After months of rumors, photos of the dual camera and unofficial AnTuTu results, we finally got an opportunity to test out the Huawei P9 during the official Huawei event in London. Read on for all the official numbers and our first impressions of the new top-of-the-line Chinese device.
Huawei P9 release date and price
The Huawei P9 was presented April 6 at an event in London. The device will come in two colors: Titanium Grey and Mystic Silver. The price is not yet confirmed for the US but a Huawei press release for Europe quoted a price of around $650 and preordering there should start on April 7 with a release date of April 21.
During the event, the brand introduced the P9 Plus that features 4 GB RAM, 64 GB internal memory and a 5.5-inch display. The P9 Plus will be available in Europe in mid-May and will cost around $800.
Huawei P9 design and build quality
The P9 features a sleek metal body reminiscent in every way to its predecessor, the P8. The latter, at the time of its release in May 2015, stood out among the Chinese devices on the market for its elegance and the attention Huawei put into its design. The P9 confirms the brand's commitment to providing users with a smartphone that has a premium look without giving up specs.
The slim body of the P9 offers rounded corners with a slight curvature that combines seamlessly with the frame. On the top of the front panel in the center is a speaker flanked on the left by the main camera and motion sensor. The P9, like its predecessor, does not have any buttons on the front of the device but rather puts the physical or capacitive buttons on the side of the body.
The rear shell keeps away fingerprints and immediately showcases the changes introduced by the brand: a dual camera and fingerprint reader. The two camera lenses have a circular design and are surrounded by a thin aluminum frame that protrudes minimally from the body of the device. Next to the two lenses are the LED flash and autofocus laser. The company opted for a square fingerprint reader (like the Honor 7).
As for the physical keys, the P9 has the volume rockers on the right edge right above the power button. On the left side sits SIM and MicroSD card slots. The speaker is at the bottom along with the USB type C port and a headphone jack.
The 145 x 70.9 x 6.95 mm frame and weight of 144 g make the P9 light and easy to handle. The physical buttons are easily accessible with only one hand. During the presentation of the device, Huawei CEO Richard Yu repeatedly emphasized his company's commitment to showing the attention to detail in the device's assembly (an example is the slightly curved thin edges). The P9 is ergonomic, light and hearty at the same time.
The P9 features a 5.2-inch 2.5D glass display with full HD resolution (1920 x 1080 p) resolution. Like with the P8, the screen is surrounded by thin black edges and has good viewing angles. You can change the brightness and color scheme in the settings.
During our brief hands-on testing, the display seemed bright and responded quickly to commands. During the event, the brand ensured us that the P9 screen offers 96 percent greater color saturation and brightness. The colors appeared vivid but it will take a more thorough analysis of the screen to see how it copes under sunlight and other lighting conditions.
Huawei P9 special features
Huawei put the P9 fingerprint reader on the rear panel. This biometric sensor introduced on the device has "level four" security, resulting in faster, more accurate and safer performance, according to Huawei.
Among the other special features is support for dual-SIM cards (but not for all models) and the first triple-integrated virtual antenna in the device, which should increase the quality of the connection.
Huawei P9 software
The P9 offers Android 6.0 Marshmallow straight out of the box. It also comes with EMUI 4.1. As with other Chinese devices, the Huawei P9's drawer apps are accessible with a simple swipe.
Among the preinstalled apps on the P9 you will fin the Google Play Store, all other Google services, Hicare, Health and Huawei Wear. The system showed no lag during our brief test. There were no crashes or other problems. This is expected from a new device. The interface is clean and simple. It can be customized in many ways from themes to how to control gestures.
Huawei P9 performance
The standard version of the P9 runs the Kirin 955 processor with Mali-T880 GBU backed up by 3 GB RAM and 32 GB internal memory. These specs mean better performance than the Kirin 930 processor that came with the P8. The P9 promises to perform 20 percent better than its predecessor.
We did not do a benchmark test but when we have the device for longer, we will. Stay tuned for updates on when we will receive the device for the full review treatment.
Huawei P9 camera
The camera system of the P9 has no doubt been the hype of the device during the past few months. The P9 offers two 12 MP rear lenses with dual-pixel technology and apertures of f/2.2. Huawei has chosen Leica as its partner in this device. The P9 features an RGB sensor that should provide greater brightness, better detail and higher-quality shots in low-light conditions.
The two different sensors, each consisting of six individual layers, offer pixels 28 percent larger than those of the P8. This results in an increased amount of light captured and better pictures. The P9 also provides hybrid autofocus and a new and faster IPS.
Regarding the camera software capabilities, the P9 provides new and interesting functions, such as instant preview, film mode, black and white, vivid and standard. One of the most interesting aspects is the interface integration with Leica. This introduced the shutter sound and a different font. Photo enthusiasts will enjoy the manual mode to adjust ISO, an exposure function, focus options and the choice of RAW format.
The front camera is 8 MP and is dedicated to selfies with its aperture of f/2.4. There is no shortage of options for its beauty and lighting options to really enhance those selfies. To asses the quality of these images we will need to do a more thorough review.
Huawei P9 battery
To keep the P9 running, it houses a non-removable 3000 mAh battery. This is bigger than the 2680 mAh P8 battery. It should be noted, however, that this year's flagships seemed to opt for the same battery size.
As for battery performance, Huawei guarantees 1.15 days of battery life under heavy usage and 1.68 days under moderate usage. According to what is stated by the manufacturer during the event, the P9 battery is able to guarantee 12 hours of HD video, eight hours of browsing, 20 hours of calls and 56 hours of music. We will check as soon as possible to ascertain the real performance for the P9 battery in a more thorough test.
It should also be noted that the P9 supports rapid charge and promises five hours of calls after only 10 minutes of charging.
Huawei P9 technical specifications
Early Verdict
The P9 is a stylish smartphone with promising specs. We studied the design in detail and despite being reminiscent of previous generations, it shows Huawei's commitment to give its customers a premium device that is solid and ergonomic.
The brand has decided to focus on user experience by integrating a fingerprint reader (now present on all high-end devices), boosting the battery and optimizing the photo-taking experience with a dual-lens camera system that promises to shoot high quality images and video.
If Huawei's guarantees of the P9's prowess are true then it will have no trouble exceeding the overall performance of its predecessor and competing with other 2016 flagships.
What do you think of the Huawei P9? Let us know in the comments.
0 comments:
Post a Comment