Huawei Nova 9 SE vs Nova 8i
59
out of 100
VS
55
out of 100
Here we compared two mid-range smartphones: the 6.78-inch Huawei Nova 9 SE (with Qualcomm Snapdragon 680) that was released on March 8, 2022, against the Huawei Nova 8i, which is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 and came out 8 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Huawei Nova 9 SE
- Higher display refresh rate – 90 Hz
- Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 512GB
- 31% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (315K versus 240K)
- More energy-efficient CPU – Snapdragon 680
- More recent OS version: Android 11 versus 10
- 9% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 563 and 515 points
- The phone is 8-months newer
Reasons to consider the Huawei Nova 8i
- Comes with 300 mAh larger battery capacity: 4300 vs 4000 mAh
- Includes a 3.5 mm headphone audio jack port
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (*) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
Choose the importance of each parameter to more accurately identify the smartphone that best meets your particular needs.
Value for money
You can enter your local prices of these phones (in USD or other currency) and click on the "Calculate" button to see which one has a better value for money.
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Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | TFT LCD | IPS LCD |
| Size | 6.78 inches | 6.67 inches |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2388 pixels | 1080 x 2376 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 19.5:9 | 19.5:9 |
| PPI | 387 ppi | 391 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 90 Hz | 60 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | No | No |
| Max rated brightness | 500 nits | 500 nits |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Screen protection | Tempered glass | Tempered glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 89.5% | 89.4% |
| Display features | - DCI-P3 | - DCI-P3 |
Design and build
| Height | 164.64 mm (6.48 inches) | 161.9 mm (6.37 inches) |
| Width | 75.55 mm (2.97 inches) | 74.7 mm (2.94 inches) |
| Thickness | 7.94 mm (0.31 inches) | 8.6 mm (0.34 inches) |
| Weight | 191 g (6.74 oz) | 190 g (6.7 oz) |
| Waterproof | No | No |
| Rear material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Frame material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Colors | White, Black, Blue | Black, Silver, Blue |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-button | Yes, in-button |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 |
| Max clock | 2400 MHz | 2000 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (4 + 4) | 8 (4 + 4) |
| Architecture | - 4 cores at 1.9 GHz: Kryo 265 Silver (Cortex-A53) - 4 cores at 2.4 GHz: Kryo 265 Gold (Cortex-A73) |
- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Kryo 260 Silver (Cortex-A53) - 4 cores at 2 GHz: Kryo 260 Gold (Cortex-A73) |
| Lithography process | 6 nanometers | 11 nanometers |
| Graphics | Adreno 610 | Adreno 610 |
| GPU shading units | 128 | 128 |
| GPU clock | 1110 MHz | 950 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~284 GFLOPS | ~243.2 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
| CPU | 107105 | 88415 |
| GPU | 49609 | 42652 |
| Memory | 90534 | 60906 |
| UX | 67774 | 48279 |
| Total score | 315606 | 240629 |
3DMark Wild Life Performance
| Stability | 99% | - |
| Graphics test | 2 FPS | 2 FPS |
| Graphics score | 448 | 373 |
PCMark 3.0
| Web score | 6277 | 5363 |
| Video editing | 3608 | 3492 |
| Photo editing | 10226 | 7955 |
| Data manipulation | 5639 | 4820 |
| Writing score | 7392 | 6188 |
Memory
| RAM size | 6, 8 GB | 6, 8 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR4X | LPDDR4X |
| Memory clock | - | 1866 MHz |
| Channels | 2 | 2 |
| Storage size | 128, 256 GB | 128 GB |
| Storage type | UFS 2.1 | UFS 2.1 |
| Memory card | MicroSD | No |
| Memory card max size | Up to 512 GB | - |
Software
| Operating system | Android 11 | Android 10 |
| ROM | EMUI 12 | EMUI 11 |
Battery
| Capacity | 4000 mAh | 4300 mAh |
| Max charge power | 66 W | 66 W |
| Battery type | Li-Po | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (50% in 13 min) | Yes (60% in 19 min) |
| Full charging time | 0:37 hr | 0:40 hr |
Camera
| Matrix | 108 megapixels | 64 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 12000 x 9000 | 9000 x 7000 |
| Zoom | Digital | Digital |
| Flash | LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | No | No |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 30FPS | Up to 30FPS |
| Angle of widest lens | 112° | 120° |
| Lenses | 4 (108 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP) | 4 (64 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP) |
| Wide (main) lens | - 108 MP - Aperture: f/1.9 - Pixel size: 0.7 micron - Sensor: 1/1.52", Samsung S5KHM2 (ISOCELL Plus CMOS) - Phase autofocus |
- 64 MP - Aperture: f/1.9 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Phase autofocus |
| Ultra-wide lens | - 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 |
- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 17 mm - Sensor: 1/4" (CMOS) |
| Macro lens | - 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 |
- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 |
| Depth lens | - 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 |
- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
- Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
| Megapixels | 16 megapixels | 16 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4608 x 3456 | 4920 x 3264 |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.0 |
| Focal length | 22 mm | - |
| Sensor type | CMOS | CMOS |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) |
| Wi-Fi features | - Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5 | 5 |
| Bluetooth features | LE, A2DP | LE, A2DP |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 2 | 2 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging - USB-Storage mode |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo |
| NFC* | Depends on the region | Depends on the region |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM* | 2 | 2 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | Standby |
| eSIM support* | No | No |
| Hybrid slot | Yes | No |
| LTE Cat* | - | 13 |
| 5G support | No | No |
Sound
| Speakers | Mono | Mono |
| Headphone audio jack | No | Yes |
| FM radio | No | No |
| Dolby Atmos | No | No |
Other
| Category | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| Announced | March 2022 | July 2021 |
| Release date | March 2022 | July 2021 |
| Sensors | - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
- Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
| Bundled charger | Yes, 66 W | - |
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
If the display, gaming, software, and design are more important to you, then choose the Huawei Nova 9 SE. But if the sound is more of a priority – go for the Huawei Nova 8i.
Cast your vote
Total votes: 70