The Chinese smartphone giants have produced some excellent value propositions in the middle and budget ends of the market in recent years. Honor 400 Lite is another aggressively priced handset that offers much for its modest €249 RRP.
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Honor 400 Lite makes no secret of its design inspiration. With squared-off edges, a flat display, and a camera module that echoes that of the iPhone, it’s clearly aimed at users who admire Apple’s aesthetic but prefer Android’s flexibility.
Flagship Design and Build
The rear panel features a subtle triangular colour shift around the camera cluster, adding a touch of visual interest and helping it stand out amongst budget handsets. The friendly box design is implemented beautifully, with the AMOLED display lending it an upmarket aesthetic.
Honor 400 Lite is very well-built for its price point. It’s solid without feeling heavy. The device feels tightly machined and its frosted edges help it stay in your hand. Honor 400 Lite feels as premium as it looks.
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Bezels are impressively slim and uniform, which enhances the overall look and feel of the device. Honor 400 Lite is also IP64 rated for water resistance, offering some protection against splashes and dust.
Premium Display
The 6.7-inch AMOLED panel is one of the Honor 400 Lite’s strongest assets. It boasts a Full HD+ resolution of 1,080 x 2,412 and a 120Hz refresh rate, making scrolling and animations feel fluid and responsive. The screen is capable of reaching up to 3,500 nits of brightness, which is exceptional for a phone in this price range and ensures good visibility even under direct sunlight.
Honor has also included seven layers of eye protection, which reduce blue light exposure and flicker. This makes the display more comfortable for prolonged use, especially when reading or watching videos at night.
Pocket-Friendly Performance
Honor 400 Lite is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7025 Ultra chipset, paired with 256GB of internal storage and our review model’s 8GB of RAM. This setup is more than enough for everyday tasks such as browsing, messaging, and light gaming.
Scrolling through social media, messaging, and light app usage is smooth, aided by the 120Hz AMOLED display. It does show its limitations for the more demanding apps, especially AAA 3D gaming.
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MagicOS, based on Android 15, looks a bit like iOS but has the freedom and customisation of Android. Some of the themes are gorgeous and some of the OS’s widgets are better than the stock Android experience.
The Magic Capsule, in particular, is a clever system that comes in handy surprisingly often, be it messaging, media playback or sign-ins.
Camera System
Honor 400 Lite camera system offers a respectable experience for the price, with a few thoughtful touches that elevate it. The camera setup includes a 108MP main sensor and a 5MP ultrawide lens. The primary camera performs well in daylight, capturing sharp and vibrant images with enough dynamic range to make daytime images pop.
Night photography suffers from a lack of optical image stabilisation and images tend to lose detail and suffer from noise.
The ultrawide lens is good for social media but doesn’t match the main sensor for detail and colour accuracy. Collections of photos taken with both lenses will show the difference plainly. While it doesn’t rival flagship devices, it’s more than capable of producing shareable shots for social media and casual use. Daylight shots from the main camera lens are particularly strong for the price.
Stamina and Charging
Battery life is another area where the Honor 400 Lite excels. The 5,230mAh cell is a significant upgrade from its predecessor and delivers excellent endurance. Power users can expect a full work day of use with ease. Moderate users may may it to bedtime on day two.
Charging is capped at 35W but this will still charge the device from 0 to 100% in about 75 minutes.
Software and Updates
One of the most impressive aspects of the Honor 400 Lite is its software support. Honor is giving the device six years of updates, including four years of major Android upgrades and two additional years of security patches. This level of commitment is rare in the budget segment.
Six years of updates coupled with the stellar build quality gives Honor 400 Lite the potential to stay in your pocket for years, only enhancing the value proposition.
Honor 400 Lite Specifications
| Chipset: | MediaTek Dimensity 7025 Ultra (6 nm) CPU – Octa-core: 2×2.5 GHz Cortex-A78 & 6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55 GPU – IMG BXM-8-256 |
| RAM: | 8GB (reviewed), 12GB |
| Storage: | 256GB |
| Display: | 6.7 inch, 1080 x 2412 pixels, 20:9 ratio, OLED, 1.07billion colours, AMOLED, 120Hz, 3500 nits (peak) |
| Camera: | – 108 MP, f/1.8, (wide), 1/1.67″, PDAF – 5 MP, f/2.2, (ultrawide) Video: 1080p@30/60fps |
| Selfie Cam: | Photo – 16MP (f/2.5) Video – 1080p@30fps |
| OS: | Android 15, MagicOS 9 |
| Battery: | Li-Po, 5230 mAh |
| Water/Dust resistance: | IP67 resistant – up to 1 metre of water for up to 30 minutes |
| Charging: | Wired: Up to 35Wwith Honor SuperCharge |
| Connectivity: | – Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct – 5.3, A2DP, LE – GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS |
| Dimensions: | 161 x 74.6 x 7.3 mm |
| Weight: | 171 grams |
| Colours: | Marrs Green, Velvet Black, Velvet Grey |
Honor 400 Lite is available now from Harvey Norman at €249 and from Currys Ireland also at €249. The device is also available with Three Ireland from free on Billpay and at €219.99 on Prepay.
