Jay-Z’s Album ‘4:44’ Ends Tidal Exclusivity and Debuts on Apple Music and iTunes
Last week, Jay-Z’s new album “4:44” debuted exclusively on his own music streaming service Tidal, and then reports predicted that the album would expand to Apple Music and other services one week later. Now, 4:44 has begun streaming on Apple Music, and is available for $9.99 on iTunes [Direct Link].
Earlier in the week, Jay-Z debuted a video for one of 4:44’s tracks, The Story of O.J., on Apple Music while the album was still a Tidal exclusive. Even during its one-week exclusivity window, 4:44 went platinum in under a week, certifying that the record has sold 1 million equivalent album units in the United States. One equivalent album unit represents one full album sale, ten tracks sold from an album, or 1,500 on-demand audio and/or video streams from an album as of February 2016.
In the midst of Jay-Z’s new album launch, Kanye West — one of Tidal’s initial sixteen artists/co-owners — was reportedly seeking to end Tidal’s exclusivity rights over his new music and break from the service (via Billboard). West was said to claim he was owed “more than $3 million” because his album “The Life of Pablo” “resulted in 1.5 million new subscribers to Tidal, for which he was supposed to get a bonus but the company hasn’t paid.”
Now, a source close to West has said that Tidal’s exclusivity rights to his music have been terminated, “based on what is alleged to be Tidal’s failure to honor its financial obligations.” West has been vocal in the past about company rivalries negatively affecting the music industry as a whole, eventually allowing The Life of Pablo onto Apple Music after first saying it would “never” happen.
In addition to Apple Music, 4:44 has also begun streaming on Amazon Music Unlimited, although Spotify has not been included in the expansion of Jay-Z’s newest album. Earlier this year, Jay-Z removed his entire catalog of music from Apple Music and Spotify, without giving a clear indication as to why, and while many of the songs reappeared on Apple Music a few days later, most of it remains missing from Spotify.
Tags: Apple Music, Tidal
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Apple Predicted to Become Trillion Dollar Company Within 12 Months
Apple’s stock price has declined around 9 percent from its all-time high of $156.10 in May, but Wall Street analyst Brian White believes the recent sell-off represents “yet another buying opportunity” as investors turn their focus to the so-called “iPhone 8” rumored to launch this fall.
White believes Apple remains “among the most underappreciated stocks in the world,” according to his research note distributed to clients today. A copy of the report was obtained by MacRumors.
In our view, Apple’s quarterly results will be less important this summer as investors are focused on the iPhone 8 this fall, along with the company’s raised capital distribution initiative, depressed valuation and new innovations as showcased at WWDC. We still believe Apple remains among the most underappreciated stocks in the world.
White, an Apple bull, added that the upcoming iPhone cycle is setting up Apple to reach his $202 price target over the next 12 months, which would value the iPhone maker as over a trillion dollar company based on market capitalization. Apple’s current market capitalization is around $737 billion.
Similar to the bottoming process in Apple during the summer of 2013 that drove a strong rally into the spring of 2015, we believe the bottom in the stock during May 2016 and the upcoming iPhone cycle is setting up Apple to reach our $202.00 price target over the next 12 months.
In May, RBC Capital Markets analyst Amit Daryanani also said Apple could reach or exceed a trillion dollar market cap within 12 to 18 months, with a stock price of $192-$195. Like White, Daryanani said the “iPhone 8” will be a major catalyst towards Apple’s path to a trillion dollar valuation.
White maintains the highest price target for Apple’s stock among all institutional analysts. AAPL closed at $142.73 on Thursday.
Tags: Brian White, AAPL, Drexel Hamilton
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FAA offers to refund drone registration fees and wipe details
Why it matters to you
If you want your five bucks back and your personal details wiped from the FAA’s database, then it’s a simple case of submitting a form.
Much was made of the launch of the drone registry in 2015, which forced hobbyist pilots to fork out five bucks to have their details sit on a database in case you decided to do something silly with your flying machine and the authorities needed to track you down.
Up to a million drone owners have so far done as they were told, hitting the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) website to register their information. But then in May a U.S. appeals court affirmed an earlier lower court ruling that said the policy was in violation of a preexisting law banning regulation of model aircraft. So for the last few months, buyers of new drones have been able to fly them without first registering their details.
But the story doesn’t end there. Although the FAA is still encouraging hobbyist drone owners to register their details voluntarily, May’s ruling has led the agency to start offering a refund to registered users and for their details to be wiped from the database.
To obtain your $5 refund and have your registration details deleted, you’ll need to fill out this FAA form, which requires you to confirm that you only fly your drone for hobby or recreational use. Commercial drones still need to be registered.
Submitting the form will guarantee the deletion of your records, though you’ll need to check a box and give your bank details if you want your $5 back.
The odd thing is, another ruling could be on the way that stipulates owners of consumer drones must register their flying machine, which would mean that anyone who unregisters their drone now will have to register it again, possibly for a future system that allows a drone in the sky to be identified by officials on the ground. So is it really worth the hassle of taking yourself off the database now?
