Huawei Nova 6 vs Huawei Nova 5T Specs Comparison

Huawei debuted its latest lineup of Nova smartphones, the Nova 6 series. We decided to match up the standard Nova 6 with another Nova smartphone released a few months back, the Nova 5T. Check it out!

Summary of advantages:

Huawei Nova 6

• Larger display
• Latest flagship processor
• Dual front cameras
• Larger battery capacity
• Android 10

Huawei Nova 5T

• Quadruple rear cameras
• Locally available
• Google services pre-installed

Starting with the display, the Nova 5T’s 6.26-inch screen is no match for the Nova 6’s much larger panel that measures at 6.57-inches. Both panels are FHD+, but the Nova 6 has a slightly larger resolution at 2400 x 1080 compared to the Nova 5T’s 2340 x1 080. The Nova 5T has a hole-punch selfie camera located at the upper left corner of the display. The Nova 6 doesn’t stray too far from this design as it has an oval-shaped hole for its dual cameras.

For chipsets, the Nova 6 and Nova 5T sports Kirin 990 and Kirin 980, respectively. As the Kirin 990 is the latest flagship processor of Huawei, do expect it to be the better performer between the two. Both devices come with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, with no option for expansion.

When it comes to front cameras, both the Nova 6 and Nova 5T have a 32MP shooter. However, the Nova 6 has an additional 8MP ultra-wide for their dual front camera setup. Rear-wise, the Nova 5T has quadruple cameras, consisting of a 48MP main, 16MP ultrawide, 2MP macro, and a 2MP depth shooter. On the other hand, the Nova 6 has a 40MP primary, 8MP telephoto, and an 8MP ultra-wide snapper. Numbers don’t equate to performance, and we’ve yet to see the images produced by Nova6 side-by-side with the Nova 5T’s images.

As for features, both the Nova 6 and Nova 5T have a side-mounted fingerprint scanner and NFC support. The Nova 6 comes with a 4,100mAh battery, edging out the Nova 5T’s smaller battery capacity of 3,750mAh. The two devices have a USB-C port and also support Huawei’s SuperCharge. However, the Nova 6 has 40W SuperCharge, in contrast to the 5T’s 22.5W.

The Nova 6 ships out with EMUI 10, based on Android 10; on the other hand, the Nova 5T runs on EMUI 9.1, based on Android 9 Pie. Despite Huawei’s current dilemmas with the US government and Google, the Nova 5T was one of the unaffected devices and still made its global launch with Google services pre-installed. It might not be the same case for the Nova 6 though.  Just like the recently released Mate 30 series, it’s highly likely that the Nova 6 will not have Google services should it receive a global release.

Huawei Philippines launched the Nova 5T locally last August, with a price tag of PHP 18,990. Meanwhile, the Nova 6 will be available for purchase in China beginning December, for the price of CNY 3,199. Overall, both smartphones offer flagship-grade specs for a lesser amount, with the Nova 5T as the more affordable P30 Pro and the Nova 6 as a baby Mate 30. Although, it remains to be seen whether the Nova 6 will make its debut globally. Still, if you’re willing to part with Google services and are willing to wait for a local launch, do cop the Nova 6. Otherwise, go for the readily available Nova 5T.