Huawei Honor 7i unveiled: features 13MP flip-up camera, side fingerprint sensor

Huawei has launched its new smartphone dubbed Honor 7i at an event in China today. The device is now available for pre-order for a starting price tag of 1,599 Yuan (Rs 16,400) (China Mobile version). The China Telecom version is priced at 1,699 Yuan (Rs 17,500) while the China Unicom version is priced at 1,899 Yuan (Rs 19,500). It will be offered in Black, White and Gold color variants. The most impressive feature of the smartphone, design wise, it its flip-up camera module which means that the rear camera unit itself will be the front facing camera too. This feature is partially similar to the camera seen on the Oppo N1, instead of the entire top portion of the phone rotating, in Huawei’s case only the camera module rotates. The rear camera can go up to 180 degrees to transform into a selfie snapper and can also adopt various other angles for creative shots. In addition, the new smartphone also features a first of a kind finger print scanner which has been embedded on the side of the phone. This might be the first official smartphone to ever feature this function on the side instead on the home screen button as seen previously on the iPhone 6, Samsung Galaxy S5 and others. In terms of specifications, the new smartphone features a 5.2-inch FHD LCD display along with a screen to body ratio of 79.8 percent. It is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 616 64-bit octa-core processor, reportedly much stable and low power consuming than its previous generation, paired with 3GB RAM and includes an internal storage at 32GB.  The Huawei Honor 7i comes equipped with a 13MP camera with an autofocus and dual-LED flash. It includes features such as Rotating Lens, Geo-Tagging and Touch Focus. Huawei claims that users need not worry about the flip-up camera, as its extremely sturdy and reliable. It is said that even if you use flip-up the camera module 132 times a day, it will still last for up to 2 years. The company has also added the camera comes with SLR grade image signal processor, translating into better low light performance, balance and less noise. Additionally, the phone supports Auto Exposure, Auto White Balance, Automatic Face Recognition and Auto Smile Shutter. In terms of specifications, the device features 4G LTE, dual-SIM functionality, Bluetooth, GPS, NFC. The Android Lollipop-based device running atop Emotion UI will be backed by a 3100mAh battery.