Huawei is not in the most comfortable position in the current mobile market, but we already know it. Following a US veto, the company made decisions that kept it like sonar in its search for new markets without so many battles with US intellectual property. However, the phones are still being manufactured and they still do not have google services, although they have managed to balance this absence with some good gains. niusgeek has tested the huawei y7a to see if this balance is sufficient.

Design density

I am talking about a plastic monolith with a glass front panel, without any outstanding details. It is a sober smartphone, but with a high density and few aesthetic values. From the colors available on the local market - Crush Green and Midnight Black - I got the darkest for review, except for the edge of the camera module, it is a bar of darkness.

The interaction elements are generally laid out along the side and bottom edges. The dual SIM input - left - blends well with the fabric, unlike the volume and lock / sensor buttons - right - which protrude slightly from the bezel. The base has USB ports. -C and headphone, as well as a single speaker for multimedia - the mesh above the front camera is for calling only.

It's a very standard assembly in construction, with almost no attributes. But it's very solid and it's the quality that gives it a more exclusive feel. The best thing about the design is undoubtedly its slight inward curvature in front of the panel to extend the edge even further and improve grip. It is subtle and functional.

Shock-free screen

It's worth knowing that we have a 1080 panel in the market segment that tends to downsize to maintain decent autonomy Thanks to a good FullHD color panel this Y7a defends itself without problems, although it does struggle a bit against direct light despite the unusual brightness in the room.

Edge symmetry is not well achieved, although it looks better controlled than other brands in the same price range, especially at the bottom. As for tactile feedback don't worry. It's going pretty well.

EMUI and life without Google

This is where we're going to open up. The hardware comes with EMUI 10.1, Huawei's customized Android OSP, and all Huawei Mobile Services-related features - HMS for writing characters - that allow us to connect "with Google" to solutions added by the Chinese brand.

I'll have the opportunity to write about this in another note, but wanted to give your opinion. Overall, the interface and settings menu features aren't that far from traditional Android, but it's a AESTHETIC thing. I put it like this because it's the first thing that surprised me during the using it because I was expecting something less "habitable".

Integrated applications are still evolving. Petal Search not only gives results from websites, but also APKs, which compensates for the fact that you do not have a Play Store or you have a limited AppGallery Gallery. APK Pure has become my friend in this uncharted territory.

The app market isn't the best and is still implicated in recommending shows or games. In some cases it combines social apps and I don't have an efficient podcast manager other than Spotify.

Work in progress but there are absences. However, 60% of my main screen remained intact in EMUI. This is something.

Nice combination of cameras

This quad camera sensor generally works very well for both close-up and 6x zoom shots. It's a system that ejects those "very Huawei" photos with slight overexposure, weak, unsaturated color and sharp contrast.

At night, the hardware is able to get a good amount of light, and I am surprised to see how Huawei's AI has stopped burdening light and dark tones in night shots, a technique that took the shot away from depth.

The macro camera lacks detail and tends to be a little dark in photos as is the case with wide angle.

The front camera works very well and in portrait mode it's pretty uniform I think it's a good balance in the price range where the front baffle tends to play very badly with the brightness of the face.

In particular, we are talking about a lens system that, despite the low metric of its components, is capable of delivering interesting results.

Some obstacles, but with an emphasis

It's a team that struggles with some limitations to get more even results. Having a 14 processor the speed is lower than that of a Snapdragon 665 or 710 for example. In addition, having 4GB of RAM increases the performance bottleneck. It goes well, but the application step does have some typical of this category of hiccups.

It's rare to see a Huawei phone that, despite having 4G in both SIM trays, only adds WiFi N support. The difference is noticeable compared to computers that already have WiFi AC in this sector of the market.

Multimedia is defended with this FullHD panel, but having one speaker on the bottom edge limits the sound quality. Sounds good, but weaker than the Xiaomi Poco M3 which includes stereo speakers.

The fingerprint reader works well and is quite secure. Overall, the Y7a might be a good device, but it does run into some hardware-level imbalances that don't allow for a comprehensive experience.

A battery for days

In particular, 5000 mAh and the mixture of components should not leave us without power anytime soon. We are talking about a moderate use time, which can leave us without problems with 25 to 35% of the remaining energy in a 14-hour day and 6 to 6 and a half hours of active By adding 22.5W to the load with a box charger, we do just fine.

Is it worth it?

I will try to be as honest as possible. In the market with a few cheap Android options, this device is not in my game. Not only because of the lack of Google, but its performance does not differ from what I see in other brands. Its big difference is no android from google and this is not the best selling offer.

Of course we can use Disney +, Netflix, WhatsApp - no backup -, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, banking apps and so on. I think this is a phone that I would recommend to someone who wants to go beyond the current proposal and wants to experiment with other terms far from Apple and Google. For the rest, I don't see much argument for the Y7a. It's not a bad team, but in this sector they are better.

* Equipment on loan from Huawei Peru from 27 January pending review