HONOR X9b 5G Review; Mid-Range Beast

INTRODUCTION:

It seems like HONOR is far from running out of surprises up their sleeves as it launched the new HONOR X9b 5G – cementing its back-to-back-to-back milestones in the smartphone scene.

HONOR X9b 5G Review; Mid-Range Beast

To recall, prior to the arrival of the HONOR X9b 5G, the brand made noise with its predecessor, the HONOR X9a 5G, and the HONOR 90 5G – both got sold out in a significant time and both are still the brand's top-selling devices to date.

Now, with the HONOR X9b 5G, the brand parades a fruitful effort of innovation, specifically in terms of beauty and durability. Get to know more about this new offering in this review.

DESIGN and BUILD:

Let's start with the strongest suit of the HONOR X9b 5G – its solid build. It's made possible through layers of protection equipped on the device that works to make drop impacts bearable for the smartphone, including the Single Point Reinforcement Protection, Deep Seal Protection, and Wraparound Cushioning.

Sunset Orange

The HONOR X9b 5G can definitely survive multiple accidental drops without acquiring even a slight bit of scratches and dents. But surely, there would come a time that a fall might cause damage to the device so it's still best to handle it with a tad of caution.

Initially, consumers are puzzled why HONOR opted not to add water- or dust resistance to the device, but the brand cleared that its latest offering is IP54-certified.

One of the major good things that come with the tough armor of the HONOR X9b 5G is that users can freely have the device without worrying about a case. And this is only fitting to flex the vegan leather rear cover of its Sunrise Orange variant.

While the shade of orange the HONOR X9b 5G carries can be too much of a hue for some, it's an excellent choice for those who would want a device that can also be a statement piece.

The vegan leather adds a premium touch and nice texture. It could be prone to smudges, yes, but nothing a quick swipe can't fix.

Another point of focus on the back design of the HONOR X9b 5G is its circular camera module. It appears similar to that of the HONOR X9a 5G, but for the former, HONOR leveled up the look by adding a touch of gold.

Surrounding the smartphone are curved corners and edges, promoting a unibody that's handy. Buttons are easy to reach, too, even with one-hand use. The right cheek of the device is for its power/lock and volume buttons.

Card Tray, Microphone, USB-C Port, Loudspeaker

At the top part of the HONOR X9b 5G is a noise-isolating microphone. Its primary microphone, alongside a USB-C port and loudspeaker, is on the bottom. There's also the SIM card tray that can house two nano SIM cards. Sadly, there's no room for a MicroSD card, meaning, there's no hardware support for storage expansion for the HONOR X9b 5G.

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DISPLAY:

It only makes sense for HONOR to also apply extra protection on the display of the HONOR X9b 5G, especially since it's the screen of a smartphone that absorbs more damage after suffering a fall. With the HONOR Ultra-Bounce Anti-Drop Display, you're assured that the screen can withstand multiple drops and still keep its panel intact.

AMOLED Curved Display

When it comes to display quality, the HONOR X9b 5G also delivers. Its 1.5k screen in all of its 6.78-inch glory gives off vibrant colors and sharp details, thanks to the presence of AMOLED.

The HONOR X9b 5G could have been prettier if its screen had thinner bezels, but it's a good move to have the display a bit curved on its sides as it somehow lessens the appearance of the blank black parts.

A notable thing about the display of the HONOR X9b 5G is its 1200nit brightness, allowing users to still see what's on the screen even when outdoors and under direct sunlight without a hassle.

Users' eye comfort is also prioritized on the HONOR X9b 5G, with HONOR's remarkable PWM dimming technology. This feature lessens screen flicker on the device for improved eye comfort. Additionally, there are other screen functions that help reduce fatigue and induce sleep, including Dynamic Dimming and the Circadian Night Display.

PERFORMANCE:

Tough even on the inside, the HONOR X9b 5G runs on an octa-core, 4nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 with an Adreno 710 GPU, 12GB of native RAM, 8GB of dynamic RAM, and 256GB of onboard storage.

With this set of specs, it's expected for the HONOR X9b 5G to handle multiple apps without a hiccup. Even when switching from one demanding app to another, the smartphone was able to perform smoothly.

Gaming is also a breeze with the HONOR X9b 5G, even with the graphics and sound settings set at a high quality.

For its skin, the HONOR X9b 5G has MagicOS 7.2 on top of Android 13. It comes with a plethora of convenient features including a customizable Always-On display, Fingerprint Unlock, and Face Recognition which allows phone unlocking even with a face mask on.

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CAMERA:

108MP Triple Camera

On paper, the HONOR X9b 5G has a 108-megapixel main camera. That's twice as much as what the HONOR X9a 5G carries. Plus, the HONOR X9b 5G has a 5-megapixel ultra-wide and 2-megapixel macro shooter. Up front, the device snaps selfies through a 16-megapixel sensor.

16MP Selfie Camera

In actual use, the primary 108MP camera brings sharp, clear, and not-so-saturated images – fortunately, even at night, especially with night mode. The ultrawide shooter also delivers, although we highly recommend turning on HDR. Portraits look good, too, with a soft blur to separate the subject and the background.

Check out some photos we took using the HONOR X9b 5G at our Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/TeknoGadyet/posts/pfbid02yQni87vVoZmFWGwv6cj4jAYnf4J5cs4qrRwLX1nQKbUKxE5dMPTYC5cGWpoH7VRol.

BATTERY:

The HONOR X9b 5G managed to conceal a massive 5,800mAh battery in its thin body. This juice is supported by a package-included 35W charger. We opted to use a different adapter for the device just so it'll charge faster than with the 35W one.

Power users will love the HONOR X9b 5G as this device can go for a full day of mid to heavy use, with a little bit of stamina left for the next day. Recharging it back to 100% battery will normally take you an hour and a half.

CONCLUSION:

Wrapping up beauty and brawn in one bold device, the HONOR X9b 5G sets the bar high early in the year in the mid-range smartphone scene. With a price tag of P16,999, it gives you what you paid for – and even more.

How much is the HONOR X9b 5G price in the Philippines?

The HONOR X9b 5G price in the Philippines is Php16,999.
HONOR X9b 5G on Lazada Philippines
HONOR X9b 5G on Shopee PH.

When will the HONOR X9b 5G be available in the Philippines?

The HONOR X9b 5G is now available in the Philippines.

Honor X9b 5G Specs Philippines:

Dual SIM, dual standby, supports 5G connectivity
6.78-inch 2K+ (2652 x 1220 pixels) AMOLED Curved Display, 120Hz refresh rate
Dimensions: 163.6mm x 75.5mm x 7.98mm
Weight: 185 grams
MagicaOS 7.2 based on Android 13
Octa-core (4x2.2GHz Cortex-A78 + 4x1.8GHz Cortex-A55) CPU, Adreno 710 GPU, Qualcomm SM6450 Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 4nm chipset
12GB RAM
256GB storage, non-expandable
108MP f/1.75 PDAF main + 5MP f/2.2 ultrawide + 2MP f/2.4 macro triple rear cameras, 4K video recording at 30fps
16MP f/2.45 front camera, 1080p video recording at 30fps
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band
Bluetooth v5.1
NFC
IR
USB 2.0 Type-C with OTG function
GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, Galileo
Multimedia Player
Sensors: fingerprint (optical, under display), light, proximity, accelerometer, gyroscope
Battery: 5,800mAh non-removable lithium-ion polymer, supports 35W fast wired charging
Colors: Sunset Orange, Emerald Green, Titanium Silver, Midnight Black
HONOR X9b 5G Price Philippines: Php16,999

HONOR X9b 5G Review; Mid-Range Beast