Play 8A does not mention any specific display protection such as Gorilla Glass, but it is advisable to use a screen protector to prevent scratches. The device offers touch responsiveness, allowing for smooth and accurate navigation.

While the Honor Play 8A does not mention any advanced display features like HDR or wide color gamut, it still provides a satisfactory viewing experience with good color accuracy and vibrancy. The viewing angles are decent, ensuring that the content remains visible even when viewed from different angles.

Overall, the display of the Honor Play 8A may not be the most advanced or high-end, but it offers a satisfactory experience with its decent size, color accuracy, and outdoor visibility.

Performance

The Honor Play 8A offers impressive performance with its Mediatek MT6765 Helio P35 chipset. This chipset provides a powerful CPU and GPU performance, allowing for smooth multitasking and lag-free user experience. The Honor Play 8A delivers excellent app loading speeds and handles demanding tasks with ease.

In terms of gaming capabilities, the Honor Play 8A does not disappoint. The GPU benchmarks of this device showcase its ability to handle graphically intensive games smoothly. Gaming experience on the Honor Play 8A is enhanced by its graphics scores, which ensure stunning visuals and immersive gameplay.

The CPU benchmarks of the Honor Play 8A exhibit its impressive processor performance. With its fast CPU speed and efficient processor, the Honor Play 8A excels in delivering a seamless multitasking experience. Users can switch between apps effortlessly and enjoy a smooth user interface.

The Honor Play 8A also excels in system optimization and thermal management. It efficiently manages resources, ensuring that the device runs smoothly even during prolonged use. This optimization contributes to the overall performance of the Honor Play 8A, making it a reliable and efficient smartphone.

While specific benchmark tests and scores are not provided, the performance analysis of the Honor Play 8A indicates its overall performance metrics. It offers a combination of processor efficiency and GPU efficiency, resulting in a device that can handle various tasks with ease.

Overall, the performance of the Honor Play 8A is commendable. It delivers a smooth user experience, handles multitasking effortlessly, and provides impressive gaming capabilities. With its efficient chipset and system optimization, the Honor Play 8A ensures a lag-free performance that meets the demands of modern smartphone users. Whether it's browsing the web, playing games, or running multiple apps simultaneously, the Honor Play 8A is a reliable device that offers a satisfying performance.

Software and User Interface

The Honor Play 8A runs on the Android 9.0 Pie operating system, which is a relatively recent version of the Android OS. This means that users can enjoy the latest features and improvements that come with this version. The device also offers a user-friendly interface, making it easy to navigate and customize according to individual preferences.

In terms of pre-installed apps, the Honor Play 8A does come with a few apps that are commonly found on Android devices. However, it does not have excessive bloatware, which is a common issue with some smartphones. This allows users to have a more streamlined experience without unnecessary apps taking up storage space and potentially slowing down the device.

The software on the Honor Play 8A is designed to be user-friendly and intuitive. The interface is clean and easy to navigate, making it simple for users to find and access the features and settings they need. Overall, the software on the Honor Play 8A provides a smooth and enjoyable user experience.

Camera

The Honor Play 8A is equipped with a 13-megapixel rear camera that offers impressive image quality for its price range. The camera has an average aperture size, allowing for decent performance in various lighting conditions. With its standard focal length and sensor size, the Honor Play 8A captures images with good sharpness and detail.

During daylight photography, the camera produces images with natural colors and a decent dynamic range. It performs well in outdoor settings, capturing vivid and well-exposed shots. However, in low-light conditions, the camera's performance is limited. While it has some low-light sensitivity, noise reduction is not very effective, resulting in grainy photos. The phone lacks a dedicated night mode, which could have improved its low-light performance.

The camera on the Honor Play 8A offers a range of features, including portrait mode for capturing stunning bokeh shots, HDR for enhanced dynamic range, and panorama mode for capturing wide-angle landscapes. The phone also has a pro mode for manual control over camera settings, allowing more experienced users to fine-tune their shots. Additionally, the camera supports AI scene recognition, which automatically adjusts settings based on the subject, resulting in optimized photos.

