Specifications
- Screen: TFT IPS, 5.5", 1280×720, capacitive, multi-touch
- Processor: eight-core HiSilicon Kirin 620, 1.2 GHz
- Graphics accelerator: Mali-450 MP4
- Operating system: Android 4.4.2
- RAM: 2 GB
- Built-in memory: 8 GB
- Memory card support: microSDHC up to 32 GB
- Communication: GSM 900/1800 MHz, UMTS 900/2100 MHz, LTE: 1, 3, 7
- SIM: mini-SIM + micro-SIM, Dual SIM Dual Standby (DSDS)
- Wireless interfaces: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0
- Navigation: GPS/GLONASS
- Cameras: main - 13 MP (flash, autofocus), front - 5 MP
- Sensors: light sensor, gyroscope, motion sensor
- Battery: 3000 mAh, non-removable
- Dimensions: 152.9x77.2x8.65 mm
- Weight: 165 grams
Huawei Honor 4X smartphone review
The Huawei Honor 4X smartphone will appeal to all those who are looking for a smartphone with a large screen and 4G network support at a very reasonable price.
- Content
- Introduction
- Specifications
- Appearance
- Equipment
- Screen
- Camera
- Sound
- Performance
- Software and autonomy
- Communication capabilities
- conclusions
Introduction
The Huawei Honor 4X smartphone can be called an advanced version of Honor 4C, since it has a larger display, a more capacious battery, and also has support for a high-speed 4G network. All this (and more), of course, slightly increases the price tag of the model (11,990 rubles versus 8,990 rubles), but the flagship is a flagship to fall into the hands of wealthier users.
Technical characteristics of Huawei Honor 4X
| Display | 5.5″, 1280x720, IPS |
| Chipset/graphics | Hi620 1.2 GHz (8 cores, Cortex-A53) / Mali-450 MP4 |
| RAM/ROM/Flash | 2 GB / 8 GB / microSD up to 32 GB |
| Cameras | front: 5 MP; rear: 13 MP, autofocus. |
| Connection | Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11 b/g/n), Bluetooth 4.0, USB 2.0 (Host) |
| Networks | 2G; 3G, LTE Cat4 up to 150 Mbit/s |
| FM | + |
| Battery | 3000 mAh |
| OS | Android 4.4 KitKat |
| SIM | Dual-SIM |
| Navigation | GPS, A-GPS |
| Dimensions | 153 x 77 x 8.6 mm |
| Weight | 170 g |
Appearance
Huawei Honor 4X turned out to be very thin - the body thickness is only 8.6 mm. Model length - 153 mm, width - 77 mm. The smartphone weighs 170 g, so it feels weighty and solid in the palm of your hand. The front panel features a large display, above which the front camera, speaker and sensors are located, and below it are three touch control buttons (“Back”, “Menu”, “Recent applications” in the form of a triangle, circle and square, respectively). The back panel is covered with a texture that imitates a silk coating, and the lettering of the model's logo originates from Chinese folk embroidery. Although the back panel is removable, the battery itself is not removable. Under the panel you can find slots for two SIM cards and memory cards placed side by side. The back of the device in the upper left corner houses the main camera with flash. Mechanical controls (power keys and volume control keys) are located on the right side. The upper part of the case is given over to the headset connector, and the lower part is dedicated to the Micro-USB port and the speaker, the presence of which is revealed by six holes. As for the color scheme, models in light blue, soft red and sand-gold colors are produced for different audiences.
Equipment
The box contains: smartphone, charger, USB cable, quick guide and warranty card.
Screen
Huawei Honor 4X has a huge 5.5-inch display based on an IPS matrix. The screen features HD resolution (1280×720 pixels, pixel density - 267 ppi), lamination (for even greater clarity of the displayed image) and an OTP calibration system to obtain rich colors and stability in operation. Traditionally, the IPS matrix offers wide viewing angles. At maximum brightness on the screen, you can read text even in direct sunlight. The display brightness is adjusted automatically, but the owner is free to set the desired brightness level manually. The touch layer “understands” up to 10 simultaneous touches.
