A quad camera setup (with AI), Q-Mojis, a powerful new processor and James Reid.
Just four of the reasons why the Huawei Nova 3i has become a big hit even before it officially launched in the Philippines.
It’s been barely three months since Huawei shook up the flagship market with P20 Pro, the world’s first smartphone with a triple-rear camera setup, and now it seeks to further establish its name in the mid-range category with its new “Novastar.”
And judging from the early reviews, I do agree, the Nova 3i is one of the most polished mid-range phones that’s packed with flagship features.
As I’m writing this column, I’ve only had the phone for two days, but even if I’ve been used to the P20 Pro, I must admit, the Nova 3i is pretty impressive.
Here are 8 things that I instantly liked about the Nova 3i:
1.Quad cameras: The four camera setup has become a trademark of the Nova series and Huawei has given the Nova 3i a boost in megapixels with a 16MP + 2MP rear camera, and 24MP + 2MP front camera. The secondary camera sensors are there to give your shots that bokeh effect. The camera modes are robust and include Aperture, Portrait, PRO, HDR, Panorama, 3D Panorama, Artist Mode, Timelapse, Document scan as well as Video, Super Slo-mo (HD 720p 120fps and HD 720p 480fps) and AR LENS which I will discuss a more in a bit.
The Nova 3i has AI powered cameras which are capable of scene recognition much like Huawei’s Mate 10 and P20 phones. This feature can detect more than 500 different scenery such as the beach, sunset, food, blue sky, fireworks, stage performance etc., and will apply the appropriate customized enhancements to make your photos look even better.
2. QMoji and AR LENS- AR or augmented Reality stickers have become such a hit, I think it’s becoming the new mandatory beauty mode feature in a smartphone. The Nova 3i’s AR Lens provide not only stickers but also 3D Objects, as well as photo and video backgrounds. My favorite so far is the one with the “Kimi no Na wa” background music, although I don’t think I’d be able to use it because of those pink cat ears.
But the star of this feature is definitely the 3D Qmoji. Huawei’s version of Apple’s Animoji, QMoji allows you to choose from a chameleon, blow fish, wolf, cat, rabbit, robot, penguin or a cherry with headphones that mimics your face movements. It’s fun to use and don’t be surprised to hear video greetings via QMoji’s real soon.
3. Fingerprint and Face Unlock: The Nova 3i uses two biometric security features. Huawei arguably has the fastest fingerprint unlock and the Nova 3i is as fast as you’d expect. It uses the 24MP front camera for a pretty neat Face Unlock, which I like, because you have the option of either immediately unlocking your phone after it detects your face, or if you still need to “slide to open” to prevent accidentally unlocking your phone when you look at it.
4. FHD+ Display: The Nova 3i has a large 6.3-inch FullView Display 2.0 with a FHD+ resolution of 2340 x 1080 or equal to 409ppi. It does have the polarizing (but hideable) notch with a 19.5:9 aspect ratio and boasts an 81% screen-to-body ratio.
The display is bright and beautiful and you have several color mode and temperature options which you can further tweak depending on your preference. If you want to save power, you can switch to Smart resolution that automatically lowers the resolution to HD+ (1560 x 720).
5. Iris Purple: Just like the P20 Pro’s Twilight color, the Nova 3i has a similar color graidient called Iris Purple which is as eye-catching and makes it easily standout from all other smartphones. But there are safer color options like Classic Black and White as well.
6.Premium Build Quality: Color isn’t the only thing that makes the Nova 3i standout. The new design is a big improvement and the Nova 3i now looks more like the sibling of the P20. The Nova 3i’s build is more premium, sporting Huawei’s latest signature touch of an iridescent glass back that sparkles, and a glossy metallic frame that is very nice to hold.
7. All new Kirin 710: The Nova 3i is the first phone equipped with Huawei’s new generation Kirin chipset—the octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 710. It has an eight-core processor, two of them Cortex-A75 running at 2.2 GHz and two other Cortex-A53 at 1.7 GHz. Compared to Kirin 659, it said to be almost 40% faster in terms of performance based on benchmark tests.
The Nova 3i also comes with a whopping 128 GB storage, but there is still a micro SD card slot if you need even more storage. As for the OS, it ships with the latest Android Oreo 8.1, with Huawei EMUI 8.1.
8. Price Tag: Probably the best thing about the Nova 3i is its price! With an SRP of Php15,990, it makes the Huawei Nova 3i one, if not the the best bang-for-the-buck smartphone in its class. There is also a preorder promo from July 19 to 27 where you can get a M2 Bluetooth speaker for free!
Does it get even better with daily use? Wait for our full review in the next few weeks!
HUAWEI NOVA 3i SPECS
Display: 6.3 inches HUAWEI FullView Display 19.5：9 FHD+
2340 x 1080 pixels，409 PPI 16.7 million colors”
CPU Kirin 710 Octa-core（4 x Cortex A73 2.2 GHz + 4 x Cortex A53 1.7 GHz）”
GPU Mali-G51
Memory: 4 GB RAM + 64 GB ROM
4 GB RAM + 128 GB ROM
EMUI 8.2
Operating System Android 8.1
SIM Card: Single/Dual-SIM
Camera: Front: 24 MP +2 MP, F/2.0
Rear: 16 MP +2 MP, F/2.2
Autofocus (phase focus, contrast focus) AI photography 480 fps video recording
Connectivity: “Wifi 2.4 GHz, 802.11b/g/n,
BT4.2, BLE, HWA, aptX and aptX HD are supported
micro USB, USB 2.0
Headset Jack 3.5 mm”
Battery: 3340 mAh (typical value) 5 V/2 A charger
Color: “Black, Pearl White, Iris Purple
Weight: “Approx. 169 g (including the battery)
