Huawei Nova 9 SE vs Nova 7i

59 out of 100

56 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 7i, which is powered by HiSilicon Kirin 810 and came out 25 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

Higher display refresh rate – 90 Hz
Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 512GB
Has a 0.38 inch larger screen size
Supports higher wattage charging (66W versus 40W)
More recent OS version: Android 11 versus 10
The phone is 2-years and 1-month newer
Thinner bezels – 6% more screen real estate

Reasons to consider the Huawei Nova 7i

28% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (405K versus 317K)
58% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 888 and 563 points
Includes a 3.5 mm headphone audio jack port

Review

Evaluation of Huawei Nova 9 SE and Nova 7i crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Nova 9 SE

Nova 7i

Camera

Photo and video recording quality

Nova 9 SE

Nova 7i

Performance

CPU and memory performance (apps, system)

Nova 9 SE

Nova 7i

Gaming

Capabilities for playing modern games

Nova 9 SE

Nova 7i

Battery

Battery life, charging type and speed

Nova 9 SE

78 *

Nova 7i

78 *

Connectivity

Networks, ports, data transmission

Nova 9 SE

Nova 7i

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 7i

56 *

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests

Phone:

Nova 9 SE

Nova 7i

Display

Type	TFT LCD	IPS LCD
Size	6.78 inches	6.4 inches
Resolution	1080 x 2388 pixels	1080 x 2310 pixels
Aspect ratio	19.5:9	19.2:9
PPI	387 ppi	398 ppi
Refresh rate	90 Hz	60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	No	No
Max rated brightness	500 nits	500 nits
HDR support	No	No
Screen protection	Tempered glass	Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio	89.5%	83.5%
Display features	- DCI-P3	-

Design and build

Height	164.64 mm (6.48 inches)	159.2 mm (6.27 inches)
Width	75.55 mm (2.97 inches)	76.3 mm (3 inches)
Thickness	7.94 mm (0.31 inches)	8.7 mm (0.34 inches)
Weight	191 g (6.74 oz)	183 g (6.46 oz)
Waterproof	No	No
Rear material	Plastic	Plastic
Frame material	Plastic	Plastic
Colors	White, Black, Blue	Black, Green, Pink
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-button	Yes, in-button

Screen-to-body ratio

Nova 9 SE +7%

89.5%

Nova 7i

83.5%

Performance

Tests of Huawei Nova 9 SE and Huawei Nova 7i in the benchmarks

SoC
Chipset	Qualcomm Snapdragon 680	HiSilicon Kirin 810
Max clock	2400 MHz	2270 MHz
CPU cores	8 (4 + 4)	8 (2 + 6)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 1.9 GHz: Kryo 265 Silver (Cortex-A53) - 4 cores at 2.4 GHz: Kryo 265 Gold (Cortex-A73)	- 6 cores at 1.9 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2.27 GHz: Cortex-A76
Lithography process	6 nanometers	7 nanometers
Graphics	Adreno 610	Mali-G52 MP6
GPU shading units	128	144
GPU clock	1110 MHz	820 MHz
FLOPS	~284 GFLOPS	~236.2 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Nova 9 SE

563

Nova 7i +58%

888

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Nova 9 SE

1618

Nova 7i +33%

2157

AnTuTu Benchmark 10

Nova 9 SE

317272

Nova 7i +28%

405563

CPU	107105	127606
GPU	49609	87490
Memory	90534	87020
UX	67774	102295
Total score	317272	405563

3DMark Wild Life Performance

Nova 9 SE

448

Nova 7i

n/a

Stability	99%	-
Graphics test	2 FPS	-
Graphics score	448	-

PCMark 3.0

Nova 9 SE

6426

Nova 7i

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	-	2133 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage
Storage size	128, 256 GB	128 GB
Storage type	UFS 2.1	UFS 2.1
Memory card	MicroSD	Nano Memory
Memory card max size	Up to 512 GB	Up to 256 GB

Software

Operating system	Android 11	Android 10.0
ROM	EMUI 12	EMUI 10
OS size	-	14.7 GB

Battery

Capacity	4000 mAh	4200 mAh
Max charge power	66 W	40 W
Battery type	Li-Po	Li-Po
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	No	No
Reverse charging	No	No
Fast charging	Yes (50% in 13 min)	Yes (70% in 30 min)
Full charging time	0:37 hr	1:10 hr

Camera

Specs and camera test of smartphones

Main camera
Matrix	108 megapixels	48 megapixels
Image resolution	12000 x 9000	8000 x 6000
Zoom	Digital	Digital
Flash	LED	LED
Stabilization	Digital	Digital
8K video recording	No	No
4K video recording	No	No
1080p video recording	Up to 30FPS	Up to 30FPS
Slow motion	-	480 FPS (720p)
Angle of widest lens	112°	119°
Lenses	4 (108 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP)	4 (48 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	- 48 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/2.0" (CMOS) - Phase autofocus
Ultra-wide lens	- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.2	- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.4
Macro lens	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 27 mm - Pixel size: 1.75 micron
Depth lens	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Pixel size: 1.75 micron - Sensor: 1/5" (CMOS)
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode

Selfie camera
Megapixels	16 megapixels	16 megapixels
Image resolution	4608 x 3456	4920 x 3264
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.0
Focal length	22 mm	-
Pixel size	-	1 microns
Sensor type	CMOS	BSI CMOS
Sensor size	-	1/3.1"
Video resolution	1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS	1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac)	Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5	5
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
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	Active
eSIM support *	No	No
Hybrid slot	Yes	Yes
LTE Cat *	-	12
5G support	No	No

Sound

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

Other

Category	Mid-range	Mid-range
Announced	March 2022	January 2020
Release date	March 2022	March 2020
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

If the display, camera, software, and design are more important to you, then choose the Huawei Nova 9 SE . But if the performance, gaming, and sound are more of a priority – go for the Huawei Nova 7i .