With the Nova 9, Huawei is back in the smartphone mid-range. Particular attention is paid to the comeback cell phone in the test on the camera, which uses technology from the P40.
Even without a US embargo, the bottom line is that there are still too many shortcomings
The competition in the field of mid-range smartphones is tough, and the Huawei Nova 9 is also feeling the effects. The bottom line is that the cell phone is decent, but has too many shortcomings compared to the competition. In addition to the restrictions imposed by the US embargo (Google services, updates, 5G), there is also the lack of water protection, a memory card slot, and an optical image stabilizer on the camera compared to the competition.
We liked that
- fast charging with up to 66 watts
- Protective cover included
We didn’t like that
- no 5G
- no google apps
- Main camera without optical image stabilizer
- Memory not expandable
- no IP certification
For a long time, it had become quiet around Huawei in this country. There were no new mobile phones from the Chinese manufacturer. That will change in 2022. In addition to the two top models Huawei P50 Pro and Huawei P50 Pocket, the company also offers a mid-range smartphone with the Nova 9.
design and processing
The Huawei cell phone looks quite classy for this. With its display curved towards the aluminum edges, the front of the Nova 9 reminds us a little of the Huawei P30 Pro. Probably also because it has almost identical dimensions at 160 x 73.7 x 7.8 millimeters. Unlike the P30 Pro, Huawei places the front camera in a modern punch hole and not in a notch.
On the other hand, Huawei has based the rear on the P50 design. In the top left corner of the cell phone, you will find two large circles in which the manufacturer places the cell phone’s camera system. Both protrude slightly from the back. But you will hardly notice this in everyday life; the Nova 9 doesn’t wobble uncomfortably when you put it on the table.
Huawei Nova 9 in pictures
Images of the Huawei Nova 9.
By the way, the back itself is made of plastic and has a matte surface. Fingerprints and dirt are not as easy to see on it as on a glass back, and the “plastic back” gives the Nova 9 significantly more grip. From our point of view, a protective cover is not absolutely mandatory for use, but it is thankfully included with the mobile phone.
In the hand, the Huawei Nova 9 makes a good overall impression. It doesn’t look cheap and despite its dimensions, it doesn’t look bulky either. For the advertised price, however, we clearly miss an IP certification, such as that offered by Samsung’s Galaxy A52s 5G.
The Huawei Nova 9 is available in two colors: “Starry Blue”, a light shade of blue with a slight gradient on the back, and “Black”, a dark, matte black.
equipment and performance
So much for the external values of the Huawei Nova 9. Below we will take a look at the hardware of the cell phone together with you. Let’s start with the display.
screen
The display of the Huawei Nova 9 is appropriate with a diagonal of 6.57 inches. The built-in panel is an OLED, so you can look forward to crisp colors and rich black tones. A refresh rate of up to 120 Hertz also ensures buttery smooth animations.
processor and memory
Huawei does not rely on its own Kirin chip for the processor, but on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778. In terms of performance, the Nova 9 is in the upper middle field in this price range and is on a par with the iPhone SE or the aforementioned Samsung Galaxy A52s .
A major drawback: due to the US embargo, Huawei is only allowed to use the 4G version of the Qualcomm chip. So you are denied the new 5G mobile communications standard, which may still be bearable at the moment. Anyone who wants to use their cell phone for more than the usual two years should go straight to a 5G cell phone.
Huawei officially offers the Nova 9 in this country only with 8 gigabytes of working memory and 128 gigabytes of device memory. It is also available abroad with 256 gigabytes of memory. Unfortunately, the memory cannot be expanded afterwards.
The other equipment, on the other hand, leaves little to be desired. Bluetooth 5.2, WiFi 6 and an NFC chip are on board. This can now also be used for payments. This is made possible by an app called “Curve”, but you have to do without Google Pay. The reason here is once again the US trade embargo, which continues to deny Huawei access to Google services.
