The Honor 50 and Honor 50 Lite are the company’s first devices post-Huawei. If you’re not aware, the Honor brand was previously owned by Huawei, the Chinese company that was blacklisted by Trump’s administration in the US. The previous Honor devices didn’t have access to Google Mobile Services, so they never found footing outside China.

As such, Honor 50 and Honor 50 Lite are the company’s first post-Huawei devices, and they’re also the first to launch in Europe with Google Mobile Services support, including YouTube, Google Maps, and Gmail. The Honor 50 and Honor 50 Lite are currently priced at £249.99 and £449.99 at Currys, respectively (check online for the latest pricing and contract deals), so they’re clearly targeting the mid-to-high-end market.

But are the Honor 50 and Honor 50 lite worth it? That’s what we answer below as we explore all of their essential features and specifications.

Specifications

Honor 50 (£449.99)

  • Dimensions: 159.96mm × 73.76mm × 7.78mm
  • Weight: 175g
  • Display: 6.57in FHD+ 120Hz OLED
  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
  • RAM: 6/8GB RAM
  • Storage: 128/256GB
  • Rear Cameras:
    • 108MP, f/1.9 (primary)
    • 8MP, f/2.2 (ultrawide)
    • 2MP, f/2.4 (macro)
    • 2MP (depth sensor)

  • Front Camera: 32MP, f/2.2
  • Battery: 4300mAh

Honor 50 Lite (£249.99)

  • Dimensions: 161.8mm × 74.7mm × 8.5mm
  • Weight: 192g
  • Display: 6.67in FHD+ 120Hz OLED
  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
  • RAM: 6GB RAM
  • Storage: 128GB
  • Rear Cameras:
    • 108MP, f/1.9 (primary)
    • 8MP, f/2.4 (ultrawide)
    • 2MP, f/2.4 (macro)
    • 2MP (depth sensor)

  • Front Camera: 16MP, f/2.0
  • Battery: 4300mAh

Design

The Honor 50 is an extremely attractive, sleek, and modern device that’s sure to catch your eye. It features a reflective rear panel available in numerous styles and colors, including Midnight Black, Emerald Green, and Frost Crystal.

The phone is extremely light, weighing less than 175 grams. It also features an extremely curved display screen with a width of only 74mm, making it extremely easy to hold in your palm. Furthermore, the display is rounded and seems to bleed into the corners, giving it an infinite appearance. Furthermore, the rear cameras are arranged in two large circles, the first featuring the primary camera and the second featuring the three smaller lenses. It looks brilliant.

Cameras

The Honor 50 features four rear cameras and one selfie camera. The rear cameras include a 108MP primary camera, an 8MP wide-angle camera, a 2MP macro camera, and a 2MP depth camera. The 32MP front-facing camera boasts a 90-degree viewing angle, making it perfect for selfies. Thanks to the abundance of powerful cameras, Honor 50 and Honor 50 Lite are ideal for content creators, videographers, and bloggers.

Besides the sharp image and quality, the Honor 5- boasts automatic dual-video recording. Thanks to this feature, you can simultaneously take pictures or videos with your front and rear cameras and then overlay one over the other. You can also place them side-by-side. This allows you to capture real-time reactions with the videos of the targeted events, so there’s no need for complex editing and processing.

Software

The Honor 50 and Honor 50 Lite come with Google Mobile Services, including Messages, Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Play Store. As such, using the Honor phones is the same as using other Android smartphones. Honor’s MagicUI 4.2 is installed against Android 11, so it will feel familiar to most users. Furthermore, the always-on display allows you to video all the important information directly from the screen even when the phone is asleep. 

Performance

The Honor 50 is equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G processor with 6GB. The performance is comparable to all other flagship devices, allowing you to scroll through social media, browse the internet, and access power-intensive apps seamlessly.

Battery

The Honor 50 and Honor 50 Lite features a 4,300mAh battery, which is perfect since the Snapdragon 778G and MagicUI don’t consume too much power; the device can handily last through a complete day with moderate use. Furthermore, the 66W SuperCharge allows you to charge the device to 70% within 20 minutes (on both the Honor 50 and 50 Lite), so you don’t have to worry about running out of juice. As such, the battery and charging capabilities are excellent.

Are they worth it?

The Honor 50 is priced at £449.99, and the Honor 50 Lite is priced at £249.99, placing them in the same price range as other mid-range smartphones. However, in terms of performance, cameras, and battery, these Honor products can compete with the very best devices available.

You can grab the Honor 50 from Currys right now to get quick delivery and take advantage of all the benefits we've touched on above, so don't hang about!