Huawei Band 8 vs Honor Band 7: Navigating the pros & cons

Looking for a budget fitness band? Two interesting options that present themselves are the Huawei Band 8 and Honor Band 7. Both stand as recent contenders, having been launched in April 2023 and December 2022, respectively.

Huawei and Honor share a significant historical connection that explains the similarities between their devices. Originally, Honor was a sub-brand of Huawei, launched in 2013 as a budget-friendly line aimed at a younger audience. This relationship meant that Honor’s products often mirrored Huawei’s in terms of technology and design philosophy, benefiting from Huawei’s established research and development capabilities. However, in November 2020, Huawei sold Honor to a consortium of over 30 agents and dealers, in a move to ensure Honor’s survival amidst US trade restrictions on Huawei. Despite this separation, the legacy of their shared origins is evident in the design and functionality of their products.

The Huawei Band 8 and Honor Band 7, with their similar features and user experience, are a testament to this shared heritage. This comparison aims to provide an in-depth analysis of how these two devices compare, highlighting the nuances and distinct characteristics that have evolved from their intertwined history.

Key takeaways

There really isn’t much to differentiate the Huawei Band 8 and the Honor Band 7. The first excels in offering a wide range of sports modes and advanced health features at a competitive price. This makes it ideal for the feature-focused user. The Honor Band 7, meanwhile, distinguishes itself with a slightly more premium build and compact design, targeting those who value aesthetics and build quality. In terms of fitness and health capabilities, the two devices are quite evenly matched.

View on Huawei / Honor; View on Amazon (Huawei Band 8, Honor Band 7).

Jump to

Hardware
Technical specs
Features
Bottom line

Huawei Band 8 vs Honor Band 7: Hardware

Look & feel

Starting with the build and size, the Huawei Band 8 is crafted from skin-friendly TPU material, known for its comfort and durability, and measures 44.35 x 26 x 8.99 mm. This design choice emphasizes comfort and a lightweight profile, making it ideal for continuous wear. In contrast, the Honor Band 7 opts for a high-gloss metal case, lending it a more premium feel. It’s slightly smaller, measuring 43 x 25.4 x 10.99 mm, which might appeal to users looking for a more compact device.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

Both devices feature a single physical button, maintaining a minimalist and sleek design. This button provides easy navigation and access to various functions, ensuring user convenience without overwhelming the design with multiple controls.

Display, colour options, water resistanceL

The screen is a standout feature for both models. Each sports a 1.47-inch AMOLED coloured 2.5D display. The resolution comes in at 194 x 368 pixels, ensuring crisp and clear visuals. Of the two, Huawei Band 8 offers a bigger selection of watch faces to personalise your wearable with.

Water resistance is another key aspect where both devices excel, offering 5 ATM water resistance. This feature makes them suitable for activities like swimming. It also ensures durability against elements like rain and sweat, a crucial factor for fitness enthusiasts and everyday wearers alike.

Finally, the color options for each device reflect their distinct branding. The Huawei Band 8 comes in Emerald Green, Magic Night Black, Cherry Pink, and Vibrant Orange, offering a range of choices from understated to vibrant. The Honor Band 7, on the other hand, is available in Rose Pink, Cedar Blue, and Magic Night Black, catering to users who prefer more classic and elegant hues.

Sensor technology

As far as sensor technology, the duo is equipped with a comprehensive set of sensors, including an accelerometer, gyroscope, blood oxygen saturation monitor, and heart rate sensor. This tech is integral for tracking various health and fitness metrics, providing users with detailed insights into their physical well-being. The presence of these sensors in both models underscores their focus on health and fitness tracking, a core functionality in modern wearables.

When it comes to GPS connectivity, neither the Huawei Band 8 nor the Honor Band 7 has built-in GPS. Instead, they rely on connected GPS functionality, meaning they use the GPS from a connected smartphone to track location. This approach is common in wearables at this price point and is suitable for users who usually carry their phones during outdoor activities.

