News & Reviews:   Huawei Honor 6

Huawei recently made several important announcements at CES 2015. One of them was their partnership with the Omlet open social platform, which will be featured on upcoming Huawei devices. Some of the key features coming from this collaboration includes Share-First wich will enable users to take a photo and share it without first unlocking their device. Another feature will be Theme Share, allowing Huawei device owners to share their current customizations with friends. While no exact Malaysia release dates were mentioned the Omlet open social platform should start appearing in Huawei devices later in 2015. 

During the CES 2015 event, Huawei also kicked off their Hilink era which is a strategy to offer fully integrated mobile Internet solutions globally. The solution basically caters to the Internet of Things which through Huawei devices like the Huawei MediaPad X1 and TalkBand B1 allow access to connected smart devices such as an electric fan, sockets, remote control lighting and more. While no major device announcements were made, Huawei showcased all of their recent smartphones and devices including the Huawei Ascend Mate 7, Huawei Honor 6, Huawei Honor 6 Plus, Huawei Ascend P7,Huawei Ascend G7 and more.

The Huawei Honor 6 Plus made the headlines a few days back with its variable aperture dual rear camera setup. We have already added a few samples from the phone in our previous article and today, we have some more camera samples which are compared with Apple iPhone 6 camera samples. Variable aperture is made possible with the help of the advanced algorithms inside the Honor 6 Plus. Using the feed from both the 8MP rear cameras, the phone lets the user control aperture ranges from f/0.96 to f/16. In the camera menu, there is a slider which changes these aperture levels, even after the image has been captured. The two 8MP symmetrical cameras at the back along with the powerful 3IE algorithm make this all possible. The primary 8MP camera in the setup features auto-focus with f/2.0 aperture and the secondary 8MP has a fixed focus with f/2.4. The primary camera focuses on nearby objects and the secondary fixed-focus camera captures a flat image. With a combination of the two sensors, the Honor 6 Plus offers features such as variable aperture, depth of field and faster HDR. This also helps in better low light performance, which you'll clearly see in the pictures given below.

Huawei has recently released a number of smartphones for their Honor range of smartphones aimed at the young and young at heart. However, it seems that these Huawei Honor smartphones like the Huawei Honor 6, Huawei Honor 6 Plus and Huawei Honor 3C Lite are now going to become known as just the Honor 6, Honor 6 Plus and Honor 3C Lite. This news comes direct from a source in Huawei itself saying that the Honor range of smartphones have evolved enough to warrant them following an entirely new and different direction than Huawei's usual range of devices. This also includes a new UI all targeted along their Honor tagling "For the Brave". It also explains why most of the newer Honor smartphones don't have any Huawei logos or branding at all. According to our sources, this will also mean more new Honor smartphones in 2015, one of which we're hoping will be the Honor 4x so stay tuned for more developments. Huawei will continue making smartphones and mobile devices but target the higher-end market. Rumours also indicate that Huawei and Honor smartphone users could get the Emotion UI 3.0 update in Q2 of 2015.

Huawei announced the Huawei Honor 6 Plus smartphone with a dual rear camera setup on 16 December 2014. This is the world's first variable aperture smartphone without any add-on lenses and works quite differently from the HTC One M8 which also features a duo-camera. For the Honor 6 Plus there are two symmetrical 8MP camera sensors at the back which work together with a dedicated SLR-grade image signal processor (ISP) to achieve this. This unique setup also allows the phone to capture images in resolutions of up to 13MP. Huawei claims that the two 8MP cameras at the back works just like the human eye. The two lenses can focus on an object in just 0.1 seconds. The advanced 3IE algorithm in the device allows users to achieve a range of depths, from F0.95 to F16. Images captured especially at night benefit from the given two cameras. This is because, the amount of light reaching the lens and the sensors is twice than that of a single sensor, which contributes to better low light images. Huawei has released a number of samples taken from these dual rear cameras and they look very good, especially those taken in low light. We have added a few samples from the device down below. The company has not yet revealed details like Malaysia release dates or pricing for the Honor 6 Plus but the existing Honor 6 retails for around RM999 in Malaysia. 

A new variant of the Huawei Honor 4X was recently spotted on a retail website. This particular version will reportedly run on the company's new 64-bit octa core Kirin 620 processor. It will support 4G LTE networks. Other than the processor, the tech specs of the device are the same as the original Honor 4X. The phone comes with a 1280 x 720 pixel resolution display, 1GB (lower-end)/ 2GB (high-end) RAM options, 13MP rear camera and a 5MP front camera. It will come with Android 4.4 Kikat out of the box and a large 3000mAh capacity battery at the back. Judging from the pictures listed online, the Kirin 620 powered Honor 4X features the same flat design profile with round corners as the original Honor 4X. Apart from the traditional black and white colors, it is said that the phone will have a gold version too. According to the source, the 1GB version of the Honor 4X will retail for 799 Yuan (RM450) while the 2GB will cost 999 Yuan (RM562). Huawei is expected to release the new Honor 4X as well as the rumored Honor 6 Plus at a press event to be held on 16 December 2014.