When it launched toward the end of 2015 in response to the growing popularity of remotely controlled quadcopters and the like, the FAA said its registration system would “foster a greater awareness on the part of users to learn the rules about flying safely” in U.S. airspace, and would also enable the authorities to trace ownership of a drone in the event of an incident.
The FAA also launched a B4UFLY iOS and Android app to teach owners about drone safety. The app lets you know if there are any flight restrictions at your current location. Responses could include, “Proceed with Caution,” “Warning — Action Required,” or “Flight Prohibited.”
Bluesmart’s slick smart suitcase is back, and it has brought some friends
Why it matters to you
Smart luggage takes the worry out of losing your case, laptop, and even passport when traveling.
Bluesmart started off with a single, connected piece of luggage back in 2014. It was a big crowd-funding success, with more than 10,000 backers wanting a smarter suitcase by their side. Now, Bluesmart is back with its Bluesmart Series 2 smart luggage range, and this time it’s not arriving with one suitcase, but two, along with a laptop bag and a passport holder. They’re smarter than ever before, with a new app, sensors, and plenty more. Despite launching on Indiegogo only recently, the campaign has already passed $1 million in funding.
What makes these cases smart? The Bluesmart app is the key to the suitcase, and it unlocks when you’re close, and locks when you move away. It allows you to track the case’s exact location with free GPS/3G/Bluetooth connectivity, shows the remaining battery power, and even links with airlines to show travel itineraries. While the app chats with your airline, the 29-inch Bluesmart Series 2 suitcase’s built-in weight sensors ensure you won’t pay any excess baggage fees, and alerts you if it’s likely to tip the scales over the limit.
The cases conceal a 10,400mAh battery pack to keep your phone, laptop, and other gadgets topped up with power while traveling, and its own power bank doesn’t need charging for 30 days, a major improvement over the one week offered by the first Bluesmart case. All of this is wrapped up inside a weatherproof polycarbonate body with a retractable handle, and hub-less 360-degree spinning wheels. Bluesmart Series 2’s two suitcases share the same technology, and vary only in size, and the lack of weight sensors on the smaller case. The 22-inch version is suitable for use as carry-on with 38 liters of storage space, while the larger 29-inch case has 80 liters of space inside, and is for checking in.
Joining the two cases is a 15-inch laptop bag and passport pouch. Both connect to the app for 30-days recharge-free Bluetooth location tracking, and distance alerts if you happen to accidentally leave them behind. The laptop bag contains a 10,400mAh battery charging pack with two USB ports, while the passport holder comes with a 1,000mAh battery pack for 90 days standby, and RFID protection. Both are made from weather-resistant fabric, and the laptop bag has a TSA-friendly pocket, so you won’t have to unpack everything at security.
Backers of the Indiegogo campaign can buy the Bluesmart Series 2 cases at a considerably lower price than when they hit retail stores. The 22-inch case is $295, the 29-inch is $325, the laptop bag is $195, and the passport holder is $95. Bundles are available, too. For example, a 22-inch case with the laptop bag and the passport holder is $495, or a complete set of all four Bluesmart Series 2 products is $795.
Order before the campaign ends, and delivery is expected to take place in November. Will Bluesmart pass its previous $2.2 million in funding with Series 2? It’s certainly headed that way.
Bluesmart’s slick smart suitcase is back, and it has brought some friends
Why it matters to you
Smart luggage takes the worry out of losing your case, laptop, and even passport when traveling.
Bluesmart started off with a single, connected piece of luggage back in 2014. It was a big crowd-funding success, with more than 10,000 backers wanting a smarter suitcase by their side. Now, Bluesmart is back with its Bluesmart Series 2 smart luggage range, and this time it’s not arriving with one suitcase, but two, along with a laptop bag and a passport holder. They’re smarter than ever before, with a new app, sensors, and plenty more. Despite launching on Indiegogo only recently, the campaign has already passed $1 million in funding.
What makes these cases smart? The Bluesmart app is the key to the suitcase, and it unlocks when you’re close, and locks when you move away. It allows you to track the case’s exact location with free GPS/3G/Bluetooth connectivity, shows the remaining battery power, and even links with airlines to show travel itineraries. While the app chats with your airline, the 29-inch Bluesmart Series 2 suitcase’s built-in weight sensors ensure you won’t pay any excess baggage fees, and alerts you if it’s likely to tip the scales over the limit.
The cases conceal a 10,400mAh battery pack to keep your phone, laptop, and other gadgets topped up with power while traveling, and its own power bank doesn’t need charging for 30 days, a major improvement over the one week offered by the first Bluesmart case. All of this is wrapped up inside a weatherproof polycarbonate body with a retractable handle, and hub-less 360-degree spinning wheels. Bluesmart Series 2’s two suitcases share the same technology, and vary only in size, and the lack of weight sensors on the smaller case. The 22-inch version is suitable for use as carry-on with 38 liters of storage space, while the larger 29-inch case has 80 liters of space inside, and is for checking in.
