The Huawei Mate 10 is another phone released this year that I feel is close to getting everything right, but ultimately falls short. There are a number of great things about this handset, headlined by a fantastic price point, though with stellar competition, it’s hard to recommend it to everyone.

Better features than the Mate 10 Pro, like a headphone jack, microSD card slot, and a fantastic high-resolution display; Decent peak performance with excellent battery life; Cheaper than similar-sized competitors

Software needs an overhaul to compete with Google; Kirin 970 throttles heavily; Slippery design isn’t great on a phone this large

The Huawei Mate 10 sits alongside the Mate 10 Pro at the top of Huawei's 2017 phone lineup, offering a big phone with a heap of features. Given the latter's branding, you might assume that the regular Mate 10 – featuring a pretty boring LCD, not OLED, screen, less RAM and half the storage – is the...

Takes good pictures in low light; Great performance; Very good battery life

EMUI software is a pain

There’s a lot to like about the Mate 10 - but it doesn’t really do enough to justify its existence, when the Mate 10 Pro is the superior phone in almost every way. The Pro has a bigger OLED screen, and underneath, the specs are almost identical. OK, the Mate 10 might find room for a microSD card, but the Pro has more storage to begin with. Beyond a lower price, the Mate 10’s only real advantage is its 3.5mm headphone socket. In the end, though, none of that matters unless you live in a place where both phones are on sale. Here in the UK, we only get the Mate 10 Pro. And a fine phone it is too. The Mate 10 is a curiosity, then. It’s sort of a middle ground between last year’s flagships and 2017’s skinnier, screen-ier smartphones, with no real drawbacks - other than the fact its bigger brother does things ever-so-slightly better.

Modern design with familiar screen size; Brilliant battery life; Plenty of power;

Camera can’t keep up with the Pixel 2; EMUI still has quirks; Mate 10 Pro actually available here in the UK;

Modern design with familiar screen size; Brilliant battery life; Plenty of power;

Camera can’t keep up with the Pixel 2; EMUI still has quirks; Mate 10 Pro actually available here in the UK;

The Huawei Mate 10 is an outstanding smartphone. The few minor quibbles – the (in our case at least) wobbly volume rocker switch, the lack of an IP 67 certification, the context-based brightness adjustment, the post-processing of the photos – do not really detract from the overall concept.

outstanding design & feels great to the touch; very good IPS panel; QHD resolution (16:9; doesn't get very hot; great run times; outstanding performance

high SAR value; camera software is lacking; no wireless charging; Bluetooth 4.2; WLAN could be faster; only IP-53 certified; (availability

It's hard out here for Huawei. The Chinese company is responsible for many great phones, but it's rarely given its due credit. Whether or not the Mate 10 changes this can't be predicted, but Huawei has done its part: The Mate 10 is a standout phone, one that's several hundred dollars cheaper than...

Huawei's Mate 10 gives you performance and cameras comparable to Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 and Google's Pixel XL 2, but for several hundred bucks less; It also has a headphone jack

The phone's battery doesn't last as long as the Mate 10 Pro despite being the same size; Huawei's Android software could be smoother and the phone isn't getting an official release in the US or UK

It's hard out here for Huawei. The Chinese company is responsible for many great phones, but it's rarely given its due credit. Whether or not the Mate 10 changes this can't be predicted, but Huawei has done its part: The Mate 10 is a standout phone, one that's several hundred dollars cheaper than competition from Samsung, Google and Apple -- and even shaves down the price of Huawei's own superpowered Mate 10 Pro .

The Huawei Mate 10 may be hard for you to get your hands on, but it’s worth the effort if you want a big-screen phone and don’t quite have the budget for a Galaxy Note, iPhone Plus or Pixel 2.

Huawei’s Mate 10 gives you performance and cameras comparable to Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8 and Google’s Pixel XL 2, but for several hundred bucks less. It also has a headphone jack.

The phone’s battery doesn’t last as long as the Mate 10 Pro despite being the same size. Huawei’s Android software could be smoother and the phone isn’t getting an official release in the US or UK.

Huawei introduced three models to its phablet mate series this year. There's the Mate 10, a more than worthy successor to the Mate 9 , and then there's the Mate 10 Pro and Mate 10 Porsche Edition. All three offer similar performance, although the Mate 10 has the most traditional design.

The camera; The battery; Performance; Very thin frame; Can be used like a computer

Quite wide; Heavy and slippery; Only IP53; Bluetooth 4.2

The Huawei Mate 10 won't even be a consideration for anyone in the UK or the US right now given its limited availability, but if you're reading this in Australia or another region it will be available, and are in the market for a big phone, it should definitely be a contender.

Premium design; Quality camera; Powerful chipset

No real waterproofing; EMUI not for everyone; No wireless charging

Huawei's Mate 10 phone has a big screen and some advanced features that make it quite the bargain at $899. And it's available from tomorrow – 15 November 2017 – from Vodafone and other places.

Great value for money; effective docking; Android 8.0; excellent 2x zoom camera

Not waterproof