The choice of a low-end phone for around £250 is a well-considered choice. The user needs to know what he loses and what he gains compared to other smartphones in a mobile phone market where models sell for more than 1000 euros. The choice should not be just a question of money or savings before buying an expensive, full-featured phone. The decision must be based on concrete facts. That’s what we’ve been working towards by using the Huawei Y6S on a daily basis.
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Huawei Y6s release date and price
You can find this smartphone for around £128 on Amazon in the United Kingdom. That’s quite an attractive price considering what else is out there on the market today.
Huawei Y6s design and build quality
One old school novelty on the 2020 version of the Huawei Y6s is the fingerprint sensor on the back. In theory, this could be a good idea. In practice, it’s quite tedious to have to constantly run your finger behind the screen to unlock it (for a normal iPhone user). It really takes time to get used to the gesture. This simple handling is not so obvious in everyday life if you are in a hurry, as you have to hold the phone firmly almost vertically. In the end, I had to use both hands: one to hold the phone, the other to slide my finger and unlock it. For me, it’s a waste of time. At present, I only use code unlocking.
The design of the phone is as sober as it is suitable for, let’s say, intensive use. The screen unlock button is located on the right side of the unit as is the volume button. As for the charging port, it is very classic because it is located at the bottom in the middle. The headphone jack is located at the top left of the screen and works well with headphones with long wires. Here I would like to note that the unlock button is very sensitive to touch and you may unintentionally lock your screen your phone when using it.
Let’s be clear. At this price, Huawei offers a product with a minimalist design. This model has been designed for intensive use which explains the notched screen for the selfie camera. Despite this desire for maneuverability, the Huawei Y6s is relatively large (156.3 x 73.5 x 8 mm) and moderately heavy (150g). At first glance, this could be a brake for intensive use, so I put the phone in my jeans or jacket pocket to be sure. In the end, this model proved to be extremely versatile as it can be easily operated with one hand. For me who takes public transportation all the time, I could be standing in the subway while writing on WhatsApp or checking my email.
This model may be handy, but the finish makes it slippery. Let me explain. Because of its price, the manufacturer uses materials mainly glass and plastic. When you use the phone without a case and you have, for example, sweaty hands or dirty fingers, the phone can slip through your fingers. Indeed, the plastic makes your fingers slide, especially on the back and on both sides of the camera. With the black version I tested, you quickly notice the marks left by your fingers. It seems that the phone is always a little dirty and easily gets dusty and greasy.
Huawei Y6s display
The screen of this low-end model is a very nice surprise. It measures 6.09 inches and offers a resolution of 720 x 1560 pixels. Huawei’s choice to reduce the bezels of the device to leave more space on the screen is a success. But it is above all the declination of the colors of the screen to adapt it to the comfort of the eyes that holds my intention. I really liked the “Eye Comfort” feature that filters out blue light for better comfort. You can activate it manually or program it, which is ideal because you can activate it at nightfall or for one last use before going to sleep.
At this price, the screen size of the Huawei Y6s is a very good thing. One thing, though: the materials used to make the screen require us to clean the phone quite often, otherwise our fingers won’t slide properly. Apart from this important problem, the size of the screen makes it possible to view videos on the Internet very well, to play arcade games or even to make a Skype with a camera .
The extra trick: you can adapt the screen as you wish. This means that it is possible to customize the color temperature of the screen by going to the settings menu. Depending on your preferences, the screen may display a cooler or warmer colour. With regard to the glass front used to make the screen, this is a good thing because this material sometimes makes reflections or contrasts of light very unpleasant.
Huawei Y6s software
With uncertainty surrounding Huawei’s use of Google products remains, the Huawei Y6s offers full Android 9.0 functionality. The classic Google applications are pre-installed and the device seems to be able to handle the installation of several power-hungry applications from the Google Play Store. The EMUI 9.1 operating system makes things very accessible and the animations are fast. It may seem surprising at this purchase price, but it is true that the simple and intuitive software experience makes this model quite interesting.
Huawei Y6s performance
Now the entry-level question arises: is there enough power for intensive use? The question is obviously yes. If you use your smartphone to communicate, play a bit or even listen to some music, this is quite enough. I don’t know if this phone could be used as a business phone, but the navigation keys, the internal structure, and the operating system perfectly support everyday use. In this respect, I really appreciated the intelligent energy management that contributes to the optimization of the phone. As such, the 32GB offering is more than sufficient to store videos, music, and photos. Not everyone loves Huawei’s RAM management, but I like it.
| 3DMARK SLING SHOT EXTREME | 3DMARK SLING SHOT VULKAN | 3DMARK SLING SHOT | GEEKBENCH 4 (SINGLE/MULTI) | PASSMARK MEMORY | PASSMARK DISK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Huawei Y6sHuawei | 313 | 432 | 468 | * | 3181 | 5478 |
| Xiaomi Redmi 7A | 446 | 496 | 828 | – | 6574 | 52499 |
| Redmi Note 7 | 1356 | 1304 | 2065 | 1634/5904 | 12833 | 51462 |
| Huawei P Smart 2019 | 824 | 1355 | 902 | 1522/5276 | 10584 | 54661 |
| Realme 3 Pro | 1813 | 1747 | 2647 | 1494/5912 | 12456 | 54076 |
| Wiko View 3 | 429 | 658 | 659 | 758/3692 | 4436 | 31020 |
| DIMENSIONS: | 156.3 x 73.5 x 8 mm |
|---|---|
| WEIGHT: | 150 g |
| BATTERY SIZE: | 3020 mAh |
| SCREEN SIZE: | 6.09 in |
| DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY: | LCD |
| FRONT CAMERA: | 13 megapixels |
| REAR CAMERA: | 8 megapixels |
| FLASHLIGHT: | LED |
| ANDROID VERSION: | 9 – Pie |
| USER INTERFACE: | Huawei EMUI |
| RAM: | 3 GB |
| INTERNAL STORAGE: | 32 GB |
| REMOVABLE STORAGE: | microSD |
| CONNECTIVITY: | Dual-SIM , Bluetooth 4.2 |
