First Look

Huawei Nova 8i Unboxing and First Impressions

Taking several design cues from the Mate line

Published

August 17, 2021

Apple Gamboa

Huawei is back in the game of midrangers and claims the throne as king with its new contender and one of the latest from the Nova series — the Huawei Nova 8i.

Let’s check out what Huawei has in store for us.

The phone comes in their signature plain white box with just the Huawei Nova branding.

Lifting the lid, you’ll be greeted by the Huawei Nova 8i smartphone right away.

Underneath the phone, you’ll find a red sheet of paper with a QR code. When scanned, it leads to the Huawei website with a guide on how to find apps.

Removing that sheet of paper, you’ll see a smaller white box which contains the transparent silicone case you can use to protect your phone.

There’s also a manual, warranty card and the SIM ejector tool.

Going through the rest of the box, you’ll find a standard pair of earphones, a 6A USB Type-C charging cable and 66W Huawei SuperCharge wall charger.

The Huawei Nova 8i inherits the stylish aesthetic of the Nova series and the one we got came in this magnificent Moonlight Silver variant.

At its right side, you’ll see the fingerprint power key and volume rockers.

On top, you’ll find the 3.5mm audio jack.

At the bottom, you’ll see the SIM tray, USB-C port and speaker grille.

The Huawei Nova 8i houses a 4,300 mAh battery and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 processor with 8GB of RAM along with 128GB of internal storage.

First Impressions

Examining the phone further, the Huawei Nova 8i is slim, stylish and has a premium-like design. Its resemblance with the flagship phone Huawei Mate 30 was also highly noticeable.

Similar to Mate 30, I really like how narrow the bezels are around the 6.67-inch Huawei Edgeless Display. You can also notice the likeness with the rear quad camera setup. But the Nova 8i has a 64MP f/1.9 main camera, 8MP f/2.4 ultra wide camera, 2MP f/2.4 macro camera and 2MP f/2.4 depth sensing camera.

I took a few shots for a quick test run and the photos have very vivid detail. I’m actually thrilled about how I can maximize the camera’s use for work and leisure.

With its early indications, the Huawei Nova 8i is pretty elevated compared with other midrangers. It has a sleek design and edgeless display. It also has a 64MP Main Super Camera, 128GB big storage and comes with a 66W Huawei Charger. With all these features combined, you can do work and play to your heart’s content.

Pricing and availability

The Huawei Nova 8i comes in Moonlight Silver, Interstellar Blue or Starry Black. It retails for PhP 13,999 and is available for pre-order until August 21, 2021 via Huawei Store, Lazada, Shopee or through Huawei Experience Stores nationwide.

Pre-order freebies include Huawei Band 4 worth PhP 1,890, Wireless Charging Lamp worth PhP 2,400 and Huawei Cloud storage with benefits up to PhP 2,308.

Related Topics:Huawei Huawei Nova 8i Nova 8i

First Look

God of War Ragnarok Early Impressions

Familiar and new at the same time

Published

October 21, 2022

Rodneil Quiteles

Sony PlayStation has graciously provided GadgetMatch with a review code of God of War Ragnarok. This article, however, isn’t a review yet. This is only our early impressions after spending roughly around 10 hours with the game.

So, no, there will be no spoilers whatsoever here. In fact, there’s a lot we’re not allowed to discuss – for good reason. But here’s what we can tell you:

Playing the first game is encouraged…

Playing the initial installment (God of War 2018) is encouraged but not required. There’s a brief story recap option on the menu and it covers the more important plot points. There’s also several recap videos on YouTube that serve this purpose.

But PlayStation has made the 2018 game available in so many different ways that, if you can get your hands on it, we suggest you do so first before diving into Ragnarok. You still have three (3) weekends to do so as of writing.

It’s not overwhelming

That said, if you’d rather jump into this game right off the bat, that should be fine too. The game does a good job of easing you into all the weapons, skills, and whatnots that you’ll encounter.

The first game ended with Kratos having more than one weapon. Ragnarok throws you into action but staggers the weapons available in a way that makes sense for the story.

New traversal and puzzle-solving

A lot of the early platform puzzles feel the same but there are a few additional moves that help keep things interesting. Specifically, these involve the Blades of Chaos.

Some of it has been shown in the trailers. Kratos can use the Blades to Hook and Grapple himself towards higher areas. The Blades can also be used to yank off certain obstacles.

Combat is fun and challenging

Easily one of the best things about the new God of War is its combat. Ragnarok retains everything you know and love about combat. But it keeps things interesting by mixing in a new blocking mechanic as well as introducing new enemy types early on.

You will feel the weight of every axe swing, every blade cut, and every weapon clash. Fighting as Kratos feels as good as ever and is easily one of the most satisfying battle experiences in any video game ever made.

The story is engaging

Perhaps even more so than the first game, Ragnarok, even in its early hours, will have you hooked on the narrative. The story picks-up three years after the events of the first game, with Atreus looking to find out more about himself. Atreus’ curiosity and how Kratos reacts to it is at the heart of everything that will transpire.

The presentation is stunning

God of War Ragnarok is still a one-shot like the first game. That means no loading screens whatsoever. And it looks as visually stunning as it ever did. If you can, do yourself a favor and play this on a 4K TV with support for at least 60fps.

The visual presentation is jaw-dropping. Everything from the environments, the animations, the character models, and how they interact and show emotion during key moments.

The dialogue is also top-notch. It gets cheeky and on the nose at times, humorously referencing events from the first game.

Lastly, the music and overall sound is divine. Nothing ever feels out of place. And each scene is enhanced and elevated by the absolute masterpiece that is the score in this game.

Should you pre-order?

We’re only 10 hours in and we’re absolutely elated with how things are going so far. As early as now, we can say with absolute certainty that this is easily one of the best games you will play in your lifetime. Stop dilly-dallying and pre-order it now.