Huawei recently revealed its Honor 6 (Full Review) in India, before heading to Europe for a very competitive price of 19,999 INR. The smartphone boats of enough merit to take on major flagship phones of 2014. So here we pitch it against some major flagship phones of 2014 which we have had the chance to spend some quality time with.
Hardware Comparison
| Model | Samsung Galaxy S5 | Huawei Honor 6 | Moto X (2nd Gen) | Sony Xperia Z2 | HTC One M8 |
| Display | 5.1 inch FHD Display | 5 Inch , Full HD | 5.2 inch FHD display | 5.2 inch FHD display | 5 inch FHD display |
| Processor | 2.5 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 | 1.7 GHz 4 cortex A15 + 1.3 GHz 4 Cortex A7) | 2.5 GHz Quadcore Core Snapdragon 801 | 2.3 Ghz Quadcore | 2.5 Ghz Quadcore Core Snapdragon 801 |
| RAM | 2 GB | 3 GB | 2 GB | 3 GB | 2 GB |
| Internal Storage | 16 GB | 16 GB, Expandable by another 64 GB | 16 GB | 16 GB | 16 GB |
| OS | Android 4.4.2 (KitKat) | Android Kitkat with Emotion UI | Android 4.4.4 (KitKat) | Android 4.4 (KitKat) | Android 4.4 (KitKat) |
| Camera | 16 MP/ 2 MP | 13 MP/ 5 MP | 13 MP/2 MP | 20.7 MP/ 2.2 MP | Ultra pixel Duo Camera / 5 MP |
| Battery | 2800 mAh | 3000 mAh | 2300 mAh | 3200 mAh | 2600 mAh |
| Price | Rs. 37,200 /- | 19,999 INR | Rs. 31,999 /- | Rs. 38,198 /- | Rs. 40,699 |
Display and Processor
The display is the major highlight of Huawei Honor 6. It is a dazzling 5 Inch Full HD JDI IPS LCD display as good as any other flagship display that we have seen this year. On the other hand other competitors in our list offer the same resolution on almost the same display size. Samsung Galaxy S5 and Moto X feature AMOLED displays with deeper blacks but with the familiar blue AMOLED tint.
Huawei Honor 6 is powered by Huawei’s own Octa core Kirin 920 SoC based on big little architecture with 4 cortex A7 cores clocked at 1.3 GHz and other 4 cortex A15 cores clocked at 1.7 GHz. The chipset is assisted by Mali T628MP4 clocked in at 600MHz and 3 GB RAM.
Compared to other flagship phones with Snapdragon 801 quad core clocked at 2.5 GHz and 2.3 GHz, Huawei’s Krin 920 shows no lag with respect to day to day usage, however there are some frame drops while intensive gaming, hinting at slightly lower GPU performance.
Camera and Internal Storage
Huawei Honor 6 features a 13 MP Sony BSI 4th gen sensor at the rear side with dual LED flash which can record 1080p full HD videos. There is no option for 4K video recording, but that shouldn’t be a deal breaker if you don’t own a 4K TV.
Camera is one of the most crucial flagship feature, big brands just can’t afford to screw. Samsung Galaxy S5 has an excellent 16 MP shooter with faster focus and support for up to 4K recording. Sony Xperia Z2 on the other hand features a 20.7 MP shooter which is a decent performer. Moto X 2nd Generation shows a lot of improvement from its predecessor, while HTC One M8 gives better low light performance with its 4 MP ultra pixel shooter.
Huawei Honor 6 doesn’t excel in imaging department, but is no slouch either. Both the front 5 MP selfie camera and the rear 13 MP shooter won’t disappoint you.
Internal storage is 16 GB and since there is MicroSD card slot for further expansion to 64 GB and this makes it suitable for all kinds of users.
Battery and Other Features
Huawei Honor 6 comes with a massive 3100 mAh battery, which gives more than one day backup with moderate to heavy usage. This is more than what most flagship phones offer, and Huawei Honor 6 is also marginally ahead in terms of backup when compared to Moto X, HTC One M8 and Xperia Z2 based on our usage.
Honor 6 comes with Android 4.4 KitKat with Emotion UI on top. Emotion UI comes with too many customization options, which isn’t in line with our taste. We like the battery saver mode and flatter looks. How much you like it will depend on your personal taste. This isn’t a major issue as you can always download custom launcher of your choice.
Other competitors in this respect have similar customized UI of which we like HTC Sense UI most, but that’s more a matter of personal choice. Other manufacturers have confirmed Android 5.0 Lollipop on their devices as well.
Conclusion
Huawei Honor 6 doesn’t excel in every filed and yes some compromises have been made. It is not the best looking device either, but it costs half the price of other contenders in this list and that in itself means a lot. Huawei Honor 6 is fighting in a different league but packs enough punch to take on high end Android flagship phones of 2014. This makes it one of the best mid range devices we have come across this year.
