Nova and Nova Plus are Huawei’s Latest Mid-range Smartphones

Even though a Huawei executive had explicitly stated that we weren’t going to see the latest from the Mate series, we got to see something new, a new smartphone series from Huawei.

Unlike what we’d heard in the run-up to today’s launch at IFA 2016 in Berlin, the two new smartphones from Huawei, Nova and Nova Plus, are not targeted specifically at women (which is why I gave the rumour a wide berth as that alone sounded ridiculous, to say the least). They’re for everybody. Huawei is just trying out something to add to its other efforts with the G series and its high-flying Honor sub-brand.

A statement from the company plays up the device’s ergonomics, performance and high-quality photography, a necessity since they are targeted at a younger audience just like the budget devices the company unveiled in Nigeria today.

Here are their specifications:

	Huawei Nova	Huawei Nova Plus
Size and weight	141.2 x 69.1 x 7.1mm, 146g	151.8 x 75.7 x 7.3 mm, 160g
Display	5-inch Full HD (443ppi)	5.5inch Full HD (401ppi)
Processor	Snapdragon 625	Snapdragon 650
Memory	3GB RAM; 32GB internal storage (can be expanded up to 128GB via microSD)	Same
Camera	8MP front; 12MP back	8MP front; 16MP back with OIS
Operating System	Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with Emotion UI 4.1	Same
Battery	3,020mAh	3,3400mAh
Network	3G, 4G LTE	Same
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/, Bluetooth 4.1, USB Type-C	Same
Colour	Titanium Grey, Mystic Silver, Prestige Gold	Same
Other	Fingerprint scanner	Same

The Huawei Nova costs an equivalent of Kshs 45,000 while the Nova Plus costs an equivalent of Kshs 48,000, not exactly what you’d call your typical mid-range pricing locally but not surprising since we’ve seen Samsung price its Galaxy A series devices in that range.

Both devices are available immediately in China through online stores while everyone else will have to wait for October when they hit the global market.