Today we’ll be comparing two popular mid-range smartphones — the OPPO F9 and Honor Play. One sports a sexy front notch, while the other a flagship processor. Which one is a better buy? Let’s find out in this specs comparison!
The OPPO F9 is the brand’s follow-up to the immensely successful and popular OPPO F7. It sports a 6.3-inch 19.5:9 aspect ratio FHD+ display, MediaTek’s Helio P60, 4GB or 6GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, 16MP + 2MP dual rear cameras, 25MP front camera, Color OS 5.2, and a 3,500mAh battery.
The Honor Play is currently creating a lot of buzz and hype thanks to its flagship internals and insane pricing. It comes with a 6.3-inch display with 2340 x 1080 resolution, Kirin 970 processor, Mali-G72 MP12 GPU with GPU Turbo technology, 4GB RAM, 64GB internal storage, 16MP + 2MP dual rear cameras, 16MP front camera, and 3,750mAh battery.
Here are their detailed specs:
| Specs | Oppo F9 | Honor Play |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.3-inches 19.5:9 LTPS TFT 2340 x 1080 | 6.3-inch 2340 x 1080 display, 409ppi |
| CPU | Mediatek MTK P60 | HiSilicon Kirin 970 2.36GHz octa-core |
| GPU | Mali-G72 MP3 | Mali-G72 MP12 |
| RAM | 4GB / 6GB | 4GB/6GB |
| Storage | 64GB | 64GB internal storage |
| Rear Camera | 16MP+2MP dual rear camera | 16MP + 2MP rear cameras, LED flash |
| Front Camera | 25-megapixel with LED Flash | 16MP front camera |
| LTE | 4G LTE | 4G LTE |
| SIM Card Type | Dual Nano-SIM Cards | Dual SIM (nano) |
| WI-FI | 2.4/5GHz 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac | WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac |
| Bluetooth | 4.2, A2DP, LE | Bluetooth 4.2, BLE, aptX, aptX HD, HWA |
| OTG | Yes | Yes |
| 3.5mm audio port | yes | yes |
| Sensors | -Fingerprint Scanner -Face Unlock | -Fingerprint Scanner -Face Unlock |
| OS | Color OS 5.2 (Android 8.1) | EMUI 8.2 (Android 8.1 Oreo) |
| Battery | 3500mAh (VOOC Fast Charging) | 3,750mAh battery (Fast Charge 9V/2A) |
| Dimension | 156.7mmx74.0mmx7.99mm | 157.91 x 74.27 x 7.48 mm |
| Weight | 169 g | 176 g |
Here are their benchmark scores:
| OPPO F9 | Honor Play | |
|---|---|---|
| AnTuTu v7 | 137,660 | 208,887 (w/ GPU Turbo) |
| Geekbench 4.2 | 1,482 (Single-Core) 5,764 (Multi-Core) | 1,884 (Single-Core) 6,627 (Multi-Core) |
| 3DMark SSE - OpenGL 3.1 | 1,085 | 2,956 |
Here are the advantages of each smartphone:
OPPO F9
- Higher front camera resolution
-
Lighter
Honor Play
- Better performing CPU
Better performing GPU
Larger battery capacity
More affordable
Slimmer
In terms of display, we have a leveled playing field. Both smartphones are equipped with a 6.3-inch Full HD+ display at 2340 x 1080 resolution. Perhaps the only real difference between the two is in design. The OPPO F9, theoretically, has more screen-to-body ratio thanks to the water drop front notch, which is way slimmer than the notch on the Honor Play.
This means that there is more space on the upper portion of the F9’s screen for notifications. Although, the impact won’t be that big when it comes to viewing experience since the notch of the Honor Play can be hidden.
We once again see similarities between the two in the camera department. Both have a 16MP + 2MP rear camera setup. The big difference though is on the front, where OPPO offers a higher 25MP shooter compared to the 16MP of the Honor Play. Then again, higher pixel count doesn’t always mean better performance. You can check out our initial sample shots of both phones here — OPPO F9 | Honor Play
| OPPO F9 | Honor Play | |
|---|---|---|
| AnTuTu v7 | 137,660 | 208,887 (w/ GPU Turbo) |
| Geekbench 4.2 | 1,482 (Single-Core) 5,764 (Multi-Core) | 1,884 (Single-Core) 6,627 (Multi-Core) |
| 3DMark SSE - OpenGL 3.1 | 1,085 | 2,956 |
This is where it gets juicy, performance. As you can see in the benchmark comparison above, the Honor Play beats the OPPO F9 by a significant margin. This is thanks to the Play’s Kirin 970 chipset, the current flagship of the HiSilicon chips. It offers better overall CPU and GPU performance compared to MediaTek’s Helio P60. Not only that, it also comes with Huawei’s GPU Turbo technology, which boosts overall GPU performance depending on the application.
The only other noticeable difference between the two is battery capacity. The Honor Play comes with a slightly larger 3,750mAh battery. Theoretically, Honor’s offering will last longer thanks to the added 250mAh. Although we all know that battery capacity isn’t the only factor when it comes to batt life. Both enjoy fast charging technology but the F9 features OPPO’s famed VOOC fast charging.
The OPPO F9 is priced at Php 17,990 while the Honor Play is Php2,000 cheaper at Php 15,990. For the specs it carries, you can never go wrong with the Honor Play. If you aren’t too particular in performance and would like a sexy but still very capable device, then the OPPO F9 is not a bad choice. What do you guys think? Share with us your thoughts in the comment section below.
pls include in this comparison their usb port types :)
Where can you buy the Honor Play now?
Why are these phones *controversial*?