Joining the two cases is a 15-inch laptop bag and passport pouch. Both connect to the app for 30-days recharge-free Bluetooth location tracking, and distance alerts if you happen to accidentally leave them behind. The laptop bag contains a 10,400mAh battery charging pack with two USB ports, while the passport holder comes with a 1,000mAh battery pack for 90 days standby, and RFID protection. Both are made from weather-resistant fabric, and the laptop bag has a TSA-friendly pocket, so you won’t have to unpack everything at security.
Backers of the Indiegogo campaign can buy the Bluesmart Series 2 cases at a considerably lower price than when they hit retail stores. The 22-inch case is $295, the 29-inch is $325, the laptop bag is $195, and the passport holder is $95. Bundles are available, too. For example, a 22-inch case with the laptop bag and the passport holder is $495, or a complete set of all four Bluesmart Series 2 products is $795.
Order before the campaign ends, and delivery is expected to take place in November. Will Bluesmart pass its previous $2.2 million in funding with Series 2? It’s certainly headed that way.
Casio’s G Shock is the new definition of a ‘hybrid’ smartwatch
Hands up if you want a smartwatch that’s water resistant, able to resist forces felt most often by fighter pilots, connects to a smartphone, and looks super-cool on the wrist? We’re confident it’s not just our arm waving about in the air right now. While all these aspects don’t often come together in a single device, watchmaker Casio may have the answer.
Casio recently opened a G Shock store in London’s famous Carnaby Street, and Digital Trends made the trek to meet with Alex Owen, trade marketing executive at Casio, to talk about the company’s future plans. Having already released Android Wear watches, Casio is putting more emphasis on hybrid smartwatches, and will launch the first smart, connected G Shock model in the coming months. What’s more, it turns out a G Shock is pretty packed with cool tech already.
“Casio has always been at the forefront of technology,” Owen said, explaining why it embraced Android Wear early on. “We made the world’s first touchscreen watch, the world’s first weather predicting watch, and the world’s first databank watches; so it’s very natural for Casio to progress into smartwatches. Android Wear gives us so many new opportunities.”
“Smartwatches don’t begin and end with Android Wear.”
Casio has two Android Wear smartwatches, the WSD-F10 and the WSD-F20, which are a part of its Pro-Trek range. However, smartwatches don’t begin and end with Android Wear.
“Smartwatches aren’t going to be for everybody,” Owen said. “There are limitations with battery life at the moment, which is something we’re working to improve; but still, not everyone wants to charge their watch every night.”
But it’s not just battery life that stops people buying Android Wear watches.
“Then there are the aesthetics,” Owen pointed out. “Many prefer a traditional looking watch, so an area we’re focusing on now is Casio Connected, which is a hybrid smartwatch. Our new watches that come out in the fall will be centered around this. They’re designed to bridge the gap between a traditional timepiece and a full-on Android Wear watch. The will have a Bluetooth connection, but without the battery life downsides. Instead, the watches will be solar powered, and will look like a traditional Casio watch.”
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
Casio Connected watches will self adjust their own time, and add features like a phone finder, multiple alarms, a world time mode, and more — all controlled by an app on the phone. Unfortunately, we shouldn’t expect fitness-tracking features, which are common on competing hybrids, such as those from the Fossil Group. While the beginnings of Casio’s smart technology has been seen in the Ediface range of watches, it’ll come to the G Shock range for the first time in 2017.
You may be familiar with the Casio’s G Shock watches due to their chunky, funky design and ability to withstand plenty of abuse due to impressive water and shock resistance. There’s also a surprising amount of cool technology inside these watches. Owen explained it to us.
“I always felt G shock was a little underrated when it comes to technology,” he said. “Everyone knows they’re tough watches, but few people get to appreciate the additional technology that goes into them.”
A Tough Movement G Shock will resist g forces up to 15G.
We’re not talking about the music-controlling G-Mix G Shock models here. It goes deeper than that. A great example is its Tough Movement tech, which is found in high-end G Shock watches, and combines features like solar charging and automatically updating time. The most recently introduced feature is centrifugal gravity resistance, which goes a step beyond the already comprehensive shock protection.
“If you hit a watch against something with enough force, the internal movement gets pressed very hard against the internal shock absorbers, which affects the shock absorption rate in the future. For Tough Movement watches, each individual part is coated in resin and secured with screws to stop it moving too far when this happens.”
This clever solution means a Tough Movement G Shock will resist g forces up to 15G. Yes, 15G.The world’s best jet fighter pilots will deal with a maximum of about 12G, meaning we’d be very unlucky to experience anything close to the watch’s limit in our lives.
Delve deeper into Casio’s technology and we come to a unique solution dealing with misaligned watch hands. This is where the hands don’t always point exactly to where they should – due to impact or magnetism — which is not only frustrating, but can cause inaccurate time readings.
