Honor 90 series
Honor 90 Lite Review: Performance within Budget
The Shenzhen based consumer electronics company Honor was founded in 2013 as a sub-brand of Huawei. The brand was sold to Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Co. Ltd in November 2020. Honor phones are popular for good features with reasonable pricings. In this wave, Honor has released 90 Lite. Let’s take a look tinto the key specs, pros, cons and price of Honor 90 Lite phone.
Key Features of Honor 90 Lite
Design
The Honor 90 Lite boasts a sleek design, measuring 162.9 mm by 74.5 mm by 7.5 mm and weighing a mere 179g. Its flat sides and large, low-bezel screen provide a generic yet practical front, while the distinctive shimmer of its Black, Silver, or Cyan back panel, coupled with cropped-circle camera bumps, adds a unique touch.
The device features a plastic back with a subtle shine, resembling a fusion of glass and metal. The phone's matte frame houses a USB-C port at the base, a power button/fingerprint scanner combo, and a volume rocker on the right side. On the left, the SIM card tray accommodates dual Nano-SIM cards but lacks SD card support.
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The mono speaker, located next to the USB-C port, can be easily covered during gaming, affecting audio quality. Regrettably, the absence of a headphone jack further diminishes audio options, marking sound as one of the 90 Lite's weaker aspects.
Despite a relatively slender 7.48mm profile, the phone's flat frame, without curved edges, provides a sturdy grip. Notably, Honor has streamlined the packaging, omitting a charger and case but including a pre-fitted screen protector and charging cable.
Display
The Honor 90 Lite features a 6.7-inch IPS LCD display with a 90Hz refresh rate, showcasing slim bezels on three sides and a noticeable chin below the screen. The Wide Full HD resolution and 19.9:9 aspect ratio deliver sharp visuals at 1080 by 2388 pixels, providing an immersive viewing experience.
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While lacking the deep blacks of OLED panels, the LCD technology offers respectable viewing angles. The smooth 90Hz refresh rate enhances overall display performance. However, the phone's brightness may be insufficient in extremely sunny conditions.
Cameras
The Honor 90 Lite comes equipped with a triple camera setup featuring a 100 MP main lens with an f/1.9 aperture, a 5 MP (f/2.2) ultrawide lens, and a 2 MP (f/2.4) macro lens, accompanied by a depth-sensing lens.
The main lens performs well in optimal lighting conditions, capturing vibrant and sharp photos. However, night mode tends to introduce excessive blurring, and the camera struggles in less-than-ideal lighting.
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Notably, the 2 MP macro lens surprisingly produces good quality photos, showcasing detail in close-up shots. The zoom capability, though, falls short, resulting in blurred and less sharp images. Portrait mode works effectively, creating a pleasing separation between the subject and background.
The selfie camera, at 16 MP (f/2.5), delivers satisfactory results for its price, but lacks the sharpness of higher-end models. While the main lens stands out, there's room for improvement in the overall quality across all lenses.
Performance and Hardware
The Honor 90 Lite delivers solid performance with its 8GB RAM, 256GB storage, and the MediaTek Dimensity 6020 5G chip 7nm. The phone operates smoothly without freezing or stuttering, meeting expectations for its price range. The mid-range Dimensity processor performs well for everyday tasks, but users may experience limitations with more graphically demanding applications like heavy gaming.
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However, in its price range, Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro offers better performance with Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 (4 nm) chipset.
The phone's unique feature, Honor RAM Turbo, allows for the expansion of RAM by allocating GB from the ROM memory, enhancing multitasking capabilities. Benchmark tests reveal performance similar to the Samsung Galaxy A14, although charging speed is slightly slower. When compared to its higher-end counterpart, the Honor 90, the pricier model excels in graphics tests but has a shorter battery life.
Software
The Honor 90 Lite operates on Android 13, overlaid with the Magic UI 7.1 layer, which bears a striking resemblance to Huawei's OS, given their historical association. Notably, Honor maintains full compatibility with Google services, a crucial aspect for users.
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The device comes with a set of pre-installed apps, including some peculiar games and Honor's own applications in the MyHonor section. The interface is visually pleasing, characterized by vibrant colors and simplicity. Users have the flexibility to uninstall any unwanted apps. Google's applications replace those pre-installed, though users can choose to install them manually.
The device features "Honor Share," reliable file sharing with compatible devices. The launcher is straightforward, with all installed apps appearing on a single home screen. Honor commits to three years of security updates and confirms two years of Android updates, ensuring reasonable software support for the Honor 90 Lite.
Battery and Charger
The Honor 90 Lite offers a 4,500 mAh battery coupled with a 35W fast-charging capability, though it doesn't include a charging brick in the box. To maximize the fast charging feature, users need to purchase a separate 35W-rated charger.
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Testing the charging speed, the phone reached 29% in 15 minutes and 57% in 30 minutes, aligning well with average expectations for its price range. Despite the lack of an included charger, the Honor 90 Lite's charging times are deemed acceptable, providing a substantial battery boost in just 30 minutes.
Pros and Cons of Honor 90 Lite
Pros
- Main camera captures standard quality photos- Decent display - Good storage capacity.
Cons
- Limited zoom functionality with subpar results- Lack of 4K video recording capability- Secondary cameras exhibit room for improvement- Absence of a charger in the packaging.
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Price of Honor Lite 90
The Honor 90 Lite is not officially sold in Bangladesh. However, in Malaysia, the cost for the 8GB+256GB version is RM 1,099.00, which is equivalent to BDT 25,899. To put it simply, the exchange rate is RM 1 = BDT 23.57.
Verdict
The Honor 90 Lite emerges as a well-priced handset catering to budget-conscious users seeking competent performance. Despite some shortcomings, such as the lack of OLED and audio limitations, the phone excels with its versatile UI, capable processor, and impressive 100MP main camera.
On the whole, Honor 90 Lite is a standard budget-friendly phone for regular tasks.
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