100 days with the Honor View20: it won't let you down

What I like about the Honor View20

With its large bezel-free display with a little hole punched in it for the selfie camera and its 48-megapixel main shooter, the star smartphone of the Chinese manufacturer in the first part of the year had plenty of arguments in its favor when it was launched at the beginning of January. However, on a day-to-day basis, there are other elements that have made me enjoy using the smartphone, too.

The camera

As surprising as it may seem, the View20 is one of the few smartphones in its class to have only one rear camera sensor. In return, however, the View20 was the first camera on the market to offer Sony's IMX586 sensor capable of taking 48-megapixel photos. It is now found on many smartphones, and it is easy to explain why: it is a very good sensor.

On a daily basis, Honor's smartphone makes it possible to capture excellent shots (especially after a software update), even when lighting conditions deteriorate, thanks in particular to its 1/2-inch sensor. With video, the View20 also does very well. And I must mention one special effect where the subject is filmed in color, with the rest of the scene in black and white. Of course, AI is on board, but Honor even offers an option to disable its effects after the shot is taken. On the other hand, the 3D sensor for augmented reality is nothing more than a cool toy in my opinion.

Battery life

In recent years, it must be acknowledged that, with few exceptions, the endurance of smartphones has been rather disappointing. Arriving at the end of the day without making a pit stop at the charger was indeed, in many cases, a rather difficult feat. The Honor View20 puts an end to this concern. Its 4,000 mAh battery allows it to last a day without any problem despite more than intensive use. As a general rule, I usually only charge the View20 every other day!

Compared to the Mate 20 Pro, its counterpart over at Huawei, it doesn't benefit from ultra fast charging (only fast) or wireless charging, but we have to accept a few concessions given the more attractive price of the device.

A traditional fingerprint reader

If you have already read my work, you know that I am not necessarily a big fan of cell phones which put the fingerprint reader under the screen, especially because of its rather random efficiency (or lack thereof) but also because of its slowness. The Honor View20 had the good idea not to give in to this new trend and thus avoid the rather disappointing technology of the Mate 20 Pro. Combined with facial recognition, the fingerprint reader makes it easy to unlock your smartphone in the blink of an eye.

In terms of satisfaction, I also greatly appreciated the phone's performance. The Kirin 980 and the 6 or 8 GB of RAM make it possible to meet all needs and use cases. Though without an AMOLED display, the View20's IPS display is also very well balanced. Finally, its mini-jack jack and speaker provide a more than satisfying auditory experience.

What I don't like about the Honor View20

No waterproofing certification or microSD port

It may be a detail for you, but for me, it means a lot. If the lack of IP68 certification for water and dust resistance can be understood because of the smartphone's price, the lack of a microSD port is rather regrettable (and a little petty I even want to say). Honor preferred the Nano Memory Card format that Huawei had presented with the Mate 20, but these memory cards are more expensive... Combine these two points and you can understand my disappointment.

Multitasking

As the years go by, Honor still hasn't changed its strategy on multitasking management. The system ejects open apps from memory too easily. As a result, if you do not use them regularly, they close and you do not receive notifications. Certainly, it is possible in the settings to prevent the closure of some apps, but it is quite tedious and surprising that Honor continues this practice.

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What about the US-Huawei fight?

Let us be clear about this, I have absolutely nothing against this brand, quite the contrary. But the recent news surrounding the ban that Trump has imposed on American telecommunications companies to keep them from working with so-called "risky" companies, including Honor (Huawei Group), may be worrying. View20 will continue to receive monthly security updates (app updates via the Google Play Store are not affected either), but the question of what will happen with major Android updates remains unanswered.

• Huawei vs USA: why and how did it come to this?

Conclusion

My 100 days with the Honor View20 were a real pleasure. Reliable, efficient and long-lasting, it is a smartphone you can count on. Despite some small flaws, Honor's smartphone still remains an excellent value for the money, especially since its price is even more attractive than when it was launched. It remains to be seen what the case between the USA and China still holds for us.

If you have any questions about this smartphone, feel free to ask them in the comments. If you have also purchased an Honor View20, feel free to share your experience with us.