Huawei Mobile Kenya has the Y7 Prime 2019, its latest budget smartphone, up for pre-order in the country and set to go on sale from February 8th across Kenya.
Exciting as the prospect of buying a feature-packed sub-Kshs 20,000 smartphone may be, the path to making such a decision is not exactly easy. Why? Well, because as Kenyans, we are spoilt for choice. While there are several new devices entering the market every now and then that crowd the space, there’s also yesteryear favourites from the upper Kshs 20,000-25,000 segment that, thanks to time, find themselves competing for attention with the shiniest new devices of the day.
All that is good. More choices have never been a problem. Fewer are. As such, how does the budget Huawei smartphone fair when pitted against some notable smartphones released under a year ago?
As far as the out-of-the-box specifications go, this is how the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019 compares to the Samsung Galaxy J4+, OPPO A3s and the Infinix Hot S3:
| Huawei Y7 Prime 2019 | Samsung Galaxy J4+ | OPPO A3s | Infinix Hot S3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dimensions and weight | 158.9 x 76.91 x 8.10mm, 168g | 161.4 x 76.9 x 7.9 mm, 178g | 156.2 x 75.6 x 8.2 mm, 168g | 153 x 72.8 x 8.4mm, 150g |
| Display | 6.26-inch HD+ (19:9, 1520 x 720 pixels) | 6-inch 18.5:9 HD+ (1480x720) TFT | 6.2-inch HD+ (19:9, 1520 x 720 pixels) | 5.65-inch HD+ (1440 x 720 pixels) |
| Camera | Main: 13MP + 2MP Front: 16MP | Main: 13MP Front: 5MP | Main: 13MP + 2MP Front: 8MP | Main: 13MP Front: 20MP |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 |
| Memory | 3GB RAM, 32GB onboard storage (expandable via microSD) | 2/3GB RAM, 16/32GB storage (expandable up to 512GB via microSD) | 2/3GB RAM, 16/32GB storage | 3GB RAM, 32GB internal storage (expandable via microSD up to 128GB) |
| Operating System | Android Oreo | Same | Same | Same |
| Battery | 4,000mAh | 3,300mAh | 4,230mAh | 4,000mAh |
| Network | 3G, 4G | Same | Same | Same |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth, microUSB, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n | Same + NFC | Same | Same |
Specifications are aside, a few things are worth noting about the 3 smartphones that are, for the purposes of this article, peers to the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019:
- Like the Y7 Prime 2019, the three devices do share quite a number of similar features. They all push their respective lineups into the “long” display era i.e. 18:9/19:9 displays. Some, like the A3s even introduce a feature that has become as necessary as it has become controversial: the notch. Charging and data transfer can only happen via the dated microUSB port, they still unashamedly rock Android Oreo in a year where we expect to start hearing more about Android Q and another serious rival, the Android One devices from HMD Global, are showing everyone how updates are done with an impressive Android Pie rollout roadmap.
- The Samsung Galaxy J4+, just like the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019, suffers from having some rather interesting predecessors that go by the same name. As such, it is not hard for buyers of the device to confuse it with those older models which, more often retail at much more affordable rates.
- When it launched, the Samsung Galaxy J4+ was only available in the base model configuration (2GB RAM, 16GB onboard storage). For the asking price of Kshs 20,000, you don’t need us to remind you that that wasn’t a very good deal. Thanks to time, though, the J4+’s price has since dropped and the device can be had for anywhere between Kshs 15,000 and Kshs 18,000, the price of a brand new Huawei Y7 Prime 2019.
- With that in mind, what would make one go for the Galaxy J4+ over the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019? The only thing that the Samsung budget smartphone has going for it is that it provides an easy entry to Samsung’s wearables platform. In case one owns any of Samsung’s (Gear) smartwatches, fitness bands or wireless earbuds, the J4+ is one of the most affordable ways to pair those with a smartphone while still staying within Samsung’s ecosystem. However, unless one is getting it as a complementary device to their already high-end Galaxy S or Note-something, there’s that there are many such people out there. As can be noted from the spec sheet above, feature-wise, the Huawei comes out on top. Heck, it even lacks one of the Y7 Prime 2019’s interesting features which is now available on several budget devices: face unlock.
- OPPO’s smartphone is the true challenger to the Y7 Prime 2019’s throne. Not only does it rock some nice design, it also has the beautiful colour range to properly match what Huawei is offering. Heck, it even has all those AI bells and whistles. Where it falls short, though, is, (and I can’t believe I am typing this) the bigger notch and the software experience. While Huawei goes all out to customize the experience on its device, EMUI is not as radical as OPPO’s Color OS. Both have their merits and demerits and, at the end of the day, it may all boil down to one’s preferences. Where the OPPO A3s losses it is when it comes to the pricing. Like the Samsung Galaxy J4+, shelling out Kshs 17,000, the A3s’ recommended retail price when it launched last year, for a 16GB onboard storage + 2GB memory configuration doesn’t sound wise at all.
- When I used it for over a month, I loved quite a bit about the Infinix Hot S3 except one: the price. I felt that the Infinix Hot 6 Pro, which I had used just a few days earlier, was a much better value for money than it. Even before we consider the cons of being a single-SIM device (because, Safaricom). Bar the few instances where Safaricom has dropped the S3’s price, like the last holiday season, it’s stayed pretty close to the Kshs 19,000 markup where it started selling at. You need some tough luck to find it retailing for anything over Kshs 2,000 lower and therein lies the problem.
Learn more about the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019 as well as access links to places you can pre-order/buy it online .
Which one is your pick?
