Honor GT Review: The Ultimate eSports Flagship at an Unbeatable Price

At the end of 2024, Honor will officially make its GT series independent, positioning it in the gaming and high-performance price-to-value market.

However, the Honor GT is not Honor’s first phone designed with gaming in mind. Six years ago, the Honor Play debuted with GPU Turbo technology, boosting gaming performance. The series has since been updated with multiple models to meet the diverse needs of different users.

The Honor GT launches with a starting price of ¥2,199. In addition to offering an excellent gaming experience, it boasts flagship-level performance, an eye-protection display, long battery life, and 100-watt fast charging, making it an exceptionally cost-effective choice.

Honor states that its goal is to provide young users with a cutting-edge design and powerful performance at a more affordable price. The clear aim is to capture the attention of the youth market.

The Honor GT features the 4nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 flagship platform. While this is last year’s top SoC, Honor has maximized its potential with the help of AI rendering and display separation technology. By predicting frame drops and optimizing gaming performance, it delivers a smoother gaming experience with higher frame rates, greater stability, and picture quality comparable to PC-level graphics.

Additionally, without a dedicated graphics chip, GPU Turbo X virtual graphics technology ensures super-frame rates and ultra-high resolution, further enhancing the gaming experience.

As the first gaming phone in the Honor GT series, the device is equipped with a 3D natural circulation cooling system and the industry’s first waterfall-mimicking VC cavity. This makes it Honor’s most advanced phone in terms of heat dissipation, offering gamers a consistently cool experience during extended gaming sessions.

In terms of eye protection, Honor has long been a leader, and for the first time, it is extending its flagship-level eye protection technologies to the GT series.

Building on the flagship-level display quality, the Honor GT introduces innovations like AI defocus eye protection, a 360-degree motion sickness relief display, and 3840Hz ultra-high-frequency PWM dimming to reduce strain on the eyes.

With features like natural light eye protection and AI sleep-aid display, it provides an all-around eye-friendly gaming experience for young users, setting a new standard for eye care in performance-focused smartphones.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the performance and heat dissipation capabilities of the Honor GT. Let’s dive into its comprehensive performance in detail.

Design and Screen

The Honor GT we have in hand comes in the Aurora Green color. The back design of the phone is simple yet striking, with the return of the large HONOR logo after a 4-year absence, evoking memories of the classic design from the Honor 30 series. This design strikes a perfect balance between retro and modern, offering a sense of stylish sophistication. The return of this design element injects youthful vitality and reinforces the brand identity of the Honor GT.

The camera module on the Honor GT features a unique “Blade Eye” design. With a right-angle frame and a flat back panel, the phone’s overall aesthetic is simple yet rugged. The lens module is crafted using a sophisticated secondary oxidation process, which gives it a supercar-like texture. This process not only enhances the phone’s durability but also creates a visually striking impact.

At the center of the lens module, Honor has cleverly integrated the “GT” totem, which, when the light hits it, pulsates like the heartbeat of the phone, symbolizing the powerful performance that the device offers. This design doesn’t just make the phone look cooler; it also serves as a bold statement of the Honor GT’s advanced imaging capabilities and its emphasis on speed.

On the front, the Honor GT is equipped with a 6.7-inch flat display featuring a resolution of 2664×1200, supporting a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. It integrates a comprehensive set of eye protection features, including AI defocus, 3840Hz high-frequency PWM dimming, natural light protection, 360° adaptive dimming, AI sleep-aid display, and hardware-level low blue light filtering.

Additionally, the Honor GT introduces the motion sickness relief display in a performance-oriented device. This feature detects the motion state of a vehicle through a full 360-degree simulation across 12 directions, effectively reducing dizziness when gaming or using the phone in a moving vehicle.

The screen features an equal-width design on all four sides, with the front camera placed centrally at the top, providing a more symmetrical and harmonious visual experience. The power and volume buttons are positioned on the right side of the phone for easy access.

The top and bottom of the phone house independent speaker openings. These dual speakers deliver the best sound quality in their category, providing an immersive audio experience that’s among the best for performance phones.

