We put the Honor X7a through our rigorous DXOMARK Battery test suite to measure its performance in autonomy, charging and efficiency. In these test results, we will break down how it fared in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
Overview
Key specifications:
- Battery capacity: 6000 mAh
- 22.5W charger (included)
- 6.74-inch, 720 x 1600, 90 Hz, LCD display
- MediaTek Helio G37 (12 nm)
- Tested ROM / RAM combination: 128 GB + 4 GB
Scoring
Sub-scores and attributes included in the calculations of the global score.

Honor X7A
Key performances
These key points are derived from the lab measurements during testing and do not figure into the overall score. The lab measurements, however, are used for the overall score.
Pros
- Outstanding autonomy
- Extremely low consumption when idle
- Excellent autonomy in almost all use cases (calling, video and music streaming, gaming)
- Excellent autonomy on the go
- Very low residual consumption of the charger when the device is fully charged and still plugged in
- Low discharge currents overall
Cons
- Inaccurate battery gauge, with a discrepancy between power left and actual capacity left
- Device automatically shuts down 60 seconds when display shows 1% of battery power remaining
- Longer-than-average charging time
- Long delay (40 minutes) between the displayed full charge on the screen and the actual full charge
The Honor X7a starts the year off by achieving the No. 1 spot in our battery ranking, thanks to its outstanding autonomy performance, which measured 3 days and 14 hours in moderate usage — the best we have tested so far.
The Honor X7a’s overall battery performance overtook the Oppo Reno 6 5G, which stayed at the top of the global battery ranking since September thanks to its overall balanced performance.
The X7a’s 6000 mAh battery tested the limits of autonomy and surpassed that of the previous autonomy powerhouse, the Vivo Y72 5G, which managed to bring in a slightly lower autonomy with a 5000 mAh battery.
Besides a strong performance in a mixed usage scenario, the Honor X7a was also a top performer in some use cases such as gaming, calling, video, and music streaming. And finally, even when on the go and tested outside, the Honor X7a’s ability to manage its power proved to be excellent. When it came to discharge efficiency, the device drained very low discharge currents, which means that it is well-optimized.
Despite its staying power, the device’s user experience was undermined by an inaccurate battery gauge. When the phone displayed 20% of power left on the screen, the true capacity was measured at close to 16%. When the device showed 1% of power on its screen, it would shut down automatically after a minute.
When charging the device, the small 22.5W power adapter struggled to fill the large 6000 mAh battery. A 5-minute top-up charge provided only 4 hours of autonomy. Moreover, the charge efficiency, as well as the power adapter efficiency, was poor.
Still, the Honor X7a’s unprecedented autonomy performance in our tests shows that battery endurance, regardless of battery size, will continue to be a key focus for smartphone manufacturers this year.
Test Summary
About DXOMARK Battery tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone battery reviews, DXOMARK engineers perform a variety of objective tests over a week-long period both indoors and outdoors. (See our introductory and how we test articles for more details about our smartphone Battery protocol.)
The following section gathers key elements of our exhaustive tests and analyses performed in DXOMARK laboratories. Detailed performance evaluations under the form of reports are available upon request. Do not hesitate to contact us.
Battery | Charger | Wireless | Display | Processor | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Honor X7a | 6000mAh | 23W (included) |
- | LCD 720 x 1600 |
Mediatek Helio G37 |
Samsung Galaxy A23 5G | 5000mAh | 25W (not included) |
- | PLS LCD 1080 x 2408 |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G |
Oppo A77 5G | 5000mAh | 33W (not included) |
- | LCD 720 x 1612 |
MediaTek Dimensity 810 |
Autonomy score is composed of three performance sub-scores: Home / Office, On the go, and Calibrated use cases. Each sub-score comprises the results of a comprehensive range of tests for measuring autonomy in all kinds of real-life scenarios.
Battery Life (moderate)
Battery Life (moderate)
A robot housed in a Faraday cage performs a set of touch-based user actions during what we call our “typical usage scenario” (TUS) — making calls, video streaming, etc. — 4 hours of active use over the course of a 16-hour period, plus 8 hours of “sleep.” The robot repeats this set of actions every day until the device runs out of power.
On the go
Honor X7A
195
Using a smartphone on the go takes a toll on autonomy because of extra “hidden” demands, such as the continuous signaling associated with cellphone network selection, for example. DXOMARK Battery experts take the phone outdoors and perform a precisely defined set of activities while following the same three-hour travel itinerary (walking, taking the bus, the subway…) for each device
Calibrated
Honor X7A
198
For this series of tests, the smartphone returns to the Faraday cage and our robots repeatedly perform actions linked to one specific use case (such as gaming, video streaming, etc.) at a time. Starting from an 80% charge, all devices are tested until they have expended at least 5% of their battery power.
Charging
Honor X7A
181
Charging is fully part of the overall battery experience. In some situations where autonomy is at a minimum, knowing how fast you can charge becomes a concern. The DXOMARK Battery charging score is composed of two sub-scores, (1) Full charge and (2) Quick boost.
Full charge
Honor X7A
184
Full charge tests assess the reliability of the battery power gauge; measure how long and how much power the battery takes to charge from zero to 80% capacity, from 80 to 100% as shown by the UI, and until an actual full charge.
Charging Time 0-80%
Charging Time 0-80%
Quick boost
Honor X7A
182
With the phone at different charge levels (20%, 40%, 60%, 80%), Quick boost tests measure the amount of charge the battery receives after being plugged in for 5 minutes. The chart here compares the average autonomy gain from a quick 5-minute charge.
Efficiency
Honor X7A
154
The DXOMARK power efficiency score consists of two sub-scores, Charge up and Discharge rate, both of which combine data obtained during robot-based typical usage scenario, calibrated tests and charging evaluation, taking into consideration the device’s battery capacity. DXOMARK calculate the annual power consumption of the product, shown on below graph, which is representative of the overall efficiency during a charge and when in use.
Charge up
Honor X7A
205
The charge up sub-score is a combination of four factors: the overall efficiency of a full charge, related to how much energy you need to fill up the battery compared to the energy that the battery can provide; the efficiency of the travel adapter when it comes to transferring power from an outlet to your phone; the residual consumption when your phone is fully charged and still plugged into the charger; and the residual consumption of the charger itself, when the smartphone is disconnected from it. The chart here below shows the overall efficiency of a full charge in %.
Discharge
Honor X7A
194
The discharge subscore rates the speed of a battery’s discharge during a test, which is independent of the battery’s capacity. It is the ratio of a battery’s capacity divided by its autonomy. A small-capacity battery could have the same autonomy as a large-capacity battery, indicating that the device is well-optimized, with a low discharge rate.
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