Out of all the upgrades that devices have undergone over the years, none has been as monumental as HONOR’s smartphone. Ever since it began operating in 2013, the brand has silently been the popular choice in the smartphone category. It is one brand that has refrained from loud advertising and has focused, instead, on technological innovations.
In 2015, it became the leading global smartphone e-brand, recording 6 billion USD in sales revenue. In 2016, it launched the HONOR Magic, which was the world’s first smartphone with an AI camera. Its 2018 enhancement to smartphone photography was the 48-megapixel rear camera in the HONOR View20, which has become the industry mainstay for almost all new smartphone releases.
The innovation has not stopped there. In 2018, HONOR launched multiple innovations in the aspects of photography, graphics processing, cooling and the central processing unit of their phones. Here’s a look at all of them:
1.Kirin 980 chipset: The Kirin 980 is a chipset that is a ‘world’s first’ in many aspects: A 7 nm process SoC, Cortex-A76 architecture and a dual NPU design. But, how does this impact your phone’s performance? It allows you to swiftly scan through your mails, apps, among other items. It also enables you to play games without experiencing any delay. All this is because the chipset helps achieve a 75% improvement in CPU performance, 46% in GPU performance, and 226% in NPU performance. The efficiency levels also increase by 58%, 178% and 182%, respectively. Not only this; the chipset scores very high for its AI processing capabilities— it has helped HONOR in becoming a market leader in AI-enabled photography, videography and gaming. Imagine being in a crucial game play in PUBG, inching closer to that virtual chicken dinner and your phone suddenly freezes—that’s when this chipset will help you hunt down your frustration along with the enemies.
2.Next-level AI photography: If you are a shutterbug, then there’s every reason as to why you should check out an HONOR smartphone. Last year, the brand introduced an AI-powered camera technology that can recognize 60 categories of objects and 1,500 scenarios! In the process, you get pictures that make you feel like a professional photographer. Whether you are taking images of your food, friends, or pets, a smartphone of this kind can make everything look instantly better. HONOR was not only the first to introduce AI in smartphone cameras, but has also consistently introduced camera-first innovations such as the first 48MP camera in HONOR View 20 and the dedicated 2MP macro lens in HONOR’ latest flagship duo HONOR 20 and HONOR 20 Pro have been the highlight of the camera prowess of HONOR 20 series. It allows you to take close up shots from a distance of 4cm – well, it’s time to take up that chance at food photography. With HONOR View 20, HONOR had introduced Time Of Flight (TOF) 3D cameras. It is a camera technology which can measure distance. The camera will emit infrared, and then measure the 3D information of an object based on the time of the reflecting back of the infrared, producing superior-quality images.
3.GPU Turbo: A great graphics processor unit in a smartphone is essential, given the high level of graphics that games have today. A good GPU also makes video content look much better. In the Turbo, the graphics processing acceleration technology helps improve graphics processing efficiency by 60%, whilst reducing energy consumption by 30%. GPU Turbo also allows you to play games at a full frame rate, which means that you will not experience any lag. It is pertinent to mention here that HONOR’s GPU Turbo was given high praise at the IFA 2018. GPU Turbo which was introduced in India with HONOR play was a great step forward in ensuring a seamless gaming and experience, and now the latest HONOR 20 Pro and HONOR 20 feature a much powerful GPU Turbo 3.0 version. This will ensure the gamers have a rich and lag-free experience while playing their favorite games.
4.Graphene Cooling Sheet and Liquid Cooling technology: Nothing is more off-putting than an overheated smartphone. With HONOR phones, however, this is never a problem. The brand has introduced the Graphene Cooling Sheet technology, which can efficiently reduce a phone’s operation temperature and ensure stable CPU performance. Graphene possesses a higher level of thermal conductivity than other materials – 1.5 times better than copper and 1.3 times better than graphite flake. HONOR’s use of graphene for thermal solutions is further helped by its use of liquid cooling technology. This is called so because it has a 9-layered liquid cooling thermal control technology and 3D heat dissipation that help reduce CPU temperatures. To think about it, NINE technology offers up to 41% increase in heat dissipation! This ensures that you can use your phone for hours, without the worry of it getting overheated. Rising temperatures of smartphones have always been a worrisome issue, especially when each passing day the smartphone use by an individual is just on the rise, further worsened by the hot Indian weather. HONOR has brilliantly taken charge of the situation using advanced Liquid cooling technology to keep the temperatures of their device to minimal.
5.Design innovation: HONOR was the first brand to introduce the punch-hole display in smartphones and has pioneered this technology ever since. The punch-hole display has become an industry trend today, and HONOR continues to advance this technology with its latest HONOR 20 series. Similarly, HONOR’s color-changing back designs have always caught the fancy of users and reviewers alike ever since they introduced the first glass back colorful design in HONOR 8, which also set the trend for the blue color in smartphones. Lauded for its design innovation, HONOR 10 earned the title of EISA (European Imaging and Sound Association) Lifestyle Smartphone of the Year 2018-2019. It was praised as ‘a perfect fit for even the most demanding young user’. The new dynamic holographic back design in the recently launched HONOR 20 Pro and HONOR 20 carries forward the design legacy of HONOR, and we can certainly expect to see more such innovations from the brand in the future. Its intricate camera placements led to the world’s first punch-hole display. While the market is flooded with smartphones, the innovative colors and design of HONOR smartphones will definitely help you stand out in your group of friends.
6.Dual-Frequency GPS: Heading for a meeting, but not sure where the place is located? Fret not. HONOR’s smartphones leverage L1&L5 dual frequency simultaneously, which allows you to easily find the destination. You can even locate buildings on highway interchanges or in city centres that are surrounded by skyscrapers. Ever heard of news stories where a driver falls into a pit while navigating? Well, all that’s in the past now and with dual frequency GPS, you don’t have to struggle while finding your destination. HONOR’s smartphones also have Triple Wi-Fi Antenna. Gamers often have a common issue of losing network strength while holding the device during gaming, as they tend to cover the antennas. It is called “Dead holding” to solve this problem; a new technology was introduced in Honor View 20 – Triple-Antenna Wi-Fi. Triple-Antenna Wi-Fi technology prevents the signal from weakening when a users’ hands cover the receiver. It monitors if users cover the antennas, and intelligently switches to the third antenna. It is an important technology to support gaming!
HONOR has established itself as a youth-centric brand that focuses first on making an advanced smartphone. User experience drives innovation. Innovation drives technological advancement, and it is clear that the fittingly named HONOR has placed the user’s experience at the core of its technological advancements. As a result, it has silently become one of the top 5 smartphone brands of the world
Prasanta Patnaik