Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsLovely phone
Reviewed in the United States on October 4, 2017
The Honor 8 feels like a top-of-the-line phone at half the price (or a third, if you count a certain infamous new flagship phone). Where did they cut corners? I mean they had to cut some corners, right? Actually, it doesn't feel like they did. This is a very solid offering that makes it hard to justify paying any more.
First things you'll notice:
Gorgeous phone. The light diffraction pattern on the back is gorgeous and has to be seen to be believed- tell people you only spent money on a budget phone and they'll be left scratching their heads. It's a gorgeous little phone, replete with features to make it feel nice. The vibration in particular is a star- it's been a long time since I had a phone that felt this good. The screen is also quite gorgeous, and was a definite upgrade from my old MotoG.
Slippery as snot. This phone is 100% Gorilla Glass front and back. That means if you put it on any surface with a tilt, such as the arm of a couch, it's going to leap off toward the floor. Fret not, for unless you're standing on the third floor and chucking the phone at concrete Gorilla Glass is tough stuff. I'd recommend a clear TPU case if you want some slip protection, although it's a shame to cover up that back plate.
USB-C and a headphone jack. Some competitors can't manage both.
Great sound. Okay it's only one mobile speaker so it's not perfect and it does distort a little at high volume, but this is absolutely the best sound quality you could expect for a single speaker phone. It's done well.
Weird extra bits. Huawei ships the phone with their own launcher, which means when you boot up the phone you'll see a weird affair that doesn't match stock Android. If you don't like what you see, install something like the Google Now launcher and the phone will instantly feel a lot closer to stock. There are other oddities in the manual, such as the ability to take a screenshot by rapping the screen twice with your knuckle. It's a weird inclusion, and the standard Android equivalent is still there (volume down + power to screenshot) but I'm finding myself using the gestures from time to time.
And more! This is one of the cheapest phones to still include NFC (necessary for Android Pay). The phone currently runs Android 7 (fairly up-to-date). Did I mention the fingerprint scanner? It's lightning-fast and accurate.
Pros:
Amazing value. You get a phone that does pretty much everything the flagship phones do, at half the price. I love it.
Sleek experience. Great screen, great vibration, beautiful phone, with all the ports.
All the features. Fingerprint scanner, NFC, gestures, USB-C, and a headphone jack.
Cons:
Battery life when being used continually is borderline low. If I'm reading a book or gaming with the screen continually on I can see a 30% drop in a few hours, which feels a bit paltry. However, the standby power is a different story. If the phone is just doing normal quick texting and calls, the battery feels huge. I think this is due to Huawei doing their own in-house processors, which are suited more to the Chinese market. Apparently they expect their customers to have a charge cable handy when they're gaming, and to use the phone mainly in bursts throughout the day. That makes sense, it's just different, so it won't be for everyone.
As many people report the phone is quick to heat up under heavy use- this may actually be a pro because the glass back does a good job wicking heat away from the internals. Your phone is paradoxically cooler inside, because the heat is coming out faster. In theory, this means that although the phone can get hot, it'll run harder for longer before having to throttle back due to heat. Again, it's just a little different.
The stock UI and bloatware that Huawei puts on this phone is dumb. If you were getting this phone for grandma, I'd install the Google Now launcher and disable some of the stock apps that keeps asking for attention. More manufacturers just need to use stock Android, and quit packaging this bloat. Ten minutes of installing and disabling, and any user will be able to customize the phone to their liking.
Overall:
Loving it. I spent half as much as a flagship phone, and I can do everything they do. Sure the phone slides off my couch all the time (I have a silicone case coming in), and the battery is a little short (I have USB-C cables coming in), but overall it's a lovely experience. Highly recommended, especially if like me you mostly only use the phone in bursts, like reading or gaming a few times a day.
