The Huawei P30 Pro captured all the headlines this year with its high-end quad-camera. But at £899 it wasn’t affordable for everyone. The Nova 5T is Huawei’s attempt to obtain a foothold in the middle of the smartphone market too.
Ironically, the premium model P30 famously launched without access to Google’s services, and yet the Nova 5T offers flagships specs with Google’s apps and all for under £400.
Huawei Nova 5T has a whopping 6.26″ LCD with a 1080×2340 pixel resolution and the Kirin 980 chipset. Throw in a 48 MP Camera along with 6GB RAM, and you have the perfect mid-range smartphone that is perfect for avid photographers. It not only displays this file type on screen but also enables you to take a raw photograph. Not to mention a dedicated macro lens too.
Although the 3750 mAh battery falls just short of the standard 4,000 mAh, it should be more than enough to get you through the day with medium to heavy usage. If you do need a cheeky top-up charge, it only takes 30 minutes to fully charge the device with its super-fast charging features. The Huawei Nova 5T is a rare breed that looks great and has the hardware to back it up with a mouthwatering price to boot.
Hardware specs
- OS: Android 9.0 Pie
- Processor: Snapdragon 670
- Screen: 7.2 inches
- Resolution: 1080 x 2160 pixels
- RAM: 8GB
- Internal storage: 256GB
- External memory: microSD up to 256GB
- Water resistance: IP53 dust and splash-proof
- Rear camera: 40MP + 8MP + 20MP
- Front camera: 24MP
- Video: 4K @ 30fps
- Battery: 4,200mAh
- Connectivity: 5G, WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, USB Type-C
- Cellular speed: 60Mbps
- Dimensions: 174.6 x 85.4 x 8.4mm
- Weight: 233g
After a week playing with a review sample of the Nova 5T, I was particularly impressed with the inclusion of high-end features such as the extensive quad-camera that makes it easy to capture some amazing photographs at a low price range. The speedy processor also makes handling graphics-intensive gaming or multitasking a breeze too.
What are the negatives? Audio quality, particularly when making phone calls, is far from perfect if you are used to smartphones on the higher end of the market. But when spending £600 less on a smartphone, you will need to make a few sacrifices.
Wireless charging, a lack of expandable storage, IP-rated waterproofing, OLED display, and headphone port (unlike the P30 and P30 Mate) are other areas that only you can decide if you can live without or not. But make no mistake. It’s a very affordable all-rounder with specs and performance that are more than enough for the average user.
For under £400, you certainly get more bang for your buck. The Nova 5T joins a list of affordable smartphones such as the Xiaomi Mi 9, and Google Pixel 3a that provide flagship-grade features at an affordable price.
The bigger question for most people reading this is, can you really justify spending over £1,000 for a smartphone with so many great alternatives?
