HONOR is starting 2023 with a bang — or, more appropriately, a whack — with the launch of its latest midrange smartphone in the Philippines.

(Update, February 3: Our HONOR X9a 5G review is up!)

The HONOR X9a 5G is the independent brand’s newest midrange contender, probably its strongest yet — both literally and figuratively — as the HONOR X9a 5G is equipped with a durable curved tempered glass that the company says can take a hit or two and survive without any screen damage. Maybe more, based on what we’ve seen so far.

In any case, check out the embedded video where we unbox the HONOR X9a 5G and put it through some serious stress tests, including dropping the phone screen-first on pavement from over a meter high and running over it with an adult on a scooter. As if cracking open a bunch of chestnuts in our teaser video wasn’t enough!

We unbox the HONOR X9a 5G and put it through some serious stress tests. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more videos

Did the phone survive? Or are we now looking at a rather expensive — and broken — paperweight? Be sure to watch until the end of the video and find out!

The HONOR X9a 5G is priced at only P16,990 (around $311) in the Philippines, making it extremely competitive in its segment. The device will be available from February 1, but preorders start tomorrow, January 20. Those who book their orders will receive a free pair of HONOR CHOICE Earbuds X3 Lite TWS earphones.

You can get one from any HONOR’s kiosks and partner stores near you or its official online shops below:

• Lazada: http://bit.ly/3IXvynj
• Shopee: http://bit.ly/3HfQMf5
• TikTok: http://bit.ly/3kfHhTS

On top of its incredibly tough curved OLED screen, the HONOR X9a 5G features a camera ring with a 64-megapixel main camera assisted by a 5-megapixel ultrawide/depth sensor and a 2-megapixel unit for macro shots. It also comes with a 16-megapixel cam for selfies and video chat.

Powering the handset is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G chipset with a maximum of 13GB of dynamic RAM and up to 256GB of internal storage. The battery is rated at 5,100mAh and supports 40-watt fast charging over USB-C.

Recently, the brand announced that the HONOR 70 5G, a premium midranger we reviewed late last year, is now available through Globe’s postpaid plans without any cash out, meaning you don’t have to pay extra for the smartphone on select plans.

HONOR X9a 5G specs

• 6.67-inch curved OLED display, FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate
• 6nm octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 processor with 5G
• Adreno 619 GPU
• 8GB RAM
• 128GB/256GB storage
• Triple 64-megapixel main, 5-megapixel ultrawide/depth, 2-megapixel macro rear cameras
• 16-megapixel front camera
• Under-display fingerprint reader
• 5,100mAh battery with 40-watt USB-C charging
• Magic UI 6.1 based on Android 12
• Color options: Titanium Silver, Midnight Black, Emerald Green

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