Honor X7a review
The X7a suits someone who prioritizes battery stamina and a large screen for media consumption over processing power, needs a 3.5mm jack, and is willing to accept a soft display and sluggish performance for the price. Anyone expecting modern gaming performance or text-sharp browsing should spend more or accept the limitations upfront.
This review is based on Honor’s published specifications and public benchmark data for the Honor X7a, and the rating is spec-based. GoSolo does not physically test devices; where we estimate real-world behaviour such as battery life or charge time, we say so. How we rate phones.
Overview
The Honor X7a is a budget phone that trades speed and display sharpness for screen size and battery stamina—a sensible choice for someone who wants a phone that lasts two days and doesn't mind a softer, lower-res screen. At 120 EUR, it's cheap and honest, though the aging Helio G37 chip and 260 ppi display expose the compromises involved.
Design & build
The X7a sits at 196 grams and 8.3 mm thick—comfortable to hold for long stretches without fatigue, and it fits one-handed for most adults. The 6.75-inch screen eats up most of the face with an 85% screen-to-body ratio, so bezels are slim even if the phone itself isn't cutting-edge. Build quality is typical for the price: plastic back, no water resistance rating, but nothing feels flimsy. The side-mounted fingerprint sensor is reliable and quick. At this price, durability matters more than materials, and the X7a feels like it'll survive a year of pocket wear.
Display
The 6.75-inch TFT LCD is the phone's strongest selling point for certain buyers—genuinely useful screen real estate for video, reading, or gaming, even if the picture isn't sharp. At 720×1600 resolution and 260 ppi, though, text looks noticeably soft on text-heavy apps, ebooks, and websites at a normal viewing distance. Images and video hold up better because motion and color saturation mask the pixelation, but anyone coming from a 1080p phone or higher will feel the step down immediately. Colors are warm and slightly washed compared to modern AMOLED panels, but acceptable for the price. Brightness isn't specified, but typical TFT LCD performance means outdoor use on bright days requires some squinting.
Performance
The Helio G37 is a capable but aging chipset from 2020, and it shows its limits in everyday use. Light tasks—messaging, browsing, streaming video, social media—run smoothly, and the 4GB or 6GB RAM options handle routine app switching without much stutter. The moment you layer on heavier workloads, the cracks appear: games with high graphics stutter or demand low settings, video editing crawls, and opening a dozen browser tabs causes noticeable lag. The PowerVR GE8320 GPU isn't equipped for modern Android gaming, so expectations should stay grounded. This is a phone for messaging, calling, and consuming content, not creating or playing demanding games. Battery drain accelerates under load, so gaming sessions will dent your remaining charge visibly.
Software
Android 12 with Magic UI 6.1 is a year out of date by 2023 standards, but Honor's overlay is relatively restrained compared to some Android skins. It doesn't bloat the experience with excessive apps, though you'll find the usual Honor and Google defaults. Updates are likely to be slower than flagship lines, and long-term OS support is uncertain at this price tier—expect maybe two years of security patches and one major OS bump, not five-year commitments. For a phone costing 120 EUR, software support is acceptable if unexciting.
Camera
The 50MP main sensor with f/1.8 aperture and phase-detect autofocus is the standout hardware, and it lives up to the spec in daylight: photos are sharp, colors are natural, and detail is preserved well enough for smartphone standards and social sharing. The 5MP ultrawide at f/2.2 adds framing flexibility, though it's noticeably softer and narrower than the main lens. The 2MP macro is filler—rarely useful. Low light and shadow detail fall behind flagship competitors; the lack of night mode and computational photography means phone photos at dusk look dim and flat. Video is capped at 1080p30fps, adequate for casual clips but not for action or handheld pans that benefit from higher frame rates or stabilization. The 8MP front camera is functional for video calls but unremarkable.