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
“With Tough Movement, each cog in the movement has a series of holes that align with an LED light and a sensor. Every 60 minutes, it checks to make sure they all match up. If there are any discrepancies, it simply automatically realigns.
It’s a neat, no-bother alternative that’s way more reliable than a manual reset option, and makes sure the watch on your wrist is always as accurate as possible. Just remember, all this is squeezed into a wristwatch. Yes, a G Shock is hardly small, shy and retiring; but it’s still a pretty tight space for a lot of tech, and we’re not finished yet.
With a full solar charge, the watch could be hidden in a drawer for 22 and a half months, and still be working when you took it out.”
Solar charging is a major feature on Casio watches, and one which will be part of the new Casio Connected models too. You may assume it operates using the crystal over the face, but that wouldn’t fit in with Casio’s dedicated to toughness. On a Casio watch with solar charging, the photovoltaic cells are printed onto the watch face itself.
“There’s no point in putting a piece of glass in there that’s going to break,” Owen pointed out. “We have one of the best power reserves in the industry too, extending up to 23 months. With a full solar charge, the watch could be hidden in a drawer for 22 and a half months, and still be working when you took it out.”
For a single 24-hours day’s use, the little cell needs to see sunlight for just eight minutes, 30 minutes of sunlight through a window, or eight hours of indoor lighting. Incorporating solar power into its watches is an important step in the toughening process for Casio, because it removes the need for battery changes, which would disturb the delicate o-rings and other gaskets necessary for water proofing. Even the screws holding the watch together are important. They’re all tightened to a specific torque setting, ensuring the body meets shock proofing requirements, which is why sometimes the screw heads don’t all “match” across the body and point in the same direction.
Casio’s Connected G Shock hybrid smartwatches coming later this year will include the Tough Movement, meaning we can be sure it stays operational and in one piece, almost regardless of what we’re doing. Water resistance, high levels of durability, and long-lasting batteries are usually wish-list features on our gadgets, but Casio’s hybrid watches will tick all those boxes.
“Casio Connected is going to be our big thing for the end of the year,” Owen said.
Learning about the tech that’s already inside a G Shock, with the prospect of more to come, makes us excited for them too.
IBM’s ultimate Model F mechanical keyboard makes a brief comeback
Why it matters to you
If you’ve been pining over that IBM Model F keyboard that you lost 30 years ago, here’s your chance to buy another one.
For some people, a keyboard is a keyboard is a keyboard. If the keys don’t stick and the right letters appear on the screen when the keys are pressed, then any keyboard is as good as another. That doesn’t describe everyone, however, particularly anyone who types thousands of words a day and who’s particularly sensitive to a keyboard’s quality. For such a person who’s also old enough, the IBM Model F keyboard is probably the gold standard.
The biggest problem with the Model F, however, is that it was originally released in the early 1980s with the IBM PC 5150 and it ended production by the end of the decade. What made the Model F special was the buckling spring switch technology that IBM developed in the 1970s, and for anyone who remembers its satisfying tactile feel, there’s great news — the Model F is now available for purchase for a limited time.
Interestingly, it’s not IBM that has resurrected the Model F, but rather keyboard enthusiast Joe Strandberg, as PCMag reports. Strandberg invested roughly $100,000 on the endeavor, lining up a Chinese factory and organizing the production of Model F keyboards that are identical to the original. Duplicating the Model F design wasn’t an individual effort, however, but rather involved numerous Deskthority, Reddit, and Geekhack community members.
At the heart of the keyboard is the buckling spring switch technology that IBM developed and that provides what many people consider to be the ultimate in mechanical switch action. Today’s mechanical switch keyboards are essentially modeled after the IBM switches, aiming to provide the same responsiveness, accuracy, and comfort that created such a following, In addition, the Model F was constructed from durable materials, including more than five pounds of steel and other metals.
Time is running out to order one of Strandberg’s Model F keyboards, however. He’s only taking orders through July 31, 2017 for the first run, with a price of $325 for a metal base keyboard without keys. Key sets start at $29, and layout options include ANSI, ISO, and HHKB-style. This isn’t a crowdfunded effort, however — much of the up-front costs have already been paid and that’s the final price for a keyboard that will ship in two to three months. If you’re interested in taking a moderately priced trip back in time, then head here to order your own Model F, or you’ll be waiting until next year for another chance.
Wear Tag Heuer’s $3,650 Android Wear smartwatch, and look like a Kingsman agent
Why it matters to you
If you’ve admired the style of the agents in the Kingsman movie, then you’ll want one of these special edition Tag Heuer smartwatches, made to celebrate the sequel.
While top Mi6 secret agent James Bond wears an Omega Seamaster watch, Kingsman agents are going to sport Tag Heuer timepieces in the Kingsman: The Golden Circle movie, with one of them will being the Connected Modular 45 Android Wear watch. Fans wanting to mimic the suave style of stars Colin Firth and Taron Egerton have the chance to buy their own Kingsman special edition of the Connected Modular 45, if they have $3,650 spare to spend.
