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Honor 9A: Redefining The “Ultra-Budget” Android Phone

With Android 10 at its core and a 5000mAh battery, the Honor 9A could well become one of 2020’s best budget Android phone options…


Honor will return in 2020 with the Honor 9A, a brand new “ultra-budget” Android phone that is poised to get a release date in July. The Honor 9A will retail for £149, making it one of the cheapest Android 10 phones around.

Obviously, with a price this low, there are caveats – the display is a 6.3in 720p panel and it runs on MediaTek’s MT6762R with 3GB of RAM. However, it does feature a triple-lens camera and possesses a truly massive battery (5000mAh).

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The other BIG caveat to do with this phone concerns Google Play. Thanks to Huawei’s on-going issues with the US government, the Honor 9A does not run Google Play or any core Google apps. Instead, you’ll have to use the Huawei App Gallery.

This isn’t great, of course, but Huawei has made a lot of progress with its App Gallery, adding in a ton of applications, games, and content. It’s no Google Play alternative, but it is getting better – and this is the key takeaway here.

Here’s a breakdown of the Honor 9A’s full specs:

  • Display: 6.3in 720p
  • CPU: MediaTek MT6762R
  • Memory: 3GB of RAM
  • Storage: 64GB
  • OS: Android 10
  • SD-Support: Yes; Up To 512GB
  • Camera (Rear): 13 MP, f/1.8, main camera, 5 MP, f/2.2, ultrawide and 2 MP, f/2.4 depth sensor
  • Camera (Front): 8MP

Things To Keep In Mind…

  • There’s no 5G
  • The handset DOES NOT run Google Play
  • The display is 720p
  • The camera cannot record 4K; instead, it does 1080p @ 30/fps

Honor 9A Price & Release Date

As we noted in the intro to this post, the Honor 9A will be available sometime in July and it’ll retail for £149 – or thereabouts. In order to sweeten the deal, Honor has included a bunch of exclusive in-app credits for users that buy the Honor 9a.

If you buy this phone, you’ll get Mobile Royale (€50 in-game credit), Lords Mobile (€50 in-game credit), and Rise of Kingdoms (€20 welcome gift pack). Not too shabby, right?

If you’re after big value for money, the Honor 9A seems like a great option for those looking for Android 10 but do not want to spend hardly any money. Sure, there are caveats, the Google Play issue being the biggest, but there’s still quite a lot to like about this phone. It has a triple-lens camera and a very large battery, as well as SD-support. And these are ALL good things.

Richard Goodwin

Richard Goodwin is a leading UK technology journalist with a focus on consumer tech trends and data security. Renowned for his insightful analysis, Richard has contributed to Sky News, BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 2, and CNBC, making complex tech issues accessible to a broad audience.

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