The Huawei Y7p is the latest from the company to make its way to Kenya. The phone will be available locally for Ksh 18,499 offline and online through Jumia. The Y7p is the third smartphone by the company to be launched in Kenya this year.
The Huawei Y7p takes over from the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019. A lot has changed from the Y7 Prime 2019 and I will highlight those in the full review when it is published. In this post, I will be unboxing the Huawei Y7p and share my first impressions of this phone.
The Huawei Y7p will be the first smartphone by the company to launch in Kenya without Google Mobile Services. The company is substituting that with its own version, Huawei Mobile Services (HMs). I will talk more about what this means for you later and in the full review.
Before we get to the unboxing, let us look at some of the key specifications of the Huawei Y7p.
- Display: IPS LCD Capacitive touchscreen, 6.39” with ~82.4% screen-to-body ratio.
- Chipset: Octa-core Hisilicon Kirin 710F
- GPU: Mali-G51 MP4
- OS: Android 9.0 with EMUI 9.1 on top
- Internals: 4GB RAM with 64GB; expandable up to 512GB
- Rear camera: Triple: 48MP + 8MP + 2MP
- Front Camera: 8MP, f/2.0
- Battery: 4,000 mAh
First Impressions
Taking the Huawei Y7p out of the box for the first time, the change in the design language compared to the Y7 Prime 2019 is evident. The Y7p looks different from its predecessor and that is a good thing. It has a boxy design with a flat back cover. At the back is where we get the triple camera setup made up of a 48MP main sensor, 8MP and 2MP sensors.
The 48MP back camera is quite good from the few minutes I have spent with the phone. I have a full camera review post coming up to dive deep into the camera and highlight some of its strong points. Before that happens, it is good to just summarize it here. There have been improvements in the camera with the right amount of saturation and exposure. This is quite different from some other Huawei smartphones we have seen before. The default camera resolution is 12MP that is quite good I have to say. You have the option of changing that to the 48MP sensor that takes slightly better shots. The shots takes with the back camera are detailed with little noise when the lighting is good.
The back is made of plastic but does not feel cheap at all. It does feel solid and well built. It has a gradient finish that gives it a premium touch that sets it apart from most other phones its is competing with. Still at the back is where we find the fingerprint scanner that is quite fast and easy to setup. The fingerprint scanner is easy to use and in addition to unlocking the phone, it can be used to access the App lock.
The phone is easy to use with one hand even for those with smaller hands. It Has a 6.39-inch display but does not feel that big. The display has a 720p resolution and it gets bright enough for ease of use outdoors. At the top left corner of the display is the punch hole that houses the 8MP selfie camera. The punch hole does not take much space on the display but you will notice it the first few minutes you use the phone. After that, you will rarely notice it is there.
Overall, the design feels modern and well built. The phone is worth the price and so far I am impressed.
Under the Hood
Now that we are done with the design, let us look at what is inside the phone. It is powered by the company’s in house Kirin 710F processor that has been paired with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage space that can be expanded further using a MicroSD card.
For the software, it does come with Android 9 Pie out of the box with EMUI 9.1 on top. As I mentioned above, the phone does not come with Google Play Services and there are no Google apps (Gmail, Maps etc) preinstalled. You will still be able to access these services such as Gmail and maps through the browser that comes preinstalled in the phone. The browser already has some quick access tabs that let you access these services from the homepage. You can also log in to your Gmail account through the default email app that comes preinstalled.
You will be able to install these apps through third party APK providers like APKPure. Through such services, you will be able to install your favourite Google apps that are not preinstalled in the phone. Given that the phone has no access to the Google Play Store, you will have to use Huawei’s App Gallery to get some of the apps you need. Not all apps are available on the App Gallery but you can get some of the top ones.
Performance has been good so far and the Kirin 710F processor handles everything smoothly. I have had no performance issues so far and will have to continue using the phone and share my full experience in the final review.
Initial Thoughts
The Huawei Y7p is quite an upgrade compared to the Huawei Y7 Prime 2019. So far I have been impressed with the design and build quality as well as the software and performance.
Also Read: The Tecno Camon 15 First Impressions
