Huawei Y5 2019 Unboxing and First Impressions

Huawei has recently launched the 2019 edition of the Y5 in the Philippines. Priced at PHP 5,990, it is one of the most affordable phones with a faux leather design and tiny dewdrop notch.

Meet Huawei Y5 2019

Now let's see if it is worth your hard-earned cash. Here's our review part 1, unboxing and first impressions.

Unboxing/Accessories

Huawei Y5 2019 box

Like most budget Huawei phones, Y5 2019 arrives in a white box with the print of the phone's render in front. Inside, you'll see the phone itself right off the bat. We also noticed that it has a pre-installed screen protector which is nice.

Inside the box

You will also find the 5V/2A USB wall charger, USB-A to micro USB data/charging cable, earphones with mic, SIM ejector tool, and the paper documents.

It doesn't have a clear case included in the package though.

Build Quality/Design

Triple slots

Similar to the Y6 Pro 2019 and Y Max, Huawei Y5 2019 also has a version with a faux amber brown leather design at the back. The materials used is plastic which feels quite durable.

Faux-leather back cover looks sweet at this price point!

Its leather-like texture with sewed-like designed on the sides to make it not slippery to hold, prone to fingerprint smudges, and hairline scratches. It also made the phone look like it is already housed in a protective case.

Large display

Up front, it highlights a 5.71-inch glass display. Since it has no mention of glass protection, it is nice that it has a pre-installed plastic screen protector.

One of the few phones with tall screen ratio and tiny notch on a budget!

The great thing about this phone is it goes with a tall 19:9 screen aspect ratio with tiny dewdrop notch. It resulted to reasonably small bezels and large 86.4 percent of screen-to-body ratio. That's impressive for a budget phone despite the pretty large chin bezel.

The notch

The notch houses its 5MP selfie camera. On top of the notch, you'll see the earspeaker. The selfie toning flash and the LED notification are located at the right side of the top bezel.

Another thing, the phone is quite handy despite its "large" 5.71-inch display size. It is just as small as other 5.2-inch phones in the past. It measures at 147.13 x 70.78 x 8.45 mm.

Top

Bottom

On top, you'll see the first microphone together with the 3.5mm headphone jack slot. Below, you'll find the second microphone, micro USB port, and the speaker.

Left

Right

At left, there's the tiny hole to open the triple slot tray (dual nano SIM, dedicated microSD). At right, there's the volume rocker and power key.

Overall, the only flaw for me is the lack of a native glass protection in the display. But for the price, this phone looks quite solid.

Initial findings

Big screen for the price

1. Y5 2019's 5.71-inch display looks quite nice. It has a sharp enough 1520 x 720 resolution. Indoor legibility is good, but outdoor legibility needs a bit of improvement. As expected, its display is not super bright like most budget phones. The good thing, it goes with 10 points of touch for easy swipe and type.

Good AnTuTu score

2. At PHP 5,990 (SRP) or PHP 4,990 (Shopee sale price), Y5 2019 is the most affordable with the 12nm 64-bit MediaTek Helio A22 quad-core processor and PowerVR GE8300 graphics. It is the same decent chipset found with the Y6 Pro 2019.

Based on our experience and the benchmark scores, it is faster than the usual Snapdragon 425 found most sub PHP 5K phones. But, it isn't as fast as other phones with the Helio P22 and Snapdragon 632 in the PHP 5.5K to PHP 6.5K price point.

It also has 2GB RAM and 32GB storage. The RAM could have been bigger, but I won't blame Huawei for putting 2GB RAM at this price point.

The battery is rated at 3,020mAh. Hopefully, its battery performance is as good as the Y6 Pro 2019.

4G LTE works, but we will still test its performance further in the coming days.

3. This phone also runs with Android 9.0 Pie OS with EMUI 9.0 skin. That's still rare today. Most budget phones are still running with Oreo or older. As expected, it is a neat looking skin. There is an option to choose the standard mode or the mode with app drawer as well.

13MP f/1.8 cam

4. At the back, it has a 13MP f/1.8 snapper! Yes, it is at f/1.8 which could do well in low light scenes. For selfies, it used a 5MP f/2.2 snapper. It comes with 10-level face beauty mode and it even has a selfie toning flash.

Related: Huawei Y5 2019: First Camera Samples

5. This phone has no gyroscope, but it has OTG connectivity. WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS also works. It doesn't have a fingerprint scanner, but the selfie face unlock is pretty fast and accurate. It works even in low light. I also like that it has the lift to wake function. It 

Huawei Y5 2019 Specs

Display: 5.71-inch IPS screen w/ HD+ 1520 x 720 resolution at 295 ppi
CPU: 2.0GHz 64-bit Helio A22 quad-core processor
GPU: PowerVR GE8300
RAM: 2GB
ROM: 32GB expandable via microSD card slot up to 512GB (dedicated)
Back Camera: 13MP f/1.8 w/ AF and LED flash
Selfie Camera: 5MP f/2.2 w/ selfie toning flash
Battery: 3,020mAh
OS: Android 9.0 Pie w/ EMUI 9.0
Connectivity: WiFi, 700MHz 4G LTE, Bluetooth, FM Radio, GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, dual SIM (nano)
Sensors: Accelerometer, light, proximity, sound
Others: Face unlock, loudspeaker, Colors: midnight black, sapphire blue, amber brown, modern black
Dimensions: 147.13 x 70.78 x 8.45 mm
Weight: 146 g
Price: PHP 5,990 (PHP 4,990 one sale day price)

As of the moment

Huawei Y5 2019 is a balanced looking phone on a budget. It is one of the few who prioritized design without compromising on the performance at this price point.

Personally, I like that it rocks the stylish faux leather design and its use of large screen with small notch. The processor, cameras, and overall specs they used are respectable as well.

The battery is a bit small at 3,020mAh, but Helio A22 is a power efficient chip. I won't be surprised if it will exceed my expectations just like the Y6 Pro 2019.

That's it for now. We will still test this phone further. So, stay tuned for our full review!