Honor is back with the first GMS smartphone since the Honor 20 series, after the sale from Huawei at the end of 2020. It’s equipped with a 32MP front camera with a 90-degree viewing angle, users can take perfect selfies and videos, with more people and scenery in the frame. Boasting a professional-grade quad rear camera setup, the HONOR 50 comes with a 108MP main camera, an 8MP wide-angle camera, a 2MP macro camera, and a 2MP depth of field camera.
Its weight of 175 grams is relatively light despite its large screen size (for dimensions of 160 x 73.8 x 7.8 mm). The latter also occupies 90% of the front surface and displays a central hallmark where its front photo module is housed. On the back, the quadruple photosensor is divided into two circles that sport a particularly successful metallic finish.
The smartphone is looking to the future in terms of connectivity. It is compatible with 5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2 and embeds an NFC chip for contactless payments and mono speaker. The fingerprint sensor under the screen is responsive and the buttons placed on the edges are easily accessible.
Screen
The screen … this is an aspect on which the Honor 50 shows great capabilities. It is equipped with a 6.57-inch OLED panel, defined in Full HD + (1080 x 2340 px), which offers a dynamic refresh rate of 120 Hz. The rate then varies automatically between 60 and 120 Hz. It is possible to choose a rate of 60 Hz to put less strain on the battery.
Performance
The Honor 50 is equipped with the Snapdragon 778G coupled with 6/8 GB of RAM and 128/256 GB of storage, for this review, it’s the 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage (Emerald Green).
Photo
The mobile has a quadruple photosensor, including a wide-angle 108 Mpx whose lens opens at f / 1.9. It is accompanied by an 8 Mpx ultra-wide-angle module (f /2.2), but also macro and depth modules of 2 Mpx each (f / 2.4 optics).
Photo Samples
Front-end module, video
A 32 MP sensor with an open lens at f / 2.2 is available on the front. The rendering is good, but we expected more sharpness.
The module seems to have a little trouble managing the light peaks and the general hue seems a little pale. I would have liked a result a little more saturated – even if it is possible to retouch on the fly. In portrait mode, bokeh is well simulated on short hair but can be easily deceived in case of rebellious locks. The wider viewing angle, on the other hand, makes it easy to take group selfies.
Video Samples
The smartphone is able to shoot up to 4K at 30 fps, which has become normal in this sector. Once again, the white balance is not optimal. We could also expect better autofocus and stabilization. We, therefore, recommend the Full HD mode at 60 fps, much more pleasant to consult.
The Honor 50 took just 38 minutes to fully charge with the 66w charger that comes with the Honor 50, with about twenty minutes can recover about 60% of the battery.
Pros and Con’s
Pros
- Great OLED screen.
- Snapdragon 778G is still great.
- Really fast recharge.
- Convincing 108 Mpx mode.
Con’s
- Needs a better micro camera
- Mono speaker
TNC Score
4.0/5.0
Designed to meet the evolving tastes of today’s fashion-conscious crowd, the HONOR 50 goes beyond conventional colours and is available in a range of stunning options including Frost Crystal; with its dreamy diamond-like finish, HONOR Code; an innovative design incorporating the “HONOR” logo across the back cover, as well as Emerald Green colour and Midnight Black.
Starting from 12th November the HONOR 50 will be available in the UK from the following retailers: HiHonor.com, Currys, Argos, Amazon, AO.com, Very, JD Williams, Fonehouse and more. From 27th October to 11th November, the HONOR 50 will be available to pre-order
from the above retailers. During this period, those who pre-order the device will receive a free gift upon redemption.
The price of HONOR 50 starts from £449.99 for the 6GB/128GB RAM/ROM configuration and £529.99 for the 8GB/256GB RAM/ROM configuration.