What’s special about the Kingsman edition of the watch? It’s more than just a flashy Android Wear watch face, thankfully. It’ll be instantly recognizable to those in-the-know due to the rose gold lugs either side of the matte black body, which attach to one of two unique strap designs: A bright orange alcantara leather version with a rubber back, and a brown leather sports strap. Flip the body over and a Kingsman logo is stamped on it, and it all comes in a large and impressive presentation box.
Don’t worry, Tag Heuer hasn’t forgotten to customize the watch face. The Kingsman face has the upturned K logo, while a blue, grey, and rose gold color scheme makes it really stand out. There are some cool touches too, like the fun animation that happens every day at 10:10. We’re hoping this will be customizable, because what’s fun the first time, may not be fun every day for the rest of your life.
Apparently, the Connected 45 Modular, which will be worn by Kingsman agents in the film, will, “play a decisive role,” due to its water resistance and toughness. The new movie introduces agents from the Statesman branch, who will wear Tag Heuer’s Monaco Calibre 11 mechanical watches instead of the Android Wear watch.
Tag Heuer introduced the Connected 45 Modular earlier this year as a sequel to the Carrera Connected, the first Swiss-made Android Wear smartwatch. We found out just how accurate the statement about the Connected Modular 45 being a Swiss-made smartwatch is, when we spoke to Intel about collaborating with Tag Heuer, during the Baselworld watch show in March.
Where can you get the Kingsman version of the Connected Modular 45? It’s exclusive to online fashion retailer Mr. Porter at the moment, and will be sold from July 6 at the high price of $3.650, or 3,100 British pounds, twice that of a normal Connected Modular 45. Don’t forget, the modular nature of this watch means you can swap parts around, and even change the body out for a mechanical version, giving it a considerably longer life than a standard Android Wear watch. Kingsman: The Golden Circle will be released in September.
Robots may soon be helping travelers lost inside Japan’s biggest rail stations
Why it matters to you
The robots will be a welcome sight for anyone lost inside one of Japan’s larger, labyrinthine train stations.
Anyone arriving for the first time in one of Japan’s larger train stations — think Shinjuku or Tokyo — probably wonder if they’ll ever see daylight again, the seemingly endless, maze-like passageways serving to baffle and beleaguer with every corner turned.
That’s part of the reason why Japan Railways, the nation’s largest rail company, is tapping local tech talent, so it can build an army of robots to staff the stations and help confused travelers find their way.
JR East, which operates a good many train services in the east of the country, has just set up a new company to develop robot technology for a range of activities, RocketNews24 reported this week.
JRA Robotics Station, as it’s called, will work on building a guidance robot to help travelers navigate busy train stations, leading them to their train or the appropriate exit. The wheel-based bots will have multi-language capabilities to assist the increasing number of tourists coming from overseas. Even better, the robots are set to include spaces for luggage, enabling you to proceed through the station in a more comfortable fashion while reducing the likelihood of a hurrying office-bound salaryman tripping over your suitcase.
JR East
The new company’s plans also include developing robots that can clean the stations, and also perform security functions using on-board cameras to spot suspicious behavior, with automatic alerts sent to nearby human officers.
As RocketNews24 points out, JR East also operates other facilities such as shopping malls and hotels, so its robots could also be deployed in those locations, too.
It’s not clear how long it’ll be before these multi-talented robots go into service, but with the Olympics coming to Tokyo in 2o2o, many Japanese companies — with JR East likely among them — are keen to showcase their offerings to the millions of overseas travelers expected to visit the country during the grand sporting extravaganza.
There’s already been much talk of introducing self-driving taxis in Tokyo by 2020, with several local firms making progress toward making them a reality. Meanwhile, Pepper the “emotional” robot was launched by Japanese telecoms giant SoftBank several years ago to perform a variety of tasks for humans, and has already been deployed at a number of facilities both inside and outside of the country.
Another factor motivating Japan’s interest in robot technology is the nation’s rapidly aging economy and shrinking population, with labor shortages a growing problem for many firms in a country traditionally resistant to large-scale immigration.
Honor 9 review: The best phone for less than £400
The Honor 9 isn’t perfect, but it is a great all-rounder that makes high-end performance and design more affordable than ever before.
The quick take
The Honor 9 is a fantastic affordable flagship with a beautiful design, fast performance and dependable all-day battery life. At this price point, the biggest thing you’ll miss from more expensive handsets is a reliable low-light camera.
The Good
- Beautiful design
- Fast, reliable performance
- Dependable all-day battery life
- Good camera performance even in high-contrast shots
The Bad
- Glass back causes it to slide off flat surfaces
- Unimpressive low-light camera performance
- EMUI software will be a turn-off for some
Honor 9 Full Review
Huawei’s Honor brand has defined itself by its presence in the “affordable flagship” space — that £400 sweet spot where you can pick up a pretty good phone that also won’t break the bank.