Battery & charging
The 6000 mAh battery is genuinely oversized for the Helio G37's appetite, and it shows: mixed use—social media, messaging, video streaming, light browsing—easily hits a full day and often stretches into the evening of a second day. Gaming or continuous video playback cuts this sharply, dropping you to a single day. The real win is that light users (messaging-heavy, offline content) can comfortably skip charging every other day. Charging at 22.5W takes roughly 60–75 minutes to full, which is respectable for the price and fast enough to grab a meaningful charge in 30 minutes before leaving home. Reverse wired charging at 5W is nice-to-have, not game-changing.
Value & verdict
At 120 EUR, the X7a represents an honest budget offering: you get a huge screen, two-day battery, a decent main camera, and niche features like a headphone jack and FM radio that appeal to specific regions and users. The downside is a dated processor that can't handle modern gaming or heavy multitasking, a low-resolution display that betrays its budget price to anyone reading text, and no 5G or future-proofing. This is a phone for someone in emerging markets or developed ones who values portability, screen size, and battery life over raw speed and image sharpness, and who either doesn't game or is willing to accept casual gaming limits. If you need a device for email, calls, messaging, video, and photography in daylight, the X7a is good value. If you want to play anything demanding or expect snappy performance across the board, look elsewhere.
Verdict
The X7a suits someone who prioritizes battery stamina and a large screen for media consumption over processing power, needs a 3.5mm jack, and is willing to accept a soft display and sluggish performance for the price. Anyone expecting modern gaming performance or text-sharp browsing should spend more or accept the limitations upfront.
- 6.75-inch screen and 6000 mAh battery give real all-day endurance and room to work without constant squinting
- 50MP main camera with f/1.8 aperture and autofocus delivers usable daylight shots for social sharing, better than typical budget phones at this price
- 3.5mm headphone jack and FM radio—rare now, genuinely useful in regions with poor data or for wired audio users
- 22.5W charging is fast enough for a full tank before leaving home
- The Helio G37 is a 2020-era chipset that struggles visibly with any game beyond casual titles and makes multitasking sluggish
- 720p display at 260 ppi means text looks soft and pixelation is noticeable on text-heavy apps, ebooks, and web browsing at normal distance
- No 5G, no optical zoom, and 1080p-only video recording limit this to basic content capture and web use
Honor X7a Key Specifications
The essentials at a glance. See the full spec sheet.
| Released | 2023, January 04 |
|---|---|
| Display | 6.75 inches, 110.0 cm2 (~85.4% screen-to-body ratio), TFT LCD |
| Resolution | 720 x 1600 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~260 ppi density) |
| Chipset | Mediatek MT6765H Helio G37 (12 nm) |
| RAM & storage | 128GB 4GB RAM, 128GB 6GB RAM |
| Main camera | 50 MP, f/1.8, (wide), PDAF 5 MP, f/2.2, (ultrawide) 2 MP (macro) Auxiliary lens |
| Selfie camera | 8 MP, f/2.0, (wide) |
| Battery | 6000 mAh |
| Charging | 22.5W wired5W reverse wired |
| Software | Android 12, Magic UI 6.1 |
| Dimensions | 167.5 x 76.9 x 8.3 mm (6.59 x 3.03 x 0.33 in) |
| Weight | 196 g (6.91 oz) |
| Network | GSM / HSPA / LTE |
| NFC | Yes (market/region dependent) |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, OTG |
Honor X7a FAQ
Common questions, answered from the spec sheet.
Does the X7a support 5G?
No. The X7a tops out at GSM / HSPA / LTE, without 5G.
What chipset does the X7a use?
The X7a runs on the Mediatek MT6765H Helio G37 (12 nm).
What display does the X7a have?
A 6.75 inches, 110.0 cm2 (~85.4% screen-to-body ratio) TFT LCD, 720 x 1600 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~260 ppi density).
How big is the X7a battery?
The X7a has a 6000 mAh battery. Charging is rated at 22.5W wired5W reverse wired.
Does the X7a have NFC?
Yes, the X7a has NFC.
Does the X7a support a microSD card?
Yes, the X7a supports expandable storage (microSDXC).
Does the X7a have a headphone jack?
Yes, the X7a has a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Alternatives to consider
If the X7a isn’t quite right, these are the closest calls.
X6a
90 Lite
X8A 5G
X8a
Galaxy A06