Camera
The new product will stand out with a front camera with a 5-megapixel sensor, whose wide-angle lens allows you to take photos with a viewing angle of up to 88 degrees. For selfie lovers, there is a preview window, and the “Decoration” mode is perfect for video chats. The rear camera with a 13-megapixel sensor and f/2.0 aperture is also very impressive. The LED backlight and lens aperture help the user take excellent pictures even in the dark. We also note the presence of SmartImage 2.5 image processing technology and many filters. The smartphone owner has at his disposal voice activation, changing the focus point on finished pictures, panorama and burst functions, the ability to leave audio notes and take an automatic photo when a smile is detected in the frame. Many will find support for geotagging (that is, saving the shooting location on the map) and color watermarks useful. The camera also shoots video, and in Full HD resolution (1920x1080). There is no specially dedicated key for controlling shooting in the model, but two quick presses on the volume down key will lead to an equally quick shot of what is currently in front of the lens.
Sound
The smartphone boasts a DTS Audio surround sound system that gives the effect of full presence. The built-in speaker on the front panel significantly improves sound quality, and noise reduction technology allows you to talk even in crowded places, such as the subway. Supported audio file formats are very diverse - MP3, MID, AMR, AWB, 3GP, MP4, AAC, WAV, OGG, M4A, FLAC and MKV. There is also a built-in FM receiver, but it will only work when headphones are connected, which serve it instead of an antenna.
models - 8-core Hi6220 (V8R2) processor with an operating frequency of 1.2 GHz and 8 Cortex-A53 cores. Graphics are the responsibility of the 4-core Mali-450 MP4 video chip. RAM is installed at once 2 GB. The built-in memory is only 8 GB, and approximately 5 GB is available to the user. However, the memory can be increased with a MicroSD card up to 32 GB. This configuration of Honor 4X will allow you to watch HD videos and run modern 3D games like Asphalt 8 without any visible stutters.
Software and autonomy
Honor 4X is equipped with Android 4.4.2 OS with the proprietary Emotion UI 3.0 shell. Among the features of this shell, we note the placement of notes, messages, call logs, reminders and galleries in the notification line; calling up a search by simply pulling the screen down, as well as the ability to organize your workspace using built-in widgets (over 40!), layouts and 8 different page turning effects. The “Protected Applications” menu is also useful, where you can assign certain programs to run when the screen is locked. You can optimize the keyboard for one-handed use. The smartphone's battery is non-removable, but with a decent capacity of 3000 mAh. The menu has two saving modes: “Energy Saving”, which allows you to almost double the operating time, and “Smart”, which optimizes the main parameters and helps save 20-30% of the charge. Coupled with an energy-efficient chipset and SmartPower 2.5 technology in energy saving mode, the model will last a whole week. In normal mode, you won’t remember about the charger for 2-2.5 days, which is not bad at all.
Communication capabilities
In addition to supporting 2G and 3G networks, the new product will stand out for its work in modern high-speed 4G networks (LTE Cat 4 up to 150 Mbit/s). The model also supports working with two SIM cards of the micro-SIM standard, and according to the Dual-Active scheme, when two communication channels remain operational. Simply put, if they call you using one SIM card, the second one will remain available for communication, because the data transfer does not stop for a second. But at the same time, only one SIM card is ready to function in 3G/4G mode, while the other will be connected to 2G. The new product features strong signal reception even where there is poor network coverage. The antenna of the device itself is created using laser technology and has a double design, which increases the efficiency of signal reception. Navigation is stated using GPS satellites. The “cold” start of the GPS module took us a little over a minute. To access the Internet, a Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n module with Wi-Fi Direct is built-in, and Bluetooth 4.0 is available for file sharing. Among the sensors and sensors, we note a light sensor, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a compass and a proximity sensor.
conclusions
The Huawei Honor 4X model will appeal to those users who are looking for a smartphone with a large screen and support for the 4G network, which is serviced by many mobile operators in the domestic communications market and has long ceased to be a novelty. Despite its decent dimensions, the new product has a thin body (only 8.6 mm). The overall positive picture is complemented by a powerful 8-core chipset, 2 GB of RAM, excellent cameras (5 MP front and 13 MP rear), DTS Audio surround sound system and support for two SIM cards in Dual-Active mode.
Appearance
The design is quite standard without copying well-known brands and without any pretense of originality.
The body is completely made of dense matte plastic, the back panel has a textured surface that is pleasant to the touch. On top of the back panel there is a main camera lens and an LED flash, and just below there is a neat Honor logo.
