Coming from Nokia 3210, Moto Razr V3x, Nokia E61, Samsung P780, HTC HD2, iPhone 4, LeMoto S890, LeMoto P780, Alcatel Idol X, LeMoto K910, Huawei Honor 3C, Huawei MediaPad X1, ZTE Blade S6, ASUS Zenfone 2 ZE550ML, Xiaomi Mi4i, Ulefone Be Touch 2, Meizu M2 Note, Elephone P4000, Alcatel OneTouch Flash Plus and current favourite daily-driver, ZTE Nubia Z7 Max.

Bought the Huawei Honor 7 16GB Fantasy Silver (PLK-L01) from Lazada with RM150 voucher + RM100 early-bird discount at RM1,149 (SRP =RM1,399 on 1 October 2015). Free RM10 voucher and Lattice Flip-Case. I have been using it for 7 days now.

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It's rooted Lollipop 5.0.0 under EMUI 3.1 Stock ROM PLK-L01C636B100.

Here are my comments about this device:

A = Android = EMUI v3.1 skinned on top of Lolli 5.0.0 is acceptable but not as creative as ZenUI from ASUS. Handful amount of junk apps out of the box with full suites of Google Services pre-installed. However, these junk apps can be uninstalled or disabled.

B = Body-Built = Honor manages to make the Fantasy Silver alloy body feels premium but not comfortable to hold (for 5.2" device) compared to Meizu M2 Note. All four corners are quite sharp to my palm. Meizu M2 Note and ZTE Blade S6 win in this comfortable-to-hold department. Taking pictures is not enjoyable as the position of the lense will be blocked by your fingers. The device is slippery to hold if your palm is dry. If you lay-back on the bed while holding the device/typing, you may actually drop it while typing due to poor ergonomic design of body size-to-weight ratio. However, buttons are placed nicely with decent tactile feedback. I wish the Smart Key button to be aligned with power button. There is no capacitive touch buttons as on-screen navigation is adopted in EMUI interface. Therefore, there is ample space at the bottom of the screen for us to hold the device firmly so that the speaker grill will not be blocked. At the same time, holding the device in this manner will channel the sound properly towards you. The hybrid dual-nano-SIM tray is using ejection mechanism which is not my style. I prefer the design of Alcatel OneTouch Flash Plus which does not require SIM ejector pin to slot in the SIM cards. MicroSD slot is a hybrid design with the dual SIM trays. Meaning we can only have 1 nano SIM + microSD combo or dual nano SIMs without SD card combo. Again, poor design as compared to other dual-SIM devices which provide separate slot for micro-SD card. There is no detail on the glass quality used but applying oleophobic tempered glass screen protector is encouraged. One special button called the Smart Key is a great feature for you to assign three apps for quick launching.

C = Call quality = As good as my daily-driver ZTE Nubia Z7 Max. You may "sometimes" get reception when inside elevator or basement one. There is no automatic call recording feature - which is a must feature for any smartphone, if you ask me. Noise cancelling microphone works as designed. One of the best call quality compared to other mid-tier devices.

D = Data = LTE modules for both nano-SIM 1 and nano-SIM 2 are stable. No need to swap SIMs as the LTE settings can be toggled within the Android SIM Card Management menu (see screen shot below). Bluetooth 4.1 is stable too but not as strong compared to Xiaomi Mi4i (Bluetooth 4.1). No NFC port but there is infra-red terminals. OTG is supported. External microSD card is supported up to 128GB for UHS-1 FAT32 format.

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E = Ergonomic = Full flat-back aluminium chasis is not easy to grip when your palm is dry. It is slippery in other words. It should have been slightly curve just like the ASUS Zenfone 2. Besides that, the weight is 157gm is not helping when typing while laying on your back. The screen-size-to-weight ratio is not ergonomic for single-hand operation, especially, for small hands.

F = Finger-print scanner = The second generation hardware-scanner and software-algorithm by Huawei is hyper-reliable. You can store up to 5 finger-print IDs and the scanner works 360-degree. The only minus part about this scanner is it is located at the back of the phone. From my point of view, this is not "reliable" location as compared to front-below screen position.

G = Games = Heavy titles play without noticable drop-frames. The internal combo are 64-bit HiSilicon Kirin935 @ 4 x 2.2GHz & 4 x 1.5GHz combo + Mali-T628MP4 GPU + 3GB LPDDR3 RAM + 16GB flash (10GB free after first boot). Fortunately, no over-heating issue even after 30 minutes of intense gaming. Just ordinary warm to the touch.

H = Hangouts = Video call for Skype, Google Hangouts, Tango etc. is superb for 8MP auto-focus front facing camera. There is also front LED flash for pitch dark selfie.

I = Internet = Stock web browser is good. No checker-board effect on heavy websites. 3rd party browser is encouraged for better experience.

J = Juice = 3100mAh sealed lithium-ion cell = "Above Average". Claimed talk-time, stand-by time, etc. are achievable for dual-active-nano-SIM LTE phone. Power consumption during 8-hour idle state is 5% which can be improved via firmware upgrade in the future. Fortunately, there's quick-charge feature which requires 1 hour and 45 minutes to completely finish charging from 2% to 100% for 3100mAh capacity. Stock charging adapter is 5V;2A WITHOUT USB Type-C 3.1 connector.

