Infinix Mobile’s new Hot series device dubbed Infinix HOT 9 Play is now officially in Kenya.
The device succeeds the Infinix HOT 8 (Review) released in the country in October last year. It builds on where the Infinix Hot 8 left with few upgrades on the internals and just as we saw on the HOT 8, the HOT 9 Play also comes with a really powerful battery.
Infinix is selling this device at Ksh.13,299 available on Jumia, XSpark and Infinix branded retail stores across the country.
With that price and the specs the phone comes with, it is indeed a budget standout. We already did the unboxing article which you can read here. You can also watch our unboxing video below.
Infinix tried to get everything right with this phone, including its price segment. It features a 6.82-inch display with a resolution of 720 by 1640 pixels. The HOT 9 Play has a sleek look, with round edges, which adds to its flawlessness and aesthetic. It also comes with a water drop notch similar to what we saw on the HOT 8.
The phone’s design is simple and plain and it comes with a plastic frame, a polycarbonate back with a glossy coating.
HOT 9 Play is a 6.82-inc display phone so you might really struggle holding it in your hand but if you love huge displays then you will really like it. If you struggle using it because of the large display then the one-hand mode should be able to help.
Another thing about the HOT 9 Play is that it is quite heavy, due to the huge size of the battery. Remember this is the first phone from Infinix to come with a 6,000 mAh battery which does a pretty good job.
Despite the size, the 6,000 mAh battery life is super amazing and could last you up to two days on a single charge so you don’t really have to worry about running out of juice.
The challenge with huge batteries like this is that apart from making the phone heavy, it also takes so much time to juice up from 0 to 100%. When Infinix sent me this review unit, it took almost an hour for the batter to just get to 100% from 60%. The battery performance is amazing, only that it takes too long to fill up.
The Infinix HOT 8 comes with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage that can further be expanded to 256GB via SD Card. Powering the phone is the Mediatek Helio A25 octa-core CPU clocked at 1.8GHz, along with PowerVR GE8320 GPU. The Infinix HOT 9 Play is an Android 10 (Go Edition) device and features Infinix’s XOS 6.1 so you will be getting Android Go Apps and other bloatware apps which you can get rid of by either deleting or just disabling them.
For the cameras, the Infinix HOT 9 Play features a Dual Camera Setup. The main sensor is a 13-megapixel pegged with a VGA auxiliary lens, along with a triple LED flash. At the front, there is a single 8-megapixel selfie lens housed in the notch.
The photos produced are decent, especially in good lighting. Same case with the selfie shots. Camera modes include AI, beauty, bokeh, AR shot, Panorama among others.
See sample shots below under different modes. (Click on the images to expand).
Infinix HOT 9 Play Specs
| Display | Type | IPS TFT |
| Size | 6.82-inch (~82.4% screen-to-body ratio) | |
| Resolution | HD+ 1640 x 720 (~263 ppi density) | |
| Protection | N/A | |
| Platform | OS | Android 10.0(Go Edition), splashed on top with XOS 6.1.0 |
| Chipset | MediaTek Helio A25 (12 nm) | |
| CPU | Octa-core (4×1.8 GHz Cortex-A53 & 4×1.5 GHz Cortex-A53) | |
| GPU | PowerVR GE8320 | |
| Network | Technology | 2G,3G, 4G LTE |
| Memory | RAM | 2GB |
| ROM | 32GB | |
| MicroSD card Slot | Yes, up to 256GB | |
| Camera | Selfie | 8 MP, f/2.0 |
| Rear | Dual Camera Setup: 13MP+AI | |
| Video | Up to 1080p@30fps | |
| Battery | 6,000 mAh (Non-removable Li-Po)
Standard 10W charging |
|
| Other features | Bluetooth 5.0, Micro USB 2.0 port, notched display, 3.5mm headphone jack, OTG support, FaceID | |
| Colors | Mineral Blue, Mystic Purple, Peach Pink, and Peacock Blue | |
| Sensors | Fingerprint (rear-mounted), e-Compass, Gravity, Gyroscope and Proximity Sensor | |
| Weight | Approx. 206 g | |
| Measurements | 173.4 x 79 x 8.8 mm (6.83 x 3.11 x 0.35 in) | |
| Price | Ksh 13,299 |
Conclusion and Availability
The Infinix HOT 9 Play is a budget sound device and Infinix really tried to make some upgrades compared to its predecessor, the HOT 8.
The battery performance is good, the cameras do not disappoint so is the overall performance of the phone. The chip might not be that fast but it gets the job done.
At that price the Infinix HOT 9 Play is worth considering. You can buy it on
XPark for Ksh 13,299, Jumia here and Infinix’s official retail stores across the country.
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