After unveiling the HONOR X9c 5G, which achieved a sold-out status in just three days after its official launch, HONOR Philippines will introduce its younger brother, the HONOR X9c Smart 5G.
The new HONOR X9c Smart 5G is a more budget-friendly alternative by the brand to cater a wider audience by offering another X9c series model with similar design elements, its durability features, and 5G connectivity but at a lower price point.
By doing this, HONOR will be able to target new users and allow them to experience the brand’s innovative features of its phones.
Price and Availability
The HONOR X9c Smart 5G is priced at PHP 13,999 and will be available exclusively online on Shopee. If you purchase it during Shopee’s 3.3 Brand Marathon, you can get the new HONOR X9c Smart 5G for a special price of PHP 10,799. It also comes with a free gift—the HONOR Camping Light.
So, let’s unbox and take a first look of the new HONOR X9c Smart 5G.
Unboxing
The HONOR X9c Smart 5G is packaged in a simple white box made from a thick cardboard type material.
The design is very minimalist with a few printed elements mostly found on the top cover of the box. You’ll quickly see a prominent image of the phone along with the model’s name, which is also displayed on the sides of the box.
As you open the box, the phone is the first thing that greets you. Beneath it, there is a separate carton box, and when you take it out, you’ll find another tray that holds the remaining accessories.
When we take everything out of the box, you will find the following items included inside:
- HONOR X9c Smart 5G Unit
- SIM Ejector Tool
- Clear Protective Case
- Quick Start Guide
- USB-A to USB-C Cable
- Power Adapter
A screen protector is already installed on the phone for added protection which saves you money and removing the need to buy one separately.
Design
The HONOR X9c Smart 5G has two color variants in Midnight Black our review unit and Ocean Cyan.
Compared to the HONOR X9c 5G, the new HONOR X9c Smart 5G gets a slight increase in its dimension and weight. It now measures 165.98mm in height and 75.8mm in width, while its much slimmer at 7.88mm thickness. The phone now weighs 193 grams, including the battery.
On the back panel, the first thing you’ll notice is the prominent circular camera module at the top center as it houses the dual cameras and LED flash which is a design similar to the HONOR X9b 5G.
The camera module has a thick black band with a silver ring that adds a stylish touch. It slightly protrudes preventing the phone from lying completely flat on a surface. However, using the protective case makes the back perfectly level.
The back panel is durable plastic with a smooth, matte, slightly shimmering finish that resists fingerprints and smudges.
The phone’s nicely rounded corner edges and a matte metallic-looking frame enhance its appearance, while the whole frame itself is made of durable plastic material.
For its ports and buttons, the right-side edge holds the power/sleep button with an integrated fingerprint scanner and volume rockers both accessible for one-handed use.
The left side edge remains clean.
The top edge houses an additional microphone for noise cancellation during calls.
At the bottom, there’s a USB Type-C port for charging and data transfer, a SIM card tray that supports dual nano-SIMs, and the speaker grille. The phone lacks a 3.5mm audio port for your wired headphones.
On the front, the large display has thin bezels all around, except for the slightly raised bezels at the bottom chin. The front camera has a punch-hole design centered on the top of the screen, though it appears slightly larger than those on other phones we’ve seen.
Hardware and Software
The HONOR X9c Smart 5G has good set of chipset with an octa-core processor using a MediaTek Dimensity 7025-Ultra, 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.
It has a battery capacity of 5800mAh with support for a fast charging technology at 35 watts to quickly get it back to full charge.
The software is using the latest MagicOS 8.0 which is based on Android 14.
Camera
I liked how HONOR did not make any changes to its camera, allowing users to experience the same image quality as the HONOR X9c 5G.
You get a 108MP main camera, a 5MP wide-angle camera, and a 16MP front camera.
Initial Thoughts
Based on its specifications, the new HONOR X9c Smart 5G closely resembles the HONOR X9c 5G in terms of durability features and cameras, but there are slight differences in dimensions, chipset, battery, and display.
We like how the phone feels as it is still lightweight and easy to operate with one hand. The design does resembles the successful HONOR X9b 5G model, especially the back panel, with a few tweaks.
The HONOR X9c Smart 5G is good for users who want a durable phone with performance similar to the HONOR X9c 5G but at a more affordable price. It becomes even more exciting on March 3, when it will be exclusively available on Shopee for a special price of PHP 10,799.
We will keep you updated with our full review of the HONOR X9c Smart 5G in a few weeks, so stay tuned!
