- Honor announced the V40.
- It is the company’s first smartphone as an independent enterprise.
- The launch is currently limited to China, but Honor does not rule out the possibility of global availability.
Honor is no longer under Huawei’s wing, and while it comes with the freedom of American pressure, it’s also a frightening prospect not to have the support of a major smartphone maker. Nevertheless, the first device from its new era is here now.
The Honor V40 was largely developed when Honor was part of its former parent company, and its aesthetics also suggest that. On the front, the phone has the dual oval cut-out of the camera, such as the P40 Pro, while the camera housing on the top left-hand side is also reminiscent of the Huawei flagship. That said, there is enough to distinguish it from the Honor V30.
It carries a 6.72-inch OLED screen that decreases at its edges, but features a 120Hz refresh rate and a 300Hz sampling rate – both of which are a buff above current Huawei products. The 10-bit panel also supports HDR10, while dual speakers should enhance the binge-watching and gaming experience.
Related: The Best Honor Phones You Can Buy
The Honor V40 carries Kirin silicone for the MediaTek Dimensity 1000 Plus chipset coupled with 8 GB of RAM and up to 256 GB of internal storage. This cocktail is powered by a 4000 mAh battery that can be charged with 66 W wire charge or 50 W wireless.
In terms of camera intelligence, the rear arrangement of the Honor V40 is dominated by a 1 / 1.56 inch 50MP RYYB primary camera that stands out above like the Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra. While the design is exciting, the rest of the series is not. It is accompanied by an 8MP ultra-wide and a 2MP macro-snapper. A 16MP selfie camera sits next to a secondary sensor in the oval selfie camera cutout.
Honor V40: price and availability
For now, the Honor V40 will be limited to China. The phone debuts at 3,599 yuan (~ $ 556) for the 128 GB version and 3,999 yuan (~ $ 618) for the 256 GB option. Colorways contains Magic Night Black, Titanium Silver and Rose Gold, which are a little warmer than Apple’s fragrance.
Asked about the details of an international debut, Honor said Android Authority in an email that ‘a lot of things are going on’ but did not reject or confirm the potential availability outside China. It also remains unclear whether the phone will come with Google Mobile Services if it has a wider launch.