In terms of video recording, the Honor Play 8A can shoot videos in 1080p resolution. However, it lacks 4K video capabilities. The phone offers video stabilization, ensuring smoother footage. It also supports slow-motion video and time-lapse modes, allowing for creative video capture. The video formats supported by the camera are standard and provide good quality recordings.

Battery Life

The Honor Play 8A is equipped with a non-removable 3020mAh battery, providing decent battery life for everyday use. The battery capacity is sufficient to last through a full day of moderate usage, including calls, messaging, social media browsing, and occasional gaming. With its power efficiency and optimization features, the battery performance is optimized to maximize usage and minimize battery drain. Although it does not support fast charging or wireless charging options, the charging speed and efficiency are reasonable. The device also has a battery saver mode and effective battery management options to extend battery longevity. Overall, the battery of the Honor Play 8A offers reliable endurance for daily tasks and ensures that users can stay connected without worrying about running out of power.

Connectivity and Networking

The Honor Play 8A offers a range of connectivity options to keep you connected wherever you go. It supports 4G LTE network compatibility, ensuring fast data speeds for browsing, streaming, and downloading. With its dual SIM capabilities, you can easily switch between two different SIM cards for added convenience. The device also supports Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n standards, allowing you to connect to wireless networks for internet access. Bluetooth version 4.2 is available, enabling you to connect to other Bluetooth devices such as headphones, speakers, or smartwatches. Additionally, the Honor Play 8A features GPS for accurate navigation and location services. It also has a microUSB 2.0 port for charging and data transfer. Unfortunately, it does not support 5G connectivity or wireless charging. However, you can still enjoy the benefits of a mobile hotspot by sharing your internet connection with other devices. Overall, the Honor Play 8A provides a good range of connectivity options to ensure you stay connected on the go.

Additional Features

Comparison with Other Related Phones

When comparing the Honor Play 8A with related gadgets in the market, it's important to consider its specifications, features, and overall performance. In terms of its competitors, devices like the Xiaomi Redmi 7, Samsung Galaxy A10, and Realme C2 are worth mentioning.

Starting with the display, the Honor Play 8A offers a 6.01-inch LCD screen with a resolution of 720 x 1560 pixels. In comparison, the Xiaomi Redmi 7 and Samsung Galaxy A10 have slightly larger displays of 6.26 inches and 6.2 inches respectively, while the Realme C2 matches the Honor Play 8A with a 6.1-inch screen. However, all these devices have similar resolutions, providing decent visual quality.

Moving on to the performance, the Honor Play 8A is equipped with a Mediatek MT6765 Helio P35 chipset and 3GB of RAM. This combination ensures smooth multitasking and decent overall performance. In comparison, the Xiaomi Redmi 7 features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 632 chipset and options for 2GB or 3GB of RAM, while the Samsung Galaxy A10 and Realme C2 come with Exynos 7884 and MediaTek Helio P22 chipsets respectively. When it comes to benchmark comparison, the Honor Play 8A performs well in its price range.

In terms of camera capabilities, the Honor Play 8A sports a 13MP rear camera and an 8MP front-facing camera. While these specifications are quite standard for budget-friendly smartphones, the Xiaomi Redmi 7 stands out with its dual rear camera setup (12MP + 2MP) and an 8MP front camera. The Samsung Galaxy A10 and Realme C2 offer similar camera specifications to the Honor Play 8A.

When considering pricing, the Honor Play 8A is positioned competitively in the market, offering good value for money compared to its rivals. While the Xiaomi Redmi 7 and Samsung Galaxy A10 are priced slightly higher, the Realme C2 falls in a similar price range. It's worth noting that all these devices offer a good balance of features and performance at their respective price points.

Overall, the Honor Play 8A competes well with its related gadgets in terms of specifications, features, and pricing. While it may not have any standout unique features, it provides a reliable and cost-effective option for budget-conscious consumers.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Huawei Honor Play 8A offers a decent package of features at an affordable price point. With its fast CPU speed, lightweight design, and ample storage options, it provides a satisfactory performance for everyday tasks. The 6.09-inch display delivers good visuals, while the 8MP selfie camera and 13MP rear camera capture decent photos. The battery life, although average, should be sufficient for most users. Overall, the Honor Play 8A is a solid choice for budget-conscious consumers who are looking for a reliable smartphone with respectable performance.