As a sub-brand of Huawei, Honor’s fortunes have mirrored in parallel with those of its parent company. The first round of Honor phones released in Europe was hamstrung by weird, broken software. Then in 2016, the Honor 8 gave us a glimpse of just how good an Honor phone with a bold new design and decent, stable software could be.
This year’s follow-up, the Honor 9, doesn’t change all that much. That’s not a bad thing at all — between some welcome refinements to the design, some subtle performance improvements and ramped up storage, the Honor 9 changes just enough to stay relevant. And with a price tag of £379.99 in the UK, it continues to lead the pack in terms of value.
Sure, there are some compromises, as we’ll detail in our full review below. But in the context of rising prices throughout the smartphone market, the fact that you can get this much phone for under £400 is truly impressive.
About this review
We’re publishing this review after a week using a sapphire blue, European-spec Honor 9 (STF-L09) with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage on the EE network in Manchester, UK, and while roaming on Telekom.de in Berlin, Germany. The phone was running firmware build STF-L09C432B100.
Our review unit is a little different to the model that’ll be sold in the UK, which comes with 4GB of RAM instead. Based on our experiences with similar Huawei phones, we don’t expect the difference in RAM to have a significant impact on performance.
Oh so shiny
Honor 9 Hardware
It’s tough for even the most expensive of flagship phones to stand out right now. Which is why it’s so impressive that a more affordable handset like the Honor 9 manages to sport such an eye-catching design. The phone takes the design of its predecessor, the Honor 8, and adds subtle refinements like a curved glass back panel, and cleaner joins between the metal and glass — no more plastic rim around the metal side walls.
It also fits more comfortably in the hand than last year’s model, and despite its curved frame, it’s not especially slippery in the hand. In fact, I’ve found it sits more securely in my hand than the Honor 8, while also being more ergonomic.
The brushed aluminum trim complements the color of the curved glass, with chamfered edges that help with grip. And the outer frame also houses all your ports and buttons — headphone jack and USB-C down below, power and volume on the right edge, and SIM tray up top; the Honor 9 has a primary SIM slot, plus a hybrid slot that can be used for either a second SIM or a microSD card.
Forget the price for a moment — the Honor 9 is one of the best-looking Android phones, period.
Both sides of the phone are glad in Corning Gorilla Glass 3, and the back is adorned with a beautiful reflective pattern (created out of 15 layers of glass, Honor says), that alternates between white, deep blue and purple depending on the angle at which it’s held. The only downside? One of my least favorite features of the Honor 8, its ability to hockey-puck its way across flat surfaces, is also back. So you’ll want to be careful to prop it up when it’s lying flat, or use the bundled clear case.
With a 5.15-inch screen diagonal, the Honor 9 actually slightly smaller than last year’s model, and definitely one of the more compact flagship phones available right now. Elsewhere in the Android world, 5.5 inches is increasingly seen as the standard screen size, so if you’re after something more friendly to one-handed use, the Honor 9 has you covered.
The panel itself is a 1080p IPS LCD, which holds its own against rivals at this price point. It’s not as bright as the HTC U11’s SuperLCD5, but it does compare favorably with the OnePlus 5’s Optic AMOLED. Colors are consistently vibrant, if a little on the cool side — fortunately, color temperature can be adjusted through the Display Settings menu.
The main functional change from earlier Honor phones is the removal of software keys — these are gone from the software, instead replaced by OnePlus-style swappable capacitive keys for “back” and “recent apps,” either side of the fingerprint scanner, which is also your home key. I’m not particularly missing the soft keys of old, though the decision to not include them as an option is a little bizarre. What’s more, the home key seems to suffer from the same sensitivity issues as the Mate 9 Porsche Design (aka Mate 9 Pro) on earlier firmware — the sensitivity is just a bit low for my liking.
P10-class internals provide ample horsepower.
The new button layout means the programmable convenience key and notification shade shortcuts from the Honor 8 are also gone. (RIP.) That’s not a huge deal for me personally, for others it may be a deal-breaker.
On the inside, the internals of the Honor 9 closely match the hardware of the Huawei P10, which we reviewed back in March. Huawei’s own Kirin 960 CPU provides more than enough power for a smooth Android experience, backed up by 4GB of RAM in the UK and 6GB in select European countries. (I’ve been using the 6GB model, as noted in the intro.) There’s also an ample 64GB of storage onboard — enough breathing space for most people to not worry about offloading photos and music to an SD card.
