Design and Build Quality
Despite being technically an entry level device, the Huawei nova Y70 offers a decent looking design with a glossy finish. Though of course, without a case, it’s prone to smudges.
Like a lot of devices these days, the power button on the right side also functions as a fingerprint scanner. You also get a USB-C port, a speaker grille, microphone, and a headphone jack.
Display-wise, you get a 6.75-inch display with HD+ resolution. Of course, it’s not going to blow you away with the details, but it works okay for daily use and media consumption.
Performance
Huawei nova Y70 packs a Kirin 710 processor, which was introduced way back in 2018. That alone makes it a less compelling option from a performance standpoint, especially if you look at the competition.
Speaking of which, the device is decent for light tasks like web browsing, Spotify, and social media. You will get occasional stutters when navigating the interface. There’s also 4GB of RAM, which I think isn’t ideal for its price point, again, considering the competing devices.
Can you game on this phone? yes, but don’t expect anything stellar, especially if you’re looking at anything more demanding than say Mobile Legends which runs fine on High Refresh Rate and High Graphics, or Call of Duty Mobile, which will run well at Medium Graphics and High FPS.
Camera
Huawei nova Y70 has a 48MP main camera, along with a 5MP ultra-wide unit, and a 2MP depth camera. It’s a configuration that I like, thanks to the flexibility. As for the quality, the amount of detail in photos can vary in consistency. Sometimes, you’ll get good photos, and at times, you can really tell that details are lacking.
Software
Now, this is where things get a bit tricky. You see, this is a budget phone, and if I was a budget user, I would not expect a ton of performance, but a phone that’s simple, clutter-free and just works out of the box.
Now, the nova Y70 isn’t exactly a fast phone to begin with, and an ad playing every time I open the Huawei AppGallery, along with the numerous folders that contain app suggestions, just isn’t helping the experience.
With the absence of GMS, most of your app installs will be on the brand’s own app market, which to be fair, already has a lot of popular apps available. Despite that, some apps will still have to be installed by getting them from a third-party source.
Petal search helps with the “looking for” part, but depending on where you’ll get the files, you may have to go through a couple of extra steps to install the app. Again, this is something that may turn-off the casual user who wants things simple and straightforward.
There’s also the issue for apps that are dependent on GMS. Fortunately, there’s GSpace and GBox to fill in the gap, though the former also introduces ads and you’ll occasional crashes, while the other raises privacy concerns.
For the software experience, it boils down to a question of whether you’re prepared to take a few additional steps, and depending on which apps you use, the experience may not be as seamless.
Battery
Huawei nova Y70 scored 22.5 hours on PCMark’s Work 2.0 benchmark, which simulates tasks such as data manipulation as well as basic photo and video editing. Your mileage may vary depending on how you use the phone, but in general, it should last at least a full workday with still some juice to spare for your binge-watching on the way home.
Verdict
Without factoring in the price, the Huawei nova Y70 actually delivered more than I expected. Performance is surprisingly decent even with an old chip, and so are the cameras, not to mention good battery life.
On the other hand, the notched design is getting outdated, and the device faces tough competition at the same price range from other brands. Most of which, of course, come with GMS out of the box. This makes the Huawei nova Y70 less compelling, unless the brand decides to reduce its price.
At the time of writing, the device is priced at PHP 8,499 at the Huawei E-Store.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
