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17 comments Mario Arroyo @ Embi41

It has rained a lot since the launch of the Huawei P40 and Huawei Mate 40 in our country, but finally Huawei wanted to get back into action with a face-to-face meeting in Madrid, where we had the opportunity to test two new mid-range phones, Huawei Nova 9 and Huawei Nova 8i who are now coming to Spain.

These are two phones that, interestingly, don't ship with HarmonyOS as the operating system as we might have expected, but remain traditional, featuring Android 11 with EMUI 12 as a customization layer. We sincerely hope these new terminals have already integrated their own software. Huawei, but it seems like we'll have to wait a while to see them in action, in any case, and in the absence of further testing, these were our first impressions.

Huawei Nova 9 and Huawei Nova 8i technical sheet

	huawei new 9	huawei new 8i
Dimensions and weight	160 x 73.7 x 7.77 mm 175 grams	161.85 x 74.7 x 8.58 mm 190 grams
screen	6.57 inch curved OLED FullHD + resolution (2340 x 1080 pixels) 120 Hz 300 Hz touch refresh HDR10	6.67 inch IPS / LCD FullHD + resolution (2376 x 1080 pixels)
editor	Snapdragon 778G 4G Adreno 642L GPU	Snapdragon 662 Adreno 610 GPU
Aries	8 GB	6 GB
INTERNAL STORAGE	128 GB	128 GB
Rear camera	50 Mpix f / 1.9 8MP f / 2.2 wide angle 2 MP f / 2.4 depth 2MP f / 2.4 macro	64 MP f / 1.9 Wide angle 8 MP f / 2.4 120º Depth 2 MP depth f / 2.4 2MP f / 2.4 macro
front camera	32 Mpix f / 2.0	16 Mpix f / 2.0
BATTERY	4300 mAh 66W fast charge	4300 mAh 66W quick charge
OPERATING SYSTEM	Android 11 with EMUI 12	Android 11 with EMUI 12
COMMUNICATION	4G NFC Wi-Fi 6 Bluetooth 5.2 USB Type-C GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS	4G Wi-Fi network Bluetooth 5.0 USB Type-C GPS, AGPS, Glonass, BeiDou, Galileo
OTHERS	Fingerprint reader under the screen A great device Synchronization with other Huawei devices	Side fingerprint reader
PRICE	449 euros	349 euros

Huawei Nova 9

PVP in the Huawei store € 449.00

Huawei Nova 8i

PVP in the Huawei store € 349.00

Huawei Nova 9 points out the ways but continues with software without Google

With the Huawei Nova 9, we would like to emphasize its pleasant touch and that it does not slip excessively, thanks in part to its non-slip engraving. We are also grateful that it has an anti-fingerprint coating that is not perfect but manages to keep most of our fingerprints at bay.

About ergonomics and comfort, let's say the Huawei Nova 9 is a phone that fits well in the hand, is light and easy to handle. We are talking about a device that weighs 175 grams and is 7.77 millimeters thick, two favorable figures in its design section.

On the back of the Nova 9, this camera module reappears, which takes the same format as the Huawei Nova 8 and which we have also seen in the expected Huawei P50, with two circular modules positioned vertically in the upper left corner. The presence of the Huawei logo is also repeated, accompanied by a bold 'Nova' typography, tattooed in the lower sector.

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If we turn the phone over, we see a 6.57 inch OLED screen with slightly curved edges. Its resolution is FullHD + and so far because all these features remain the same as in the previous generation. The highlight of this generation is the refresh rate of 120 Hz. which provides the extra fluidity we're used to in the mid-range of most manufacturers.

At the spec level, the Huawei Nova 9 has its own power thanks to the Snapdragon 778 4G processor, with 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of memory. And no, it does not have 5G connectivity as the name of its SoC indicates. Not a drama even though 5G is already among us. , but it is true that 2022 will come soon and seeing that 5G is already in most of the phones that come into our hands, its lack is much less surprising.

Either way, the specification of Huawei Nova 9 scores ways and, in our experience, we emphasize that it behaves as expected, with no nasty surprises or anything bad to comment on. In addition, the habit of using EMUI in the Huawei Terminal makes the use of we are familiar with it, just as we are used to not finding a single Google product in it, we will have to wait for its analysis to put it to the test.

The Huawei Nova 9 camera system is distinguished by four sensors managed by a 50-megapixel main sensor, accompanied by a sensor with an eight-megapixel wide-angle lens, a sensor designed to read the depth of two megapixels and another sensor dedicated to macro, also two megapixels. Again, we lack a more useful sensor, such as a telephoto lens, although it is true that this is not common in the medium range.

Nova 8i looks much more modest

Now let's talk about another big hero of Huawei's presentation: the Nova 8i. The first thing that should be clear is that we are also dealing with another mid-range phone, but more modest in general lines if we compare it with the Huawei Nova 9. Its the dimensions are very similar to each other, but with regard to its design, we emphasize that it has a simpler back, albeit with a camera module that closely resembles the Huawei Mate 40.

It has a circular format, a large size and four lenses which we will talk about later, although we can say that they do not protrude too much from the body of the device, which we appreciate. In this case, the Huawei Nova 8i will be available in two colors: silver pink and black. that on the back trim it is a great magnet for both light reflections and our fingerprints.

As we said before, the Huawei Nova 8i is mostly a more modest phone, and we notice it on the screen as well. In this case, the terminal mounts a 6.67-inch IPS / LCD panel with FullHD + resolution. Unlike the other model, this one does not have a high refresh rate. but remains at 60 Hz.

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After testing, and while it's true we haven't been able to do it in-depth (it will come), it seems the panel has a peak brightness too low.When we used it, we tried to crank up the brightness to the maximum intensity and it has to be said that it wasn't especially sure. However, we will test this section further under different conditions to see how it affects the end-use experience.

As for the section of cameras integrated into this rear wheel, it should be noted that we have the usual package that we have found repeatedly on the road, so we have a 64 megapixel main sensor, an eight megapixel wide-angle sensor and two sensors, one for the depth and the other for the macro, each two megapixels each.

Finally, we need to talk about the battery. Both terminals have a capacity of 4300mAh. This is not the maximum value we found in mid-range mobile, but we have to remember that we are talking about two phones measured by thickness and weight. , at least on paper, it's fast charging for both terminals: 66W. Huawei promises to be able to charge up to 50% of the Nova 9's battery in half an hour, but we'll see.

Since we're dealing with first impressions, we can't over-build the camera, performance or battery sections of these two new Huawei phones, but we'll do so in the future when we have the opportunity to analyze them in more detail.

Huawei's return has lights and shadows

Huawei launched two phones whose features and specifications have a body to stand up to other competitors in the current mid-range. Unless we take into account the lack of 5G connectivity, the absence that is quite remarkable in mid-2021, and of course the lack of Google services. .

The price of 449 euros for the Nova 9 and 349 euros for the Nova 8i makes them attractive terminals, on paper, for anyone who does not want to spend a lot of money on a mobile phone. However, the real price for these two new terminals is the lack of Google services. wait to see what experiences they offer during the day and how Huawei managed to fix this shortcoming.

Huawei Nova 9

PVP in the Huawei store € 449.00

Huawei Nova 8i

PVP in the Huawei store € 349.00

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