Huawei nova 7i Review
Summary: The Huawei nova 7i provides some impressive specifications and performance for a mid-range smartphone!
4.4
Mid-range power!
The Huawei nova 7i is a midrange smartphone that retails from around $450AUD (Dec 2020) and comes with some impressive features that includes 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, 48MP Quad AI cameras, a 4200 mAh battery plus 40w fast charging thanks to Huawei’s SuperCharge technology that can charge the 70% of the phone in just 30 minutes. Needless to say, it’s great value for money when it comes to features!
In terms of aesthetics, the Huawei nova 7i is a visually appeasing device and definitely doesn’t look like those cheaper phones you find at your local supermarket or post office. Rather, the nova 7i stands out from its competitors, particularly with its midnight black colouring and its curved design which also feels good in your hand when you are using it. Buttons are also well placed and all in all, it feels great in your hands.
Furthermore, it has a 6.4” display and even a side-mounted finger print reader that easily allows you to unlock the phone. Speaking of display, the nova 7i boasts a resolution of 2310 x 1080 with a PPI of 398 which produces super sharp text and colourful images that almost pop.
Nova 7i OS
The phone itself is powered by the Kirin 810 chip (2 x Cortex-A76 2.27 GHz + 6 x Cortex-A55 1.88 GHz) which provides the user with a snappy and responsive phone which is perfect for multitasking that is also great for photography as it processes images fast, including its algorithms to enhance the end-result. Also, when linked to the GPU turbo features, it does help create faster HD gaming.
Like other phones from this company, it comes with EMUI10 that makes the O/S a more streamlined and user-focused experience. Another benefit of EMUI10 is that if you mirror your phone to a TV or monitor, it basically turns this device into an almost PC-like experience. It’s a fantastic feature if you’re working away and need access to something more akin to a PC, opposed to a smartphone. In other words, improved productivity and if you have a Huawei notebook, the connectivity between both devices is unparalleled.
One caveat with this phone is the lack of access to Google apps courtesy of the Trump administration blacklist of Huawei. This does add a hurdle to your smartphone experience and while not as smooth as a one without restrictions, there are some in-built workarounds which is the Huawei AppGallery. This gives you access to a whole wealth of apps and further to this, you can side-load the apps which may not be available through the AppGallery via APK Pure. Given that, Huawei do give you access to most of the main apps that you would find on the Google app store. However just be warned that not all your latest apps and games will be available.
While the camera system can’t compare to the high-end smartphones from Huawei, the nova 7i does a more than reasonable job when it comes to its photos thanks to the mechanics behind the 48MP Quad AI cameras. The front camera which is 16 megapixels supports Huawei’s Super Night Selfie 2.0 that brightens your face in order to make it standout, rather than have a completely dim photo. Adding to the photographic capabilities of the nova 7a is the excellent combination of the dedicated bokeh lens that with AI depth perception creates some truly professional looking as it softens or blurs the background. Low-light photography is good, however some tweaking and reshots may be needed to get that perfect photo. Colours are also quite vibrant without too much saturation.
Box Contents
- Huawei nova 7i Handset
- Charger
- Type-C cable
- Headset
- Quick Start Guide
- Warranty Card
- Eject tool
- TPU Protective cover
- TP protective film
Unboxing Photos
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Performance and Gaming
While the phone is quite fast, you should have no issues with performance or multitasking. Gaming does work well, however we did stumble upon a few issues of not being able to access some the latest games “yet”. In terms of gaming speed, the main test in 3DMARK scored the nova 7i 49% better than most smartphones on the market. So again, a decent mid-range smartphone that gives you the power where it is needed and more importantly, at an affordable cost.
Photo Samples
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Final Thoughts?
The Huawei nova 7i is probably this company’s best mid-range smartphone to date that is superbly built but has enough grunt to keep you out of trouble, including a large battery and fast-charging. Adding to the features is the great photographic capabilities of the nova 7i, especially for its price point. Unfortunately the lack of Google apps is annoying but if you’re IT savvy or do a Google search on how to side-load Android apps, this does increase the scope of what you can install on this phone.
Huawei nova 7i Specifications
- Width: 76.3 mm
- Height: 159.2 mm
- Depth: 8.7 mm
- Weight: 183 g (including the battery)
- Colour: Midnight Black
- Screen size: 6.4 inches
- Screen resolution: 2310 x 1080 pixels
- Screen: PPI 398
- CPU: Huawei Kirin 810
(Octa-Core / 2 x Cortex-A76 2.27 GHz + 6 x Cortex-A55 1.88 GHz) - Operating System: EMUI 10.0.1(Based on Android10.0)
- Ram/Storage: 8 GB RAM +128 GB ROM
- External Memory Support: NM SD Card, up to 256 GB
- Rear camera: 48 MP (Wide Angle Lens f/1.8 aperture) + 8 MP (Ultra Wide Angle Lens) + 2 MP (Macro lens) + 2 MP(Bokeh lens)
- Front camera: 16 mega-pixel , F/2.0 aperture
- Battery: 4,200 mAh (Typical Value)
- Fast Charge: HUAWEI SuperCharge (Max 40 W)
- Networks
JNY-L22B
4G FDD LTE: Bands 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 7 / 8 / 18 / 19 / 28
4G TDD LTE: Bands 34 / 38 / 39 / 40 / B41 (2535 – 2655 MHz)3G
WCDMA: Bands 1 / 2 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 8 / 19
3G TDS: Bands 34 / 39
2G GSM: Bands 2 / 3 / 5 / 8 (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz)
2G CDMA: BC0 - WLAN: 802.11 b/g/n/a/ac 2.4G / 5G Hz
- Bluetooth: BT5.0, BLE, SBC and AAC are supported
- USB: Type-C，USB 2.0
- Earjack: 3.5 mm
- Location: GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, QZSS, Galileo
- NFC: JNY-L21A、JNY-L01A、JNY-L21B:
- Sensors:
Fingerprint sensor
Proximity sensor
Ambient light sensor
Digital compass
Gravity sensor - Audio: mp3, mp4, 3gp, ogg, amr, aac, flac, midi
- Video: 3gp, mp4
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About the Author
Andrew Bistak When he's not trying to save the world, Andrew enjoys travel (although loathes turbulence), going to the movies, reading and being a dad to his two dogs (and now twins) with his wife.
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