Huawei Nova 9 SE vs Nova 8

59 out of 100

66 out of 100

Here we compared two mid-range smartphones: the 6.78-inch Huawei Nova 9 SE (with Qualcomm Snapdragon 680) that was released on March 8, 2022, against the Huawei Nova 8, which is powered by HiSilicon Kirin 985 5G and came out 14 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Differences
Review
Specs
Benchmarks
Battery life
Camera
Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone

Reasons to consider the Huawei Nova 9 SE

Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 512GB
The phone is 1-year and 2-months newer

Reasons to consider the Huawei Nova 8

Newer Bluetooth version (v5.1)
Ability to record video in 4K resolution
OLED display (versus competitor''s TFT LCD)
Reverse charging feature
68% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 946 and 563 points
Weighs 22 grams less
The front-facing camera can record video at 4K

Review

Evaluation of Huawei Nova 9 SE and Nova 8 crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Nova 9 SE

Nova 8

Camera

Photo and video recording quality

Nova 9 SE

Nova 8

Performance

CPU and memory performance (apps, system)

Nova 9 SE

Nova 8

60 *

Gaming

Capabilities for playing modern games

Nova 9 SE

Nova 8

Battery

Battery life, charging type and speed

Nova 9 SE

78 *

Nova 8

74 *

Connectivity

Networks, ports, data transmission

Nova 9 SE

Nova 8

Scores with a red asterisk ( * ) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.

NanoReview Score

Final comparison evaluation

Nova 9 SE

59 *

Nova 8

66 *

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests

Phone:

Nova 9 SE

Nova 8

Display

Type	TFT LCD	OLED
Size	6.78 inches	6.57 inches
Resolution	1080 x 2388 pixels	1080 x 2340 pixels
Aspect ratio	19.5:9	19.5:9
PPI	387 ppi	392 ppi
Refresh rate	90 Hz	90 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	No	No
Max rated brightness	500 nits	550 nits
HDR support	No	Yes, HDR10
Screen protection	Tempered glass	Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio	89.5%	89.3%
Display features	- DCI-P3	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display

Design and build

Height	164.64 mm (6.48 inches)	160.1 mm (6.3 inches)
Width	75.55 mm (2.97 inches)	74.1 mm (2.92 inches)
Thickness	7.94 mm (0.31 inches)	7.6 mm (0.3 inches)
Weight	191 g (6.74 oz)	169 g (5.96 oz)
Waterproof	No	No
Rear material	Plastic	Glass
Frame material	Plastic	Metal
Colors	White, Black, Blue	White, Black, Blue, Green
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-button	Yes, in-display

Screen-to-body ratio

Nova 9 SE

89.5%

Nova 8

89.3%

Performance

Tests of Huawei Nova 9 SE and Huawei Nova 8 in the benchmarks

SoC
Chipset	Qualcomm Snapdragon 680	HiSilicon Kirin 985 5G
Max clock	2400 MHz	2560 MHz
CPU cores	8 (4 + 4)	8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 1.9 GHz: Kryo 265 Silver (Cortex-A53) - 4 cores at 2.4 GHz: Kryo 265 Gold (Cortex-A73)	- 4 cores at 1.84 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 3 cores at 2.4 GHz: Cortex-A76 - 1 core at 2.58 GHz: Cortex-A76
Lithography process	6 nanometers	7 nanometers
Graphics	Adreno 610	Mali-G77 MP8
GPU shading units	128	512
GPU clock	1110 MHz	695 MHz
FLOPS	~284 GFLOPS	~711.7 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Nova 9 SE

563

Nova 8 +68%

946

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Nova 9 SE

1618

Nova 8 +53%

2483

AnTuTu Benchmark 10

Nova 9 SE

317272

Nova 8

n/a

CPU	107105	-
GPU	49609	-
Memory	90534	-
UX	67774	-
Total score	317272	-

3DMark Wild Life Performance

Nova 9 SE

448

Nova 8 +378%

2141

Stability	99%	96%
Graphics test	2 FPS	12 FPS
Graphics score	448	2141

PCMark 3.0

Nova 9 SE

6426

Nova 8

n/a

Web score	6277	-
Video editing	3608	-
Photo editing	10226	-
Data manipulation	5639	-
Writing score	7392	-

Memory

RAM
RAM size	6, 8 GB	8 GB
Memory type	LPDDR4X	LPDDR4X
Memory clock	-	1866 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage
Storage size	128, 256 GB	128, 256 GB
Storage type	UFS 2.1	UFS 2.1
Memory card	MicroSD	No
Memory card max size	Up to 512 GB	-

Software

Operating system	Android 11	Android 10.0 (Can be upgraded to Android 11)
ROM	EMUI 12	EMUI 11

Battery

Capacity	4000 mAh	3800 mAh
Max charge power	66 W	66 W
Battery type	Li-Po	Li-Po
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	No	No
Reverse charging	No	Yes
Fast charging	Yes (50% in 13 min)	Yes (60% in 15 min)
Full charging time	0:37 hr	0:35 hr

Camera

Specs and camera test of smartphones

Main camera
Matrix	108 megapixels	64 megapixels
Image resolution	12000 x 9000	9000 x 7000
Zoom	Digital	Digital
Flash	LED	LED
Stabilization	Digital	Digital
8K video recording	No	No
4K video recording	No	Up to 30FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 30FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	-	960 FPS (720p)
Angle of widest lens	112°	120°
Lenses	4 (108 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP)	4 (64 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 108 MP - Aperture: f/1.9 - Pixel size: 0.7 micron - Sensor: 1/1.52", Samsung S5KHM2 (ISOCELL Plus CMOS) - Phase autofocus	- 64 MP - Aperture: f/1.9 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.7" (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus
Ultra-wide lens	- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.2	- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 17 mm - Sensor: 1/4" (CMOS)
Macro lens	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4
Depth lens	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode

Selfie camera
Megapixels	16 megapixels	32 megapixels
Image resolution	4608 x 3456	6528 x 4896
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.0
Focal length	22 mm	26 mm
Pixel size	-	0.8 microns
Sensor type	CMOS	CMOS
Sensor size	-	1/2.8"
Video resolution	1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS	2160p (4K) at 30 FPS

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac)	Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5	5.1
Bluetooth features	LE, A2DP	LE, A2DP
USB type	USB Type-C	USB Type-C
USB version	2	2
USB features	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG
GPS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS
NFC *	Depends on the region	Yes
Infrared port	No	No

Network
Number of SIM *	2	2
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
Multi SIM mode	Standby	Standby
eSIM support *	No	No
Hybrid slot	Yes	No
LTE Cat *	-	20
5G support	No	Yes

Sound

Speakers	Mono	Mono
Headphone audio jack	No	No
FM radio	No	No
Dolby Atmos	No	No

Other

Category	Mid-range	Mid-range
Announced	March 2022	December 2020
Release date	March 2022	January 2021
Sensors	- Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint	- Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint
Bundled charger	Yes, 66 W	-

* Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

After analyzing all the data, we think that the Huawei Nova 8 is definitely a better buy.