Honor Play 4 / 64GB smartphone - advantages and disadvantages

This year, phone manufacturers have thought about releasing special devices that are tailored for active games with heavy graphics and the protection of virtual reality.If you think about it, then these devices should have a large display in a small case, excellent autonomy, a nimble processor and a video adapter that supports acceleration like that installed in a powerful PC for games.One of the first gadgets of this segment was the Honor Play 4 / 64GB smartphone, the advantages and disadvantages of which are discussed in this article.

Honor Play 4 / 64GB

This is a productive device for games with a good filling and artificial intelligence technology. The gadget received a GPU Turbo option and a dual camera. The presentation of the novelty took place in June this year.

Completion and dimensions

The delivery set of the phone is typical for all devices from the best manufacturer of mobile devices "Huawei". The box is made in a minimalist design: made of durable white cardboard, the name of an already popular model is gracefully displayed on the front side.

In addition to the phone, the set contains a long cable with a USB-USB Type C connector, an adapter for an electrical network with fast charging protection, a specialized clip for working with dual sim, a silicone case, a user manual and a warranty. The headset is missing.

Despite the large dimensions, and they are here - 157.91x74.27x7.48 mm, and the weight is 176 grams, the smartphone does not look too large. This is due to the fact that almost 90 percent of the front end is occupied by the touchscreen display, which is 6.3 inches.
It should be noted that the screen is stretched in length (the aspect ratio is 19.5: 9). Small stripes immediately catch the eye: at the top, on the left and right sides - about 2 mm, at the bottom - about 7 mm. Thanks to this movement, there is really a lot of useful space on the front of the machine.

It is also worth highlighting that the model feels comfortable in the hand: it is tenacious. This is probably due to the proportion of the sides. The gadget is felt in the pocket of the clothes, but this does not bode well. The smartphone is realized in three shades:

1. The black;
2. Red ruby;
3. Violet.

Design and ergonomics

The design of the "gaming phone" is fashionable. The appearance components were transferred from the P20 series devices. In particular, this is noticeable from the back of the shell: the horizontal direction of the camera unit, the location of the fingerprint scanner, as well as horizontal engraving. The back cover itself is made of aluminum materials and painted.

Plastic inserts are visible at the top and bottom of the shell. These parts house antennas and blocks of cellular communication, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS / Glonass.

The front of the phone is almost entirely given over to the display with the smallest bezels along the edges, leading to the almost invisible top and bottom. To this end, the creators used a cutout at the top, like the iPhone X, where the speaker, LED, scanners, and also the front camera are located.

The protective glass is equipped with an oleophobic surface. Works well. Traces of use are formed gradually, but are cleaned up with ease. In the hand, the model feels like a rather reliable and expensive device.The assembly is at the maximum level, the shell itself is monolithic.

The control components are typical for all new phones. The display power and unlock keys are located in their usual place - on the right side. There are also volume control buttons. They are quite subtle, but perform well on their own. They feel great with their hands, they respond to pressure quickly.

On the left side there is a slot for two sim cards of nano parameters. The slot is opened thanks to a specialized paper clip from the set. By the way, some users write in reviews that they use ordinary paper clips.

It is worth noting that one of the jacks is connected to the microSD slot. This means that the owner of the device must choose: use Dual SIM or install flash memory.

There is no possibility of synchronous operation.

On the lower end, on the right side, there are openings for the earpiece and multimedia speaker, as well as the microphone. In the middle you can see the USB Type C slot. It is used for recharging and connecting to a PC. On the left side is the typical 3.5mm headset jack. An auxiliary microphone is located at the top (used for noise suppression).

The rear camera module is located at the back. It is made of two components 16 MP (color) and 2 MP (BW). Cameras shoot with autofocus, there is a flash made of LEDs. Both blocks stand out by 2 mm in comparison to the coating of the shell. Below is a flash of LEDs.

In the center of the back of the phone is an ordinary round-type fingerprint scanner. Thanks to him, they unlock, and also assign specific actions. The sensor's responsiveness is excellent, the identification is accurate.

Display

The model is equipped with a 6.3-inch display that takes up more than 80 percent of the front area. The resolution of the installed IPS matrix is ​​2340x1080 px. It is worth highlighting the unique aspect ratio of 19.5 by 9. With this, it is convenient to control the main characters in games. This format, and the device in general, is an ideal solution for watching videos and surfing the Internet. On the upper side, it is protected with specialized glass. The developer paid due attention to vibration, which is felt much better when tapping on the screen.

The color palette can be easily changed using configuration. The image quality is at a high level. Users will love not only the gorgeous detailing of the picture, but also the instant responsiveness, as well as the most saturated colors. The viewing angles are close to the limiting numbers.

Iron

The model is equipped with trendy hardware, which is used in advanced devices of the Huawei brand this year. This is an eight-core Kirin 970 processor with a dedicated NPU and a Mali-G72 MP12 coprocessor. An addition to this duo was 4 GB of RAM. There is a built-in memory for saving files, which is 64 GB. If this is not enough, then the creator allows the installation of a flash drive with a capacity of up to 256 GB.

The highlight of Honor Play is the GPU Turbo technology, which accelerates the Mali-G72 MP12 video adapter. It guarantees 60 percent more imaging and 30 percent less energy consumption.

In addition, the creators allocate a specialized direction of the model for heavy games. This refers to 4D technology. In fact, the device is capable of displaying a huge number of scenes in applications, for example, explosions, earthquakes, and so on. In addition, vibration is provided to heighten the effect. In addition, Honor Play supports 3D effects, as well as Histen 7.1, with which the shooting angle is precisely indicated.