Lenovo Malaysia has just revealed the release date and pricing of the upcoming Lenovo Vibe X2 smartphone. The company will launch the dual SIM variant of the device in Malaysia next week for a price tag of RM1199. The Vibe X2 smartphone is Lenovo's answer to Huawei's Honor 6 and Xiaomi's Mi4. It comes with a Mediatek MT6592 Octa Core processor clocked at 2.0GHz with 2GB RAM. The 32GB internal storage that comes with the device is non-expandable. You get a 5 inch screen up front with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and it is pretty compact too, measuring 140.2 x 68.6 x 7.3 mm. Unlike the smartphones these days which feature a Unibody design, Lenovo has taken a different route with its Vibe X2. The device has a unique three tone layered metal design which sets it apart from other phones in the market. But even with the extra layers, the device remains thin at 7.27mm. At the back, you have a 13MP camera, while up front you get a 5MP shooter. It runs on Android 4.4 Kikat with Vibe UI 2.0 on top and comes with a 2300mah battery. If you'd like to be there when it comes Lenovo are offering a chance to win 500 free invites for the Malaysia launch party of the Lenovo Vibe X2.  

U Mobile is currently offering the Huawei Honor 6 from as low as RM471. Granted, the retail pricing of the Honor 6 is just at RM999 but the addition of various U Mobile postpaid packages complete with voice and data makes this a pretty good deal. You can also trade-in your older smartphones for a rebate of up to RM750. You will have to sign up for a 24 month contract under the U58 and U88 postpaid plans but U Mobile are throwing in their no upfront payment option as well. To qualify for the no upfront payment offer you will have to sign up using the U88 plan, pay using a credit card and auto-debit the monthly payments. For more details, check out the table and links in this article.

Huawei Malaysia recently announced the availability of their Huawei Ascend G7 smartphone for Malaysia at authorized distributors and stores. The 5.5-inch phablet features 4G LTE connectivity, a 13MP rear camera and a metallic chassis much like the Huawei Honor 6. It will also come with the latest EMUI 3.0 Android user interface right out of the box. Check out the full list of Huawei Ascend G7 tech specs below:

• 1.2gHz quad-core Qualcomm MSM8916 processor
• 2GB RAM
• 16GB storage
• 5.5-inch display (INCELL, 1280 x 720 pixel resolution)
• 13MP rear camera (28mm wide-angle BSI lens) + 5MP front camera (wide-angle lens)
• Supports 4G LTE Cat4, WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth 4.0
• 153.5 x 77.3 x 7.6mm | 165g
• 3000 mAh battery
• Android 4.4 KitKat + Emotion UI 3.0

The ASUS PadFone series of smartphones feature smartphones capable enough to power a tablet dock and the new ASUS PadFone S could well be the best bang-for-your-buck PadFone of the bunch. Featuring water and shock resistance, 4G LTE, 4K and slow motion video recording the PadFone S is priced at a very affordable RM899. On top of that, it also has many more features and top-notch tech specs but for more details on that, do check out our full review of the ASUS PadFone S super smartphone in this article.

Huawei Malaysia has just revealed their Huawei Ascend Mate 7 smartphone for Malaysia from RM1799. First covered in early September 2014, the thin 6-inch phablet features an octa-core Huawei Kirin 925 processor, a 508PPI single-touch rear fingerprint sensor, 4G LTE Cat6 and more. The  fingerprint  sensor works in the rain or with wet fingers and can store up to 5 sets of fingerprints for various modes. The Ascend Mate 7 also offers a very solid metal body with more than 95% metal construction. It looks like Malaysia will be getting two versions with the 2GB RAM with 16GB storage version going for RM1799 while the 3GB RAM with 32GB storage version is going for RM1999. The premium version only comes in amber gold, while the normal version comes in silver and black. The standard version will be available from 14 November 2014 while the premium version is expected later in the year. Check out the full tech specs list for the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 below:

• 1.8GHZ octa-core Huawei Kirin 925 processor
• 2GB / 3GB RAM
• 16GB / 32GB storage
• 6-inch display (1920 x 1080 pixel resolution, 1500:1 contrast ratio)
• 13MP rear camera (Sony BSI sensor, f/2.0 aperture) + 5MP front camera
• 157 x 81 x 7.9mm | 185g
• features 508PPI single-touch rear fingerprint sensor, ARM TrustZone ultra low power saving mode,
• supports 4G LTE Cat6, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS,
• 4100 mAh battery
• Android 4.4 KitKat + Emotion UI 3.0