NFC (Near Field Communication) capabilities differ between the two. The Huawei Band 8 offers NFC functionality but only in the China variant, limiting its use for contactless payments and other NFC-based features in international markets. In contrast, the Honor Band 7 includes an optional NFC version, providing more flexibility for users who value contactless payment options and other NFC uses.

Regarding music storage, both the Huawei Band 8 and the Honor Band 7 do not offer onboard music storage. This means users cannot store music directly on the devices but can control music playback on a connected smartphone.

Battery life

The Huawei Band 8, equipped with a 180mAh Li-po battery, offers up to 14 days of battery life under normal usage conditions and about 9 days under heavy use. This level of battery performance is impressive, especially considering the device’s array of features, including health and fitness tracking, on a 1.47-inch AMOLED display.

Similarly, the Honor Band 7, is equipped with the same capacity battery. And despite its different build and design elements, it also provides up to two weeks of battery life with typical usage and can last up to 14 days with normal use and 10 days under heavy use. This indicates efficient power management and optimization in both devices.

It’s worth noting, Huawei Band 8 supports fast charging. Just five minutes on the charger will keep it going for two days. 45 minutes is all it takes to go from zero to full. Honor Band 7 also supports fast charging. Refuelling it for a half an hour will bump up the battery life by 50%.

Huawei Band 8 vs Honor Band 7: Technical specs

Here’s a detailed comparison table for the Huawei Band 8 and Honor Band 7, highlighting their technical specifications:

Huawei Band 8 vs Honor Band 7: Features

Moving quickly on and we get to the arena of health and fitness features. Once again the Huawei Band 8 and Honor Band 7 are quite evenly matched. Both offer a robust suite of functionalities, albeit with some nuances that set them apart.

The Huawei Band 8 stands out with its support for 100 sports modes, catering to a wide range of physical activities including running, cycling, and swimming. This extensive list underscores the device’s versatility in fitness tracking. Health-wise, it boasts automatic blood oxygen detection, women’s health management, and all-day stress monitoring, making it a comprehensive health companion. The inclusion of the Huawei TruSleep 3.0 sleep monitoring algorithm and the Huawei TruSeen 5.0 sensor for continuous heart rate and blood oxygen monitoring further enhances its capability to provide detailed health insights.

On the other hand, the Honor Band 7, while retaining many features from its predecessor, includes upgraded sensors for improved tracking. It offers 96 workout modes, slightly less than the Huawei Band 8, but still substantial for a fitness tracker. The device continues to provide reliable tracking for sleep, heart rate, blood oxygen, and menstrual cycle detection, ensuring a well-rounded health monitoring experience.

Smartwatch-type features

In terms of smartwatch-type features, both devices extend beyond basic fitness tracking. But not very much.

The Huawei Band 8 includes support for incoming messages, camera remote control, and music playback from a connected smartphone. The Honor Band 7 also incorporates smart features such as contactless payments and music playback controls, along with the ability to remotely control a phone’s camera.

Huawei Band 8 vs Honor Band 7: Price

When considering the pricing of the Huawei Band 8 and the Honor Band 7, it’s noteworthy there is a slight difference. The first sells for around $90, the second for around $60.. This pricing strategy places them competitively in the market of budget-friendly fitness trackers.

Huawei Band 8 vs Honor Band 7: Final thoughts

The Huawei Band 8 and Honor Band 7, each with their unique strengths, cater to a similar audience. The Huawei Band 8, boasting an array of 100 sports modes and advanced health tracking features such as TruSleep 3.0 and TruSeen 5.0, emerges as a standout choice for those who prioritize a wide range of fitness activities and detailed health insights. Its focus on providing a comprehensive suite of health and fitness tools makes it particularly appealing to users who seek depth and variety in their tracking capabilities.

On the other hand, the Honor Band 7, while mirroring many of the functionalities found in the Huawei Band 8, sets itself apart with a more premium build and a slightly more compact design. This focus on aesthetics and build quality appeals to users who place a higher value on the look and feel of their wearable device.

View on Huawei / Honor; View on Amazon (Huawei Band 8, Honor Band 7).

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