There is also network optimization for uninterrupted switching of Wi-Fi and mobile Internet without a pause in the game.

The filling of the model copes by 10 points out of 10 possible with the goals that the developers pursued. The custom EMUI skin is perfectly tailored with no bugs or glitches found. In the process of loading (heavy games, an activated camera, a browser and a couple of open tabs) the body of the phone heats up a little.

The benchmark values ​​are not as "killer" as the phones based on Snapdragon 845, but in fact the performance is sufficient. In AnTuTu testing, the model reaches 205,350 points. Similar values ​​for One Plus 5T, Xiaomi Mi MIX 2 and Huawei P20.

Playable videos from YouTube, surfing the net and instant messengers for your phone are a snap. But serious games on extreme parameters still function with some limits. From a phone that is presented as "gaming", users expect "even more." Light games fly on the model without lags, but this does not give the smartphone the opportunity to get into the rating of high-quality gaming machines. This is too serious a statement.

The phone is equipped with two methods of biometric scanning: fingerprint and the owner's facial features. The first sensor is as smart as possible and clearly identifies the first time. The second one is just as good. If the light is normal in the room, then the unlocking occurs instantly, in a dark room - a second (plus or minus).

Communication and sound

Due to 3D Histen technology, the "gaming" device sounds rich and clean. The multimedia type speaker has good volume. It is pleasant to listen to audio in the headset. The speaker for conversations is of excellent quality, since the interlocutor is clearly audible. It should be noted that the voice of the caller goes without much interference. There is a proprietary FM radio, Bluetooth 4.2 versions, an LTE model and a combined slot for Dual SIM like nano.

Autonomy

The model is supplied with a battery with a capacity of 3750 mAh. The following tests were performed. 30 minutes of calls per day, surfing the network for about an hour and a half using 4G, listening to audio through headphones for about two and a half hours, as well as screen brightness at medium parameters. In such conditions, Honor worked for 30 hours.

If you watch a video in Full HD, then the device will work for 7 and a half hours, if you use it as a navigator - 4.5 hours. As a result, the device needs to be charged once every 1.5-2 days. If you use the phone in a less active mode, then it will function for two days, or even more.

In terms of battery life, the smartphone is quite good. In the category "Battery" in the parameters there is a full set of functionality: energy-saving mode, display resolution selection, background programs activity limit, detailed information on battery usage, as well as an optimization utility.

From the adapter supplied in the kit, one hundred percent charge is carried out in about an hour. There is a "Quick Charge" mode (the adapter included in the package bundle supports this option): 25 min. - 50 percent charge, 80 minutes - 100%.

Software and interface

The model is made under Android 8.1 Oreo OS with EMUI 8.1 user interface. The shell consists of many parameters. For example, it is possible to customize the navigation keys - it's comfortable. There is an option for one-handed control, support for movements and voice control, scheduled ON / OFF, locking the phone in your pocket and using gloves.

The functionality with gestures is supported, there is an auxiliary virtual control key that expands on the display to the district menu. The navigation panel has been changed in appearance, divided into tabs, the first of which is responsible for the time grid of events. On another tab there is a shortcut menu for the most important parameters. If you swipe down, another menu opens, which houses a flashlight, a voice recorder and other interesting options and configurations.

In addition, the owner is given the opportunity to choose an effect while unlocking or switching between desktops, set the style of icons, and also answer a call while lifting the smartphone to his ear. There is an option to switch to quiet mode, if you flip the display down, and if you tilt the smartphone, the widgets will be sorted. All in all, there are many different features that emotional users are likely to enjoy.

There are also several “native” appearance themes with the possibility of free and paid download of new ones, as well as attractive images for the Lock Screen display. This is one of the few cases where when buying a budget phone you don't need to change native backgrounds and styles to others.There is a mode of auto background change when images are built in a random sequence. For this purpose, the phone must be shaken.

Out of the box, there are typical programs for a developer: free Yandex services, Clean Master, Sberbank, Facebook and others. Fans of healthy lifestyles are given the opportunity to experience the "Health" program, which includes monitoring of human activity, physical activity, diet, and so on.

Camera

The main camera of this model is double. The modules here are 16 MP and 2 MP. The first aperture is 2.2 with phase focusing, the second is 2.4. The cameras in the smartphone are not equipped with optical adjustment and the same zoom.

In fact, the camera system works pretty well. How does she take pictures during the day? In the sun? - well! Quality, accuracy, color reproduction and sharpness are at a decent level. Only the "bokeh" effect is somewhat unstable and smears the subject that is in the foreground. The majority of users to the question: "how does he take pictures at night?" - answer "so-so". The fact is that in poor light, noise is formed and a decrease in accuracy is felt. In general, examples of photos can be found in Yandex or Google.

The model is capable of recording videos with a maximum resolution of 4K in Full HD format, FPS - 30, the sound is stereo, the quality is normal.

The resolution of the front module is 16 MP, the aperture is 2.0. The resulting shots are pretty acceptable. The options include auto filters and artificial intelligence algorithms to process selfies in the best possible way.

Advantages and disadvantages

• Performance;
• Combined dual camera;
• Trendy and fashionable appearance;
• Beautiful display with minimal bezels
• Smart multimedia system and vibration.

• The coprocessor could run faster;
• There is no NFC block in some modifications;
• The camera is relatively weak at taking pictures in the dark.

The average price is 23,000 rubles.

Specifications

Outcome

The popularity of the model is justified, because the smartphone has turned out to be an unusual premium gadget. The phone is equipped with a number of interesting options that facilitate convenient use. It should be noted that the device is distinguished by serious performance, an excellent screen and a smart sound system. It is really comfortable to hold in the hand thanks to the elongated body.