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7th Charging Cycle:
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8th Charging Cycle:
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K = Kamasutra    = Phone vibrates with notification/ringtone. Vibrating sensation is good. Laddies may use it for other satisfying purpose(s)... LOL...

L = Loudspeaker = Not loud enough for side-firing speaker. Maximum volume does not distort the sound and pleases the ear-drums. Bass is above average and treble is average. Overall, good alternative to have external speakerphone conversation or video chat.

M = Multimedia = Built-in Music app with the use of high end headphones/earphones produces great satisfaction with ample clarity and quality. There is soft-algorithm to manipulate the sound quality. Overall, one of the best sound quality for mid-tier phones. 1080P at 5.2" screen is good enough for YouTube/NAS streaming. However, the best multimedia experience is still belongs to Alcatel OneTouch Flash Plus budget-friendly-smartphone.

N = Navigation = Working as expected but not so accurate. Lock to satellites within 5 seconds. Waze, Google Maps and HERE Maps are working normally, even indoors. 1 hour navigation miserably consumes 30% battery juice, which is not good. Navi experience is OK if driving above 120km/hr.

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O = One-hand Operation = I have "big" hands and "long" fingers. No further comments. To somebody, the 5.2" screen with average bezel width may struggle to handle this 157gm device with one-hand. Together with bad flat-slippery aluminium back cover, there is no way small palm will enjoy the experience. The sharp corners do not help too. This award still belongs to ZTE Blade S6 (5") and Meizu M1/M2 Note (5.5").

P = Picture = 20MP Sony IMX230 Exmor RS with f/2.0 aperture is above average accompanied by dual-tone LED flash. Plus, the auto-mode camera snapshot is quick and reliable. Macro shots is below average. Low light image is acceptable for mid-tier class smartphone.

Normal auto-mode:
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Normal auto-mode:
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HDR mode:
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Auto-flash in 100% pitch-dark room:
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Q = Quirks = Single-handed usage. The flat body with slippery aluminium texture does not help. Battery performance could have been better during idle state.

R = Rooting = To-date, one-click rooting tools is not available. However, to root and install SuperSu app is tricky but do-able. There is custom China TWRP available for those who are brave to pursue rooting.

S = Screen = The 5.2" JDI-IPS panel is adequate for daily usage. No specifications for glass quality adopted on the screen. However, out-of-the-box, the screen has factory installed film screen protector. Removing it, reveals oleophobic coated screen. Viewing angle does not show shadow effect when viewing in the dark, which is great. Direct sunlight visibility is average at 100% brightness. Auto brightness is wonky and perhaps next firmware upgrade will fix this issue. However, the dimmest brightness is not low enough for viewing in the dark. It will strain your eyes if you stare at it constantly for prolong period of time. Hence, applying anti-bluelight tempered glass is highly recommended. This department winner still belongs to Meizu M1/M2 Note for having the 5.5" IGZO panel which is very soothing to the eyes.

T = Texting = stock Huawei-Swype keyboard is sufficient. Just remove the stock film screen protector to feel the oleophobic screen so that your finger/thumb can glide happily, even when using it single-handed. But again, the screen-to-body-weight ratio is bad for certain people when trying to typing single-handed. The best experience so far is ZTE Blade S6 (5") and Meizu M1/M2 Note (5.5").

U = User-Interface = Huawei EMUI 3.1 skin is quite user-friendly and stable enough for daily use. No need to install 3rd party launcher. Double-tap to wake and on-screen lettering gestures to launch certain apps is supported. Incoming notifications can be dismissed/deleted easily.

V = Video = Capturing up to 1080P video is acceptable. 4K resolution is not supported. Tap-to-focus is fast and sharp enough. Digital/electronic image stabilisation is available too. Overall, it's a reliable device for YouTube channel uploading.

W = WiFi = Above average. Hinor 7 support dual-band channels for 2.4GHz and 5GHz at a/b/g/n/ac. It manages to get 4 full bars in my basement floor test. My current ZTE Nubia Z7 Max captures 5 full bars without fail. Huawei Honor 3C gets 4 bars. iPhone 4 and my other previous phones only capture 3 bars Wi-Fi strength.

X = X-factors = Finger-print scanner & Smart Key - that's it..... Other features and experiences are just average be it camera, call quality, multimedia, gaming and navigation. For dual-nano-SIMs LTE phone (both SIM 1 & 2 supports LTE) with 3GB RAM supported by 16GB onboard storage (expandable up to 128GB) is not really up to my expectations. Excellent voice/data/Wi-Fi reception is in favour for those who live in the outskirts or camping sites. Heavy gamers will like this unit too. Heavy GPS users will be more than happy to own this unit but watch-out for the fast battery drain while navigation.

Y = YouTube = The 5.2" JDI-IPS screen at 1080P resolution accompanied by reliable LTE connection is absolutely enjoyable experience. This is merely due to sound quality paired with your favorite earphone/headphone or simply using the external side-firing speaker at highest volume.

Z = Zero-figure. Based price at Malaysia Ringgit RM1,399-point-zero-zero is not really up to my expectations. It should have been priced at RM1,099 (regardless of currency fluctuations).You can look for other similar challenger like the ASUS Zenfone 2, Meizu MX5, Elephone P8000, or even the new-kid-on-the-block; LeMoto ZUK Z1. Xiaomi Mi Note should be on your list too. Go and test thoroughly the Honor 7 before deciding to replace your current smartphone (whatever they are...).