Interestingly, the Honor GT does not have a separate infrared opening at the top. Instead, this feature is cleverly integrated into the camera module design. Lastly, the phone comes with a 100W fast charging kit included in the box, ensuring users can quickly recharge their devices.

Performance and Gaming

The Honor GT, designed with a strong focus on gaming performance, delivers undeniable power. It is equipped with a 4nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 flagship chip, paired with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X memory and 1TB of UFS 4.0 storage.

Cooling Performance:
The Honor GT excels in heat dissipation, thanks to its 3D natural circulation cooling system. It features the industry’s first waterfall-mimicking VC cavity and introduces aerospace-grade high-performance thermal conductive gel. This advanced cooling solution reduces the core SoC temperature by up to 5°C and boasts a thermal conductivity three times that of the previous generation.

Moreover, the VC heat spreader on the Honor GT spans an area of 5514mm², improving heat dissipation by 10%, while the integration of 2K high-performance graphite across key areas enhances cooling by an additional 27%. This ensures even temperature distribution, allowing the phone to maintain an ideal temperature during high-load gaming sessions.

For our tests, we used the top-end model of the Honor GT with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage and conducted performance tests under controlled conditions in an office environment at 25°C. We tested three popular mobile games—Honor of Kings, Game for Peace, and Honkai Impact 3rd—using the highest graphical settings with frame rate prioritized. We also monitored frame rates, power consumption, energy efficiency, and temperature performance during gameplay.

1. Honor of Kings

In Honor of Kings, we played a 5v5 battle at the highest picture quality (966×2144 resolution). The game maintained a stable average frame rate of 120.3 FPS with minimal fluctuations (only 0.2 FPS).

Average power consumption: 3.17W
Energy efficiency: 38 FPS/W
Maximum back temperature: 35.5°C, with the hottest area near the camera.

2. Peace Elite (Game for Peace)

For Peace Elite, the game was played at a maximum frame rate with smooth picture quality (720×1592 resolution). The frame rate remained stable at 119.4 FPS, with a small fluctuation of 0.7 FPS.

Average power consumption: 3.6W
Energy efficiency: 33.17 FPS/W
Maximum back temperature: 37.4°C.

Despite lacking a dedicated graphics chip, the Honor GT uses GPU Turbo X technology to deliver super-resolution and super-frame operations, achieving smooth gameplay at high resolutions. This technology enables users to enjoy high frame rates (120 FPS) and 1080p resolution without sacrificing performance, providing an experience superior to traditional 60 FPS gaming.

To test the super-resolution feature, we enabled image quality enhancement in Peace Elite, increasing the resolution from 720×1592 (720p) to 1080×2338 (1080p). After playing a session, the game still maintained a stable frame rate of 119.1 FPS, with only a slight fluctuation of 0.8 FPS.

Average power consumption (with super-resolution): 4.24W (approximately 0.6W higher than native resolution).
Maximum back temperature: 38.6°C, showing only a 1.2°C increase despite the resolution boost of 120.25%.

3. Honkai Impact 3rd

Finally, we tested Honkai Impact 3rd at the highest quality and resolution. Throughout the session, the game maintained a stable frame rate, averaging 58.8 FPS.

Power consumption: 6.96W, nearly 7W.
The higher power consumption is due to Honor’s AI rendering and display separation technology, which enhances game stability but results in additional power usage. For eSports players, maintaining a stable frame rate is prioritized over power consumption.

Despite the higher power draw, the Honor GT’s cooling system handled the heat effectively. Even under nearly 7W of power consumption, the back temperature remained under 45°C, peaking at only 43.3°C. This is approximately 2°C lower than comparable Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 devices.

Cameras

The Honor GT features a dual rear camera setup, with the main camera equipped with a 50-megapixel sensor. It supports both OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) and EIS (Electronic Image Stabilization), ensuring stable previews and reduced shake during video recording, especially in low-light and fast-moving scenarios, such as night photography and sports scenes.

The secondary camera is a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens that also supports macro shooting. This lens offers superior practicality compared to the typical 8-megapixel lenses commonly found in similar devices.

