AT A GLANCE: HONOR 90 5G | Blink and You Miss It!


That anti-flicker is no joke!

This is the Honor 90 5G. A phone that establishes itself as revolutionary with its 3840Hz Hi-frequency PWM Dimming so it’s easier on the eyes. Another feature is the 200MP Camera. We saw this first when it was announced by Honor Europe and it took a while, but the Honor 70 finally has a replacement.

Before we proceed to the unboxing, check out the specs below!

SPECS:

  • 6.7″ 1.5K (2664x1200px) curved AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate, 3840Hz Hi-Frequency PWM Dimming
  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 Accelerated Edition (4nm)
  • CAMERAS:
    • 200MP (Primary), f/1.9, 1/1.4″, Samsung ISOCELL HP3, EIS, 4K@30fps video
    • 12MP (Ultrawide), f/2.2, 4cm macro
    • 2MP (Depth), f/2.4
    • FRONT: 50MP, f/2.4, 4K@30fps video
  • MagicOS 7.1 based on Android 13
  • 5000mAh, 66W HONOR SuperCharge
  • USB-C, Single bottom-firing speaker, Dual Nano-SIM Slot, In-display fingerprint scanner
  • 5G Services, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6/6e, Bluetooth 5.2, Dual-band Wi-Fi, E-SIM Support, NFC
  • Emerald Green, Diamond Silver, Midnight Black
  • PRICE:
    • 12/512: PHP 24,990

UNBOXING:

The Honor 90 came in a simplistic white box with the name of the phone all over it. Inside is pretty straightforward too. You got a clear silicone case, a user guide, the phone itself wrapped in plastic film, and a 66W HONOR SuperCharge USB-C cable and brick. We also found an interesting secret compartment that houses a 3.5mm dongle! The phone has no headphone jack but we weren’t expecting them to compensate us with a dongle because other companies don’t. That’s pretty thoughtful, Honor.

DESIGN

The Honor 90 that we got is the Emerald Green variant though it appears grey in images due to the bright lighting. The back panel and frames are both made of aluminium which gives it a luxurious and “high-end” look. We really love the texture of this back panel because it’s smooth and it isn’t a fingerprint magnet.

There are other colours available for this beauty including Diamond Silver (our favourite) and Midnight Black. The latter won’t go away anytime soon.

The camera humps are also arranged in a strangely slightly asymmetrical circular shape. However, we do like the arrangement here. The frames of this camera hump are also made of aluminium. The Honor 90 is what we call an ideal smartphone design because it is simple, yet beautiful. For a 200MP camera system though, the primary sensor looks small compared to other phones with 50MP or 108MP sensor.

The front curved AMOLED display is pretty large and wide. It reminds us of the “bezel-free” Wiko T50 so Tinno might have gotten involved with the design. This type of wide and expansive display is a signature of Honor, even when they were still part of Huawei so it’s nice of them retaining this feature.

The phone is pretty thin and we also found it slippery. Thankfully, there is an included case which isn’t very thick but also doesn’t feel cheap. It is enough to increase the phone’s grip.

Speaking of the aluminium panels, all of its buttons are concentrated on the right side with the left side completely empty. The top has almost nothing but a microphone, and the bottom is where everyone else resides. These include the Dual SIM Card Tray, USB-C port, and a single bottom-firing speaker. Having all the buttons on one side makes it easier for one to put a phone flat on its sides.

By the way, when we booted the phone, it immediately launched on the home screen with no setups whatsoever. We’ll discuss MagicOS 7.1 in detail in our full review but for now, all you gotta know is that it retains its DNA from EMUI, Huawei’s fork of Android and Honor’s former parent company.

We’re hoping that 200MP camera is worth bragging as well as the so-called “Hi-frequency 3840Hz” PWM Dimming OLED. Because right now, we love how the phone just looks so luxurious with its aluminum build and curved display. Though curved displays are aesthetically pleasing, they can be more fragile than flat AMOLEDs and that edged screen makes it more challenging to apply additional protection against drops.

Stay tuned fellow techies for the full review! We can’t wait to spoil you about that glorious display, camera, and even the overclocked version of the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 chipset!