When news began circulating a few months ago that Huawei would be unveiling a new phablet in Munich, there was a greater air of anticipation for the debut of the Mate 9 . Part of this interest stemmed from the Chinese manufacturer making inroads into the smartphone market, with the P9 and P9 Plus...

Superb all-round camera performance; Solid processor performance; Generous two day battery life

No significant design changes; Feels less premium than it should

Huawei's P9 was billed as the smartphone any photographer – budding or otherwise – should have in their pocket. True, dual Leica lenses and sensors manufactured by Sony helped secure the P9 as the camera with a smartphone attached to have in 2016, but its specifications made it just that: a camera...

The common knock on Huawei smartphones: great hardware, poor software. Huawei took big steps to correcting that with the Huawei Mate 9. It's EMUI is still heavy enough to retain distinction from stock Android, though much closer to the real thing than previous versions.

Great build; sharp look; Top-of-the-line performance; One of the best smartphone cameras; Ships with adapters and smartphone bumper

Not dust-proof; not waterproof; Limited US carrier support

We loved the Huawei Mate 8 and its phenomenal battery performance - can the new Huawei Mate 9 continue that legacy?

Large, clear, and vibrant display; Premium quality and attractive metal build; Excellent audio quality stereo speakers; Superb camera'; Fast performance; Well above average battery life

Proprietary UI will not meet everyone's tastes' No waterproofing

Here's a phone we've looked forward to reviewing. The Mate 7 was our phone of 2014 and the Mate 8 was in our Top 5 best phones of 2016 . We've reviewed many middling phones of late so we've been hoping that Huawei's new flagship would impress us. It didn't get off to a great start.

Great battery; Very fast; Good value; Potentially-amazing camera

Potentially-disappointing camera

What makes this phone so good? Where to begin? Let's start with the superior hardware and software, the 12MP Leica dual lense camera that enables users to capture the highest phone quality pictures, the ‘Press Touch' feature that recognizes subtler variations in screen pressure, making your phone...

aesthetics; camera; functionality

For the last several weeks I've put my Samsung Galaxy S7 aside while using the Huawei Mate 9 smart phone, one of the company's premium models. Much to my surprise, and rather unusually for me, I haven't felt the hankering to get back to Sammie in the way I usually do after a week or so.

Sometimes bigger is better. When it comes to phones, that's more true than ever - a bigger screen is easier to read, and a bigger body hides larger batteries and means more battery life. And that means Huawei's massive Mate 9 is one of the best new Android phones you can buy in 2017.

Last year's Mate 8 made waves thanks largely to its mostly premium features in a phone selling for $300-$400 less than established premium devices. This season's Mate has pushed the specs up, and with that, the price.

After using my samsung galaxy note and and Iphone plus, I fall in love with mate 9. This phone takes pictures like a SLR camera with a lot of pro features! The super charge feature is awsome! Only a 15 minutes charge can last me for a day of heavy use! Wont go wrong with this one!!