The front panel is glossy, it is completely occupied by a 5.5-inch display, framed by a fairly wide frame - 5 mm on the side, 15 mm on the top and 16.5 mm on the bottom. Above the screen is the speaker grille and front camera lens, and below are the Android touch control keys.
The physical keys are placed on the right side as standard - the volume keys and the power button, which, by the way, has a different color from the body.
At the bottom, off-center, there is a microUSB connector, at the top is a 3.5mm audio output for a headset.
The back panel is removable, under it there is a monolithic battery with a capacity of 3000 mAh, as well as slots for two microSIM cards and a slot for a microSD memory card.
The build quality leaves much to be desired - the plastic is flimsy, creaks and bends when compressed. Quite logically, the test sample contained chips in the plastic.
The dimensions of the smartphone are quite significant: 152.9x77.2x8.65 mm and weighing 165 grams.
The smartphone is available in five colors: black, white, red, blue and gold, but only three are available in Russia: classic black, white and gold.
Technical characteristics of Huawei Honor 4X
On paper, the Honor 4X boasts impressive hardware specs, but based on the review, the Huawei Honor 4X looks quite ordinary and typical of the middle class.
CPU
Huawei's own HiSilicon Kirin 620 platform looks quite attractive in numbers. Still, not every $220 handset can boast of an eight-core processor. Its clock frequency reaches 1.2 GHz. Most likely, it is because of this that Honor 4X cannot boast of the highest performance. The result of the AnTuTu synthetic test does not even reach 30 thousand points, which the same dual-core iPhone 5s easily scores.
The GPU is a quad-core Mali 450MP4 chip. For a mid-level device, this solution is quite optimal.
Memory
The Honor 4X has 2 GB of RAM, although there is a less common version with half as much, which sells for $20 less. This amount of RAM is quite typical for the average price category; there are still more expensive smartphones that have only 1 GB.
The built-in flash drive has a capacity of 8 GB (about 6 of them are available to the user). The design of Honor 4X provides a slot for a memory card up to 32 GB. This volume is quite enough for the average user, but there will also be those who will be upset by the lack of support for the MicroSDXC standard (which removes restrictions on the capacity of the installed flash drive, as it is capable of working with modules with a capacity of up to 2 TB).
Battery
Despite the fact that the cover of the Honor 4X is removable (under it there are SIM card slots and memory cards), the lithium battery cannot be removed without tools. The battery capacity is 3000 mAh. Due to the large display and unoptimized processor, battery life is not good. In standby mode, the smartphone lasts a little more than a day. A moderate load can discharge the Honor 4X in 10-15 hours, and in maximum performance mode (games, navigation) even 5 hours is a good result.
Camera
The Honor 4X camera has a 13 MP matrix, which the manufacturer has equipped with an LED flash and autofocus function. The quality of the images is excellent, even in medium-brightness artificial lighting. Obvious noise and loss of detail become noticeable only in the dark.
The front 5-megapixel camera of Honor 4X also has decent photo quality; it is enough not only for video calling, but also for taking good self-portraits.
Display
The IPS display of Honor 4X has a diagonal of 5.5 inches. It is made using OGS technology (the matrix and touchscreen form a single whole) and has a resolution of 1280x720 pixels. The picture quality is at an average level: with a large tilt, slight color distortions are noticeable, and the brightness in the sun seems low. The advantages of the touchscreen include the presence of an anti-reflective coating, but the quality of its performance is also no more than average.
Data transfer
Honor 4X is equipped with two slots for SIM cards in microSIM format, which are located under the cover. Supported communication standards include not only GSM and UMTS, but also LTE. At the same time, both slots support work in 4G networks, while, like most competitors, the second number can only work in 2G and 3G networks.
Sound
The multimedia capabilities of Honor 4X are at a high level. The speaker is loud and its sound is clear. Traditionally, low frequencies may seem small, but in headphones this drawback almost completely disappears.
OS
The operating system in the smartphone is Android 4.4, but the manufacturer promises an upgrade to version 5.0 Lolipop. Huawei's proprietary shell is installed as the user interface.
Display
Honor 4X received a 5.5-inch display with a resolution of 1280x720 and a pixel density of 267 per inch, despite the low resolution, pixelation is not obvious. The IPS matrix should provide the screen with wide viewing angles, however, they are average, noticeable shifts in shades depending on the position of the smartphone.
