There’s no shortage of Chinese-built sub-R10k smartphones in South Africa. Honor has thrown another onto the pile. That’d be the Honor 600 Lite, launching at a fairly manageable R9,000. It goes above and beyond a typical mid-ranger’s capabilities, adding a dedicated ‘AI Button’ to the side — like the Magic 8 Pro.
It’s more expensive than last year’s 400 Lite, which could be picked up for an even more reasonable R8,000. With the world going in the direction that it is, we should probably count ourselves lucky that Honor has stuck to a four-digit price. Saffas will be privy to two colourways: Sprout Green and Velvet Black.
Deserving of a place of Honor?
The 600 Lite is decidedly mid-range, but that hasn’t stopped the company from zhooshing it up a little. It’s smothered in a premium-feeling metal rather than plastic, adding to the phone’s IP66 rating. It’s not quite IP69, but it should fend off basic bumps and bruises pretty well. A 120Hz-ready 6.6in AMOLED (1,200 x 2,600) display sits under a coating of aluminosilicate glass, which shouldn’t impact the phone’s 6,500 nit peak brightness.
A decent display is nothing without a good chip to back it all up, though. We’ll reserve judgment until we’ve seen it, but the Dimensity 7100 Elite lodged in here should see you through some basic scrolling. Saffas haven’t been left much choice when it comes to its RAM and storage, with the 600 Lite packing 8GB and 256GB respectively.
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More impressive is the 600 Lite’s battery, which eschews mid-range norms by chucking a 6,520mAh battery (and 45W charging) in. Whether it’ll actually hold its own against more expensive flagships remains to be seen. Judging by our time with the 400 Lite, however, we’re a little more confident that Honor can pull it off.
Making up for the semi-lacklustre chipset comes a 108MP shooter that’s bolstered by a bunch of AI features. With what remained of the budget, Honor managed to squeeze in a 5MP ultrawide sensor. A slightly more reputable 16MP lens dominates the phone’s front, likely proving acceptable for buyers with social media ambitions.
