Hands-on: Honor 8 review

Honor 8 design and build quality

The luxurious Honor 8 design is stunning. I've come to expect relatively inexpensive Android handsets to look good, thanks to the likes of Honor and Huawei, yet I'm still impressed by how this device looks and feels, irrespective of the final price.

Like the Samsung Galaxy S7, its front and back is sealed in glass, protected by a coating of Corning's scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass 3.

Even the spun-metal power button looks good. / © AndroidPIT

The smooth rear combined with a rounded, brushed metal frame makes this a slippery device: it's likely to take a tumble from your hands at some point. That's simply the price to be paid for beautifully smooth surfaces.

The silver, sandblasted edges add further sheen to the slim, 7.5 mm sides. Located at the top of the left edge is the dual SIM card slot, supporting two SIM cards or SIM and MicroSD card up to 256 GB. The volume bar and power button can be found on the right edge.

The fingerprint sensor also acts a button. / © AndroidPIT

Like its predecessor, the back of the device includes a fingerprint sensor. This time it's square rather than round. Above the circular sensor are two camera lenses which are flush with the device and a two-color LED flash.

USB Type-C for the Honor 8. / © AndroidPIT

USB Type-C and a rather sharp 3.5 mm jack are located on the bottom, with a mono speaker beside it. Those who want to use their smartphone as a universal remote control for a stereo, television or other household appliances will be happy: the Honor 8 also includes an infrared transmitter.

At the top you'll find a microphone and an IR blaster. / © AndroidPIT