Should you buy Huawei Y9 (2019) or wait for Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 in India?

Two important smartphone launches took place in two of the biggest smartphone markets on Thursday, January 10. Huawei Y9 (2019) charmed the audience in India with its competitive pricing and value-for-money specs, but Xiaomi managed to make a bigger splash with its international launch of Redmi Note 7 in China, leaving consumers in deep confusion.

If you're in India and actively looking to upgrade to a new phone, Huawei Y9 (2019) wins the game, but if you can wait until Xiaomi brings the Redmi Note 7 to the Indian shores then the decision making gets tougher. Both phones target budget premium categories, so here's a comparison between the two so you can make a sound choice.

Design and display

If you loved the Honor 8X, you'll definitely find the Huawei Y9 appealing as it shares the same 3D arc design. There's a 6.5-inch display with Full HD+ resolution and 19.5:9 aspect ratio, which shows a small notch.

On the other hand, Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 features a glass body and a 6.3-inch LCD display with Full HD+ resolution and an identical notch as the one found on Huawei Y9.

In terms of looks and display, both phones are at par and buyers cannot go wrong with either.

Cameras

Huawei Y9 (2019) features a quad-camera setup. The two rear cameras combine 16MP (f/2.0) and 2MP (f.24) sensors while the front cameras are made up of a 13MP (f/1.8) primary sensor and a 2MP (f/2.4) depth sensor. Both camera setups have AI optimisation and support scene recognition. Users will find a new snap feature that lets you capture surprise moments.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 offers three cameras overall. The rear setup includes a 48MP sensor paired with 1.6 μm pixels and real-time HDR support and a 5MP secondary camera with AI Portrait Mode support. On the front, Xiaomi settles for a 13MP shooter.

By the looks of it, Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 takes the lead in the rear camera setup while Huawei Y9's dual front cameras with large aperture makes a better offering. It depends on whether you love taking selfies or shoot landscapes, so you can choose any of the two phones.

Performance

Like all Huawei phones, Huawei Y9 comes with a Kirin chipset, 710 SoC clocking 2.2GHz to be precise. There's 4GB RAM and 64GB storage on-board without any other variants with higher or lower configurations.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 comes in three variants, all powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor clocking at 2.2GHz. The base model of the handset comes with 3GB RAM + 32GB storage, then 4GB + 64GB and finally 6GB + 64GB configuration.

Both phones support microSD card and have their own custom ROM based on Android Oreo. While Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 comes with MIUI 10, Huawei Y9 runs EMUI 8.2 with the promise of getting Android Pie update in the coming weeks.

While real-world tests might reveal which phone is a better performer

Battery

Both phones are powered by a 4,000mAh battery with quick charging support. Huawei Y9 comes with 10W charging via microUSB port and the Redmi Note 7 has a USB Type-C port with Quick Charge via 18W charger. Xiaomi seems to be gaining an edge in this category.

Add-ons

Both phones share more or less the same add-ons, like dual SIM support, 4G support, rear-mounted fingerprint scanner and other standard connectivity features. Huawei Y9 comes in two shades, black and sapphire blue. Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 offers three colour choices – Dream Blue, Bright Black and Twilight Gold.

Price and availability

Huawei Y9 is priced at Rs 15,990 and it is available exclusively on Amazon India starting January 15. Buyers will get boat Rockerz Sports Bluetooth headset worth Rs 2,990 for free.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 is not available in India and there's no word on it. In China, the base model is priced at ¥999, which is roughly around Rs 10,300 in India. The higher-end variants cost ¥1,199 (around Rs 12,400) and ¥1,399 (approximately Rs 14,500) for 4GB and 6GB RAM models, respectively.