And rounding off the spec sheet, a relatively large 3,200mAh battery with 9V/2A quick charging.
| Operating System | EMUI 5.1 / Android 7.0 |
| Processor | Kirin 960 octa-core, 4x 2.4GHz + 4x 1.8GHz |
| RAM | 4GB (6GB in some mainland European countries) |
| Storage | 64GB |
| Display | 2.5D glass front 5.15-inch 1920×1080 – 428 ppi |
| Main Cameras | 12MP RGB + 20MP monochrome, f/2.2 |
| Front Camera | 8MP |
| Connectivity | Wifi a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5GHz Bluetooth 4.2 Fingerprint USB Type-C supporting USB-OTG |
| SIM Card | Dual nano SIM or nano SIM + microSD |
| Frequency bands | 4G LTE: B1/B3/B5/B7/B8/B203G UMTS: B1/B2/B5/B8GSM/EDGE: B2/B3/B5/B8 |
| Battery | 3,200mAh, 9V/2A quick charging |
| Dimensions | 147.3 x 70.9 x 7.45 mm |
| Weight | 155 grams |
| Colors | Glacier Grey / Sapphire Blue / Midnight Black |
The Kirin 960 — however much RAM is backing it up — is a proven chip, having powered speedy handsets like the Huawei Mate 9, P10 and Honor 8 Pro. It’s an octa-core chip with four ARM Cortex-A73 cores for high-performance duties, paired with four efficient Cortex-A53 cores for lighter tasks. And for demanding graphical apps and games, ARM’s Mali-G71 GPU, with support for the Vulkan graphics API, ensures there’s plenty of power to go around. Benchmark performance will undoubtedly vary, but games like Asphalt 8 and Need for Speed: Most Wanted performed just as well on the Honor 9 as on pricier flagships like the Galaxy S8.
The Honor 9’s dual camera setup is another point of interest. You’re basically looking at the Huawei P10’s dual-camera array, only without the Leica image tuning (and branding), and without OIS (optical image stabilization.) As we’ll discover later in this review, that translates into the camera performing about as well as the P10 in daylight, but with performance quickly degrading in low light.
EMUI 5.1
Honor 9 Software
Both Huawei and its Honor sub-brand share a common software platform, EMUI. In years past, EMUI’s various quirks have been a point of contention for many users in the West. Sometimes apps wouldn’t quite work right, or notifications would be broken, or the software would be way too aggressive about killing background tasks, often with annoying consequences.
But Huawei’s software suite has been improving significantly over the past year. And although the latest EMUI 5.1, based on Android 7.0 Nougat, is still highly differentiated compared to what Samsung, HTC and Google offer, it’s better looking and more usable than ever right now.
Little has changed since we last experienced EMUI on the Honor 8 Pro — the software is basically identical, only scaled down onto a smaller display. The core of Huawei’s software had a minimalist aesthetic, with a clean blue and white color scheme. Other areas, such as the launcher and app icons, are infinitely customizable thanks to the many skins in Huawei’s Themes app.
While many iOS influences remain in parts of EMUI, particularly in the home screen launcher, the latest version feels much more like Android than previous versions. Notifications — aside from their rounded corners and some color changes — work more or less the same way they do in stock Android. And the recent apps are shown in the standard “Rolodex” layout.
EMUI 5.1 is better than you (probably) think it is.
More importantly, EMUI is fast — almost as speedy as the Google Pixel and OnePlus 5 in day-to-day tasks, and on par with the Samsung Galaxy S8 in most apps. (Again, benchmark scores will likely differ.)
Huawei has also brought AI to bear on its software, with intelligent features designed to learn your usage patterns and cache apps in the background accordingly. For example, if you always load Instagram after taking a photo in the camera app, EMUI should pick up on this behavior and start pre-caching Instagram before you need it. Less-used apps can also be compressed in memory, saving space for more frequently accessed apps.
That’s the theory, anyway. There’s no way to really see this stuff at work, and I couldn’t really judge how much these features are contributing to the overall performance of the phone. Nevertheless, as I said, it’s fast.
EMUI’s expansive feature set has also made it across to the Honor 9, with a useful one-handed mode, deep notification management, and a handy Twin App function that lets you use multiple WhatsApp, WeChat or Facebook accounts on a single device. And a partnership with GoPro has yielded automatic album sorting and video highlights — a neat feature, but hardly something unique in the world of smartphone photography.
Honor doubles down on sound quality and audio tuning, with partnerships aplenty.
Finally, audio is another major focus for the Honor 9 — it’s the first phone to feature Huawei’s HiSten 3D audio system, and its internal speaker is tuned by Grammy-winning engineer Rainer Maillard. The built-in bottom-firing speaker sounds decent, if a little tinny at higher volume levels. I guess what I’m saying is it sounds like a smartphone speaker — I wouldn’t have necessarily known there was any special tuning going on there, but it’s a respectable speaker for a mobile device. I was more impressed with music playback through the headphone jack, where the software tuning — this time done in partnership with Monster — managed to recreate bassy, voluminous sound while retaining plenty of clarity.
Overall, it still feels like EMUI 5.1 has some growing to do, and it’ll be interesting to see what EMUI 6 (and presumably Android 8.0) bring to future Huawei and Honor devices. For what it’s worth, Honor has promised an upgrade to the new version of Android, but there’s no timetable for that at present.
