Huawei’s Y9 Prime 2019.
Such a strange name (especially the ‘2019’ at the end).
The device itself is everything but strange. For what it is worth, one can describe it as something special.
Launched in June of 2019, the Huawei Y9 Prime 2019 can best be described as a mid-range smartphone that packs a few surprises for a very fair price. At 1,299 cedis ($238), the device feels like a premium gadget in one’s hands and performs close to one as well. My review device was Emerald Green but the device comes in two other colours with equally catchy names; Midnight Black and Sapphire Blue.
Likes
Pop Up Camera
There was a generally positive consensus about the 16MP pop-up selfie camera, the first of its kind to be officially launched in Ghana. When I showed it to colleagues in the office, it was a general chorus of ‘wow’, ‘really’, ‘that’s nice’. The camera is completely invisible with regular usage as it is hidden in the body of the phone. However, it pops up once the front camera is activated. It does not take more than 1.5 seconds to complete the action.
Huawei says the camera can be raised and retracted 100,000 times. In simpler language, you may start the front camera 100 times a day for the next 2.7 years without any defects. For the clumsy ones out there, the front camera comes with a really cool feature which allows it to retract automatically when the phone detects free falls. My tests reveal this works.
The camera will retract as much as possible. The caveats, however, are that the effect of the fall is dependent on the height from which the phone falls and also the surface on which it is falling.
The Ultra Full-view display
The ‘ultra’ bit of the full-view display is as a result of the ‘notch-less’, ‘bezel-less’ ‘hole-less’ nature of the screen.
This is made possible by the pop-up camera, obviously. As has been the case with other devices sacrificing the sensors on the front of the phone to achieve a bezel-less look, Huawei took this to another level. Perhaps it is why I cannot find any facial recognition security feature built into the phone.
The screen is really good. Watching movies on it is a great experience. You almost wonder where the camera is at some points, force of habit I guess. The downside for this truly brilliant screen (accompanied by its 16.7 million colour gradients, 2340×1080 resolution, eye comfort mode) is that, any flaws in the photos taken are easily recognisable.
I will get into that in a bit.
The Battery
This, for me, is the best part of the Huawei Y9 Prime 2019. 4,000 mAh of battery power is something to experience. Think, for a minute, about the capacity of your power bank.
Then take a look at the capacity of your power bank to be sure. Now try to appreciate what 4,000 mAh means for your battery nightmares.
On paper, Huawei says the phone can run continuously for 14 hours on 4G connection, engage in 52 hours of non-stop calls and play music non-stop for 65 hours. All this is, of course, dependent on screen brightness, audio volume and network connection status.
After using the device for two weeks with 4G connection, constant Wi-Fi, Instagram and Twitter heavy usage, watching 2.5 movies and downloading countless updates, the phone takes me through two working days, easy.
Cameras
There are four cameras on this device. Three in the back sitting comfortably next to the fingerprint reader and the pop-up camera.
There is a 16 MP with f/1.8 (works well in low light situations), an 8MP camera with a 120-degree field of view (also known as the ultra-wide camera) and finally a 2MP that generates a depth of field in photos.
There are three cameras combined in the night mode to give you some really remarkable pictures regardless of the amount of light available. The learnings from the monumental P30 Pro have been imported successfully into this device.
The Artificial Intelligence (AI) baked into the camera works fairly well by recognising a number of scenarios such as blue skies and greenery and adjusting the settings to give you the best shots. It often casts way too much light into a shot.
The Adaptive AI Beauty feature smoothens skins, removes acne, facial contouring and more.
This feature needs work.
Storage and other Pointers
The device comes packed with 128GB of storage space which is more than enough for the average person saving photos and pictures and everything else in between. I currently have over 1,000 songs, four movies and quite a number of photos shot in RAW on it. I have not even crossed the 20% storage capacity mark.
The device is very responsive and quick. This could be the speed and make of the chipset but could also be from the fact that I have not stuffed the device with content. Regardless, it’s fast enough to get all my work done.
For security, you are offered the option of the fingerprint and password; two of the most reliable options anywhere.
The new navigation options will grow on you. It takes a while to get used to them. They are found in settings>system on the device.
The speaker is loud. Please note that the speaker is loud.
Dislikes
The Adaptive AI Beauty feature often adds some blur to the photos which affect the quality of the images at almost every turn. It can be quite disconcerting and frustrating. The way around it is to be putting the AI feature off often.
The font in the camera section should change. It’s hard to understand why the rest of the device could have such great font and sizes and yet the camera section could be this blah! Someone at Huawei surely forgot to update something because it doesn’t add up.
Conclusion
A truly impressive device considering the price. There is a lot to like, and very little to hate. If you are looking for all the bells and whistles, invest in something else. If you need a mobile device that fits a budget but still turns heads, this is the device for you.