This past year has proven to be one of the best we've ever seen for high-end budget smartphones. A heap of Android devices entered the ring to showcase that you don't need to spend $600+ on a quality handset, and even Apple joined the game with their own iPhone SE. Among all of the budget-friendly options that we've seen though, the Honor 8 has proven to be a favorite for a lot of folks out there. It's dual-camera system, premium build, and speedy internals make for one heck of an Android smartphone for under $400, and today the software for the phone is getting ever better.
Unlike a lot of the budget options that we've seen, the Honor 8 runs an incredibly heavy skin on top of the Android OS. The phone features the EMUI user interface, and an update to EMUI 5.0 is now rolling out to the handset. However, this release isn't public just quite yet. Only those who signed up for the Honor 8 beta program back on November 7 have access to the update, meaning that only about sixty or so people will have access to the new software.
What's so special about the 5.0 update though to EMUI? For starters, EMUI 5.0 is based off of Android Nougat, so you're getting access to all of the goodies that come bundled with the latest and greatest from Google. On top of this, the refreshed look and feel to EMUI brings enhanced security features, a reworked color palate, and the option to finally add an app drawer to give the Honor 8 a more traditional stock Android interface.
Honor has yet to announce when the EMUI 5.0 update will be exiting the beta stage and be made available to the public, but assuming there aren't any game-breaking bugs found in the beta, we hopefully shouldn't have to wait too much longer before it gets a wider release.
Joe Maring, a reviewer and tech news writer at PhoneArena, specializes in thorough analyses and updates on cutting-edge mobile technology, helping readers stay informed about the latest trends and product features in the rapidly evolving smartphone market.
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