Incidentally, the operating system used is Android 11 with Huawei’s own EMUI 12 user interface, but it remains unclear how updates or a change to the in-house operating system HarmonyOS will look like.
battery life
The Huawei Nova 9 offers a 4,300 mAh battery. Although 5,000 mAh batteries are already common in this price range, the capacity should be enough to get most of you through the day. Once it’s empty, it can be charged at the socket with a record-breaking 66 watts for this price range.
camera
The camera has been a flagship for Huawei cell phones for years. Of course, this also raises expectations of the Nova 9 – even if its camera was not developed in cooperation with Leica. Nevertheless, there is a lot of know-how from the top smartphones of the P series, such as the Huawei P40, at least in the main camera. For example, Huawei relies on a so-called Ultra Vision sensor with a resolution of 50 megapixels.
Due to the RYYB color filter used here instead of the Bayer filter, it is particularly translucent, which should come in handy when taking photos in the dark. Unfortunately, the Nova 9 is still not a cheap Huawei P40, as the following photo comparison shows.
In addition, Honor uses a 108-megapixel camera instead of the 50-megapixel Ultra Vision camera. However, the manufacturer does not give you an update guarantee.
Huawei Nova 9: data sheet
Here you will find the technical data for the Huawei Nova 9. You can easily compare the size, weight and other properties with other products.
| processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G (SM7325) |
| GPU | Qualcomm Adreno 642L |
| R.A.M. | 8GB |
| battery capacity | 4300mAh |
| fast charging | ✘ No |
| Interchangeable | ✘ No |
| wireless charging | ✘ No |
| reverse charging | ✘ No |
| device memory | 128GB |
| Expandable Storage | microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC |
| Main camera (rear) | 50MP |
| Main Camera Resolution | 8192×6144 pixels |
| video recording | 3840×2160 pixels |
| Second image sensor | 8MP |
| Third image sensor | 2MP |
| Fourth image sensor | 2MP |
| autofocus | ✔ Yes |
| digital zoom | ✔ Yes |
| flashlight | LEDs |
| height | 160mm |
| broad | 73.7mm |
| depth | 7.77mm |
| Weight | 175g |
| Display resolution | 1080×2340 pixels |
| display diagonal | 6.57 inches |
| display pixel density | 392 ppi |
| display type | OLED |
| SIM / memory card format , number of slots | Nano SIM (4FF – Fourth Form Factor card, since 2012, 12.30 x 8.80 x 0.67 mm), Nano SIM / microSD |
| Dual SIM | ✔ Yes |
| Bluetooth | 5.2 |
| WiFi | 802.11a (IEEE 802.11a-1999), 802.11b (IEEE 802.11b-1999), 802.11g (IEEE 802.11g-2003), 802.11n (IEEE 802.11n-2009), 802.11n 5GHz, 802.11ac (IEEE 802 ), Dual band, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Display, 802.11ax |
| LTE | LTE FDD 850 (B5), LTE FDD 850 (B18), LTE FDD 850 (B19), LTE FDD 850 (B26), LTE FDD 900 (B8), LTE FDD 1700 (B4), LTE FDD 1800 (B3), LTE FDD 1900 (B2), LTE FDD 2100 (B1), 1900 (B39), 2000 (B34), 2300 (B40), 2500 (B41), 2600 (B38) MHz |
| 5G | ✘ No |
| GPRS | ✔ Yes |
| HSDPA | ✘ No |
| HSUPA | ✘ No |
| EDGE | ✔ Yes |
| GSM | 850(B5), 900(B8), 1800(B3), 1900(B2)MHz |
| IrDA | ✘ No |
| USB | USB Type-C |
| headphone jack | ✘ No |
| Fingerprint scanner | ✔ Yes |
| NFC | ✔ Yes |
| GPS | ✔ Yes |
| Glonass | ✔ Yes |
| BeiDou | ✔ Yes |
| compass | ✔ Yes |
| radio | ✘ No |
| accelerometer | ✔ Yes |
| proximity sensor | ✔ Yes |
| ambient light sensor | ✔ Yes |