Dual lenses
Honor 9 Camera
I’ll say this upfront: The Honor 9’s camera situation is a bit of a mixed bag. The software and image processing is pretty good, and dynamic range is typically great, as I’ve come to expect from Huawei’s cameras. But to perform well in low light, a phone camera needs large pixels, a bright aperture or OIS, and the Honor 9 has none of these things.
In hardware terms, you’re dealing with two sensors — a 12-megapixel RGB sensor with 1.25-micron pixels behind an f/2.2 aperture, and a 20-megapixel monochrome sensor, used for capturing fine detail, with 1.1-micron pixels, also behind a f/2.2 lens. As we’ve already noted, there’s no OIS to be found in either camera.
As a result, predictably, low-light performance suffers compared to the handful of discounted 2016 flagships you might find around the same price point as the Honor 9. Once you start shooting in auto mode in dim indoor conditions, or outside by streetlight, chroma noise quickly decimates your images.
There is a dedicated low-light shooting mode, however this is largely useless without a smartphone tripod. (That said, if you do have a tripod to hand, you’ll get some pretty great long exposures.)
Curiously, the front-facing camera — an 8-megapixel unit behind a brighter f/2.0 lens — seemed to outperform the main pair of cameras, with quick captures and a decent amount of detail, even in precarious indoor lighting.
The Honor 9 brings some fun camera features to the table, but low-light results are mixed at best.
Bottom line: If you pick up an Honor 9, be prepared for mixed results in low-light.
Outside of unfortunately rough night photography, the Honor 9 performed admirably in daytime conditions, producing sharp images with ample color detail and excellent dynamic range even in very challenging backlit conditions. Photos appeared somewhat desaturated compared to the likes of the Galaxy S8 and OnePlus 5, but still sharp and pleasing to the eyes.
Although the Honor 9’s camera isn’t Leica-branded, many of the shooting modes from Huawei’s premium-tier phones have made it across. The always impressive low-depth-of-field mode allows you to artistically blur the background of shots for an impressive bokeh effect — and unlike the equivalent mode on many rival phones, it actually works. And there’s a new portrait feature, basically copied over from the P10, it seems, which zooms in slightly and introduces similar bokeh effects in an attempt to recreate the iPhone’s portrait mode.
As is often the case when manufacturers try to straight up copy Apple’s features, results are mixed — it’s possible to get some really great-looking portrait, but you’ll also capture some duds while you’re at it.
Speaking of zoom, the combination of 12+20MP sensors allows the Honor 9 to have a decent go at lossless zoom — at least up to 2X. This feature is no substitute for true optical zoom like the iPhone’s, or even OnePlus’s telephoto offering, but it is noticeably superior to most phones digital zoom capabilities.
So the Honor 9 isn’t a flawless smartphone camera, its main area of weakness being low light. But if you can get past that, you’ll find some fun features to play around with.
Power pack
Honor 9 Battery life
With a 3,200mAh cell powering efficient internals and a relatively small display, it was no surprise to see the Honor 9 comfortably getting through a full day on a single charge. On lighter days, the phone routinely got me through a full day of use with more than 50 percent charge remaining.
A relatively small display plus a relatively large battery team up for enviable longevity.
When I was able to deplete the Honor 9’s battery before bedtime, it was only with much heavier use. Over the course of a full, busy day with 14 hours off the charger and plenty of media streaming over Wi-Fi and LTE, I was able to eke out between 4.5 and 5 hours of screen-on time.
Finally, while it’s disappointing to see the Honor 9 missing out on Huawei’s SuperCharge tech — which rivals OnePlus’s Dash Charge in terms of speed — I really didn’t find myself missing the extra charging speed on a regular basis. For a phone of this class and battery capacity, the bundled 9V/2A quick charger — basically equivalent to Qualcomm Quick Charge 2 — was more than sufficient for speedy refills to the 50 percent mark, and slightly less speedy top-ups to full.
The Bottom Line
Should you buy the Honor 9? Yes!
Priced comfortably below £400, the Honor 9 is almost a no-brainer.
After just over a week with the phone, there are only a couple of things about the Honor 9 that give me pause: Firstly, the camera just isn’t that great, particularly in darker conditions — that’s just weird given how prominently low-light photography features in the marketing for this phone.
The Honor 9 is a hell of a phone for the money.
Second, although EMUI 5.1 is an oasis of usability compared to the mess of earlier versions, many buyers — myself included — will prefer something closer to vanilla Android. (Or at the very least, something less aggressively customized.) I can live with EMUI, and it doesn’t bug me as much as it did a year ago. But I’m a long way off being in love with Huawei’s software.
As for the rest of the experience, Honor has done a fantastic job bringing premium build quality and performance into a highly affordable compact handset. The Honor 9 is speedy, beautiful and long-lasting, and worthy of your consideration if you want a capable smartphone that won’t break the bank.
AIVAnet 