Huawei Nova 9 SE Review: specs and features, camera quality test, gaming benchmark, user opinions and photos

Huawei Nova 9 SE - changing priorities

In most cases, the continuation of a successful smartphone continues to develop the successful aspects of its predecessor. For example, the younger representatives of the Nova line gradually improved in terms of technical characteristics and display quality, but this trend continued exactly until the release of the hero of today's review. What metamorphoses awaited the novelty?

The appearance of the phone is the aspect that you absolutely do not want to change. Such exterior features as the design of four cameras, colors and even the thickness of the screen frames were adopted from the manufacturer's flagships. As a result, falling in love with the design of a relatively budget device is very easy. But the 6.78-inch IPS screen has noticeably weakened in terms of brightness and contrast compared to previously used AMOLED panels. Only FullHD + resolution and a 90Hz refresh rate smooth the impression of such simplifications.

The performance of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 chipset does not cause stormy enthusiasm either. This is an energy-efficient solution that should not be required to launch a fruitful Genshin Impact or other resource-intensive tasks. Even in the Android 12 interface, jamming is sometimes noticed, it is from the point of view of the processor used that the gadget is inferior to opponents. 8GB of RAM and Adreno 610 GPU does not change the situation. But it is the CPU that helps to achieve at least 7-8 hours of active screen time from a small 4000mAh battery. The advantage of the battery is fast charging at 66W (25 minutes to 100% capacity). 128GB of ROM is an impressive amount of internal storage, complemented by a microSD card slot. Thus, there will be no shortage of space for information.

The emphasis in the Android smartphone is now on photography. 108-, 8- and 2-megapixel cameras are still not often found in the price category, however, these modules still do not reveal their full potential due to the lack of optical stabilization, the use of cheap lenses and mediocre Qualcomm chip processing algorithms. If daytime photos come out mostly detailed, natural and simply great, but the idyll is completely broken when the lighting deteriorates. But NFC contactless payments and stereo sound add to the treasury of the advantages of the unit. Unfortunately, all of the above does not negate one fact - the device came out less balanced and relevant.