Multi-touch technology supports up to ten simultaneous touches, the brightness can be set either independently or rely on auto-tuning. The maximum brightness level is enough for comfortable reading of information from the screen outdoors. But the minimum brightness is not even enough for reading in the dark, so you can set it higher. I like it even better.
There is an oleophobic coating, which is quite weak: fingerprints remain, but are quickly and easily erased.
operating system
The smartphone runs Android 4.4.2 with a proprietary EMIU 3.0 shell, which is almost similar to the standard Android interface.
It has its own “tricks”, for example, the “Do Not Disturb” mode turns off any type of notifications - even the indicator will not blink, and the “Protected Applications” menu allows you to select the programs you need, which will be available even when the screen is locked.
There are practically no pre-installed applications; all Google utilities are collected in one folder.
In general, if you have already worked with Android, then you will not have any questions, but even for beginners the interface remains intuitive and as simple as possible.
Huawei Honor 4X as a toy
An annoying problem with the Dead Trigger 2 toy, which for some reason crashes on startup. And with everything else there are no problems. So the smartphone is very gaming, especially when you consider that you can install a bunch of toys at the same time - insert a 32 GB memory card - and install at least a dozen of the thickest toys.
Tested games
| A game | Problems? |
| Angry Birds Go! | Everything is fine |
| Pitfall! | Everything is fine |
| Shoot The Zombirds | Everything is fine |
| Asphalt 8: Take Off | Maximum graphics. |
| Real Racing 3 | Everything is fine |
| NOVA 3 | Everything is fine |
| Need for Speed Most Wanted | 30 seconds of game time = 34 seconds of real time. |
| Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas | Everything is fine |
| Dead Trigger 2 | Crashes when trying to start. |
| Riptide GP2 | Everything is fine |
| FIFA 15 | Everything is fine |
Iron
As a platform, Honor 4X received an 8-core HiSilicon Kirin 620 processor, clocked at 1.2 GHz, a Mali-450 MP4 graphics processor, 2 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal memory, of which no more than 5 GB is available to the user, expandable memory via microSD card up to 64 GB.
This kind of hardware is enough for the interface to work smoothly, but as for launching heavy games, everything is not so smooth.
Technical specifications of Huawei Honor 4X (model Che2-L11)
- processor HiSilicon Kirin 620 1.2 GHz (8 cores Cortex-A53, 64 bit)
- Mali-450 MP video chip
- RAM 2 GB (available on a bare device 1376 MB)
- 8 GB internal storage (only 2.59 GB available for user)
- Micro SD memory card support (up to 32 GB)
- IPS display 5.5'', with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels
- front camera 5 MP
- main camera 13 MP (f/ 2.0, autofocus)
- battery 3000 mAh
- sensors: accelerometer, gyroscope, light and proximity sensor, compass
- connectors: Micro USB (OTG), 3.5 mm
- Android OS version 4.4.2
- EMUI 3.0 shell
- dimensions 153 x 77 x 8.6 mm
- weight 170 g
Network capabilities:
- 2G, 3G (HSPA+), 4G (bands: 3, 7, 8, 20)
- two Micro SIM cards (both slots support LTE Cat 4)
- Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n), Bluetooth 4.0, no NFC
- GPS, GLONASS
The overall performance is enough to play modern toys. Of course, you shouldn’t expect smooth animation at maximum graphics settings, but at medium settings everything is quite good.
As for system tests, the results are presented in the screenshots below.
Camera
Honor 4X is equipped with a 13 MP main camera with autofocus and flash and a 5 MP front camera with F2.4 aperture.
The main camera takes very good photos, even in the dark the noise is minimal, the detail and sharpness are high.
The 5 megapixel front camera also copes well with pictures, suitable for both video chats with a good image and selfies.
The main camera shoots video in FullHD 1920x1080 format, the front one - HD.
Battery
Honor 4X is equipped with a non-removable lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 3000 mAh. It is enough for intensive use throughout the day without recharging, and with moderate use it will last for two days.
In the settings, you can choose two of the battery-saving modes: “energy saving” and “smart”.
The latter optimizes only the basic parameters, while the “energy-saving” one minimizes energy consumption to the maximum, thereby extending the life of the smartphone almost twice.
In our test at 50% brightness with Wi-Fi turned on and Google Chrome in Normal mode, the smartphone lasted 7 and a half hours of continuous operation. With energy saving modes turned on, this figure should increase quite well.