We also captured a few sample photos using the Honor GT to showcase its camera performance.

Main Camera

The sample photos taken with the main 50-megapixel camera were shot in daylight, and the results are impressive. The camera captures fine details accurately, with vibrant colors that truly reflect the scene. The blue sky, white clouds, green trees, and red flowers appear vivid and natural, effectively restoring the scene as seen by the human eye.

Ultra-Wide Angle

The 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens is highly capable, capturing expansive scenes with ease. Whether photographing towering modern skyscrapers or historic buildings, the lens offers a wide field of view, allowing these majestic structures to be fully represented.

In the realm of high-performance smartphones, the inclusion of a high-quality ultra-wide-angle lens significantly enhances the versatility and practicality of mobile photography.

Wide-Angle Macro

In addition to its wide-angle capabilities, the Honor GT’s ultra-wide lens also performs excellently in macro photography. The macro shots captured are crisp and detailed, with no visible signs of smearing or loss of clarity, demonstrating the lens’s quality in close-up shots as well.

Battery

The Honor GT is equipped with a 5300mAh battery and retains the 100W fast charging capability from its predecessor, ensuring quick recharges to keep up with demanding usage. We conducted tests to evaluate both its charging speed and battery life.

Charging Test

Starting from a 5% charge with the screen off, the Honor GT charges quickly. It reaches 48% in just 10 minutes, 81% in 20 minutes, and takes only 29 minutes to fully charge, completing the process in less than half an hour.

Battery Life Test

For the battery life test, we used the professional tool Battery Dog, developed by Fast Technology, to simulate real-world usage scenarios and assess power consumption.

During the test, the phone was subjected to various tasks, including high CPU load, multi-threading, AI recognition, image browsing, video playback, and web browsing, with a 20% power test by default. These tests simulate actual user behavior as accurately as possible.

To maintain consistency across all device tests, Battery Dog automatically adjusted the screen brightness to 50%, turned off auto-brightness, and set the volume to 30%.

After rigorous testing, the Honor GT lasted 9 hours, 0 minutes, and 40 seconds from a full charge down to 20%. Its total battery life from 100% to 0% is approximately 11 hours, 15 minutes, and 50 seconds, making it capable of lasting through a full day of typical usage.

Conclusion

As the first independent product in the Honor GT series, the Honor GT has made an impressive debut. It not only continues Honor’s tradition of flagship-level performance but also incorporates advanced technologies such as decentralized eye protection, strong imaging capabilities, and innovative design. The result is a well-rounded e-sports flagship phone aimed at young users, combining powerful performance, stylish design, and practical features.

In terms of performance, the Honor GT performed exceptionally well during our real-world testing, especially in the high-demand game Honkai Impact 3rd. The phone maintained a stable frame rate of 58.8 FPS throughout the session. Thanks to the AI rendering and display separation technology, despite the power consumption reaching 6.96W, the device’s temperature remained well-controlled at 43.3°C.

Moreover, GPU Turbo X technology enables super-resolution and super-frame capabilities, allowing users to enjoy 1080p high-definition graphics while maintaining a smooth 120 FPS experience. This means players don’t have to choose between resolution and frame rate—they can have both.

Eye protection, often overlooked in gaming phones, is another standout feature of the Honor GT. The phone uses flagship-grade 3840Hz ultra-high-frequency PWM dimming to reduce visual fatigue, along with AI-powered defocus technology to alleviate strain from prolonged use.

Additionally, the Honor GT introduces the first-ever 360-degree motion sickness relief display function, which helps reduce dizziness caused by movement when gaming in a vehicle—a welcome feature for mobile gamers on the go.

Overall, with its powerful performance, flagship design, superior heat dissipation, and excellent eye protection, the Honor GT sets a new standard for performance gaming phones. With a starting price of just 2,199 yuan, it redefines the cost-performance ratio for Snapdragon 8 Gen 3-powered devices, fully meeting the needs of young users who seek high performance, stylish design, and affordability. It stands out as the “real” choice in this year’s performance smartphone market.