Huawei P9 flagship with Leica’s dual shooter
Huawei launched their Flagship smartphones, the Huawei P9 and P9 plus. If photography is your thing of you are thinking of going into ‘Smartphone’ photography big time, then take a look at Huawei’s new flagship P9.
The Huawei P9 has a 5.2-inch Full HD screen while the P9 Plus has a 5.5-inch Full HD display. In terms of size and weigh, both phones do not different much. And, as both displays are Full HD, it then comes down to a matter of preference, do you prefer a big screen (5.2-inch) or a slightly bigger screen (5.5-inch) seeing that the phone shares almost everything else.
What is remarkable about the new Huawei P9 flagship is in the way it chooses to execute its cameras. This is an area where increasingly, more and more manufacturers are focusing on to differentiate their products. We have seen this type of move on the Asus ZenFone Zoom and ZenFone Selfie. It’s now Huawei’s turn to step into the limelight.
Superior Optics
Working in collaboration with Leica camera AG, the main rear facing camera on the phone features not one but two optical lenses. We have seen this before on the HTC but the collaboration brings together a new level of integration between hardware and software from optical lenses to sensors and image processing algorithms.
The result, a superior smartphone with Leica’s lenses capable of capturing the highest quality images using a dual-camera design. The cameras work in together to allow users to create images of superior detail, depth and colour.
While externally the two lenses may look the same but they are actually a colour and a monochrome camera. The RBG camera is designed to capture vibrant colours while the monochrome camera works on acquiring the details in every shot. Put the two captured images together and with some clever software and you have an excellent output.
The most important feature with any camera on a smartphone is its focus speed. Huawei’s Hybrid Focus technology makes taking photos with incredible speed, depth and clarity using laser focus, depth measurement and contrast.
It capitalizes on Kirin processors built-in Image Signal Processor (ISP) and a dedicated Digital Signal Processor (DSP) for post processing, to allow the camera to capture images with superior speed, accuracy and stability.
As you would expect, the camera works very well in low-light conditions. The dual camera arrangement is designed to allow more light and details to be captured. Playing to their strengths, Huawei and Leica were able to meticulously calibrate the smartphones camera parameters to ensure that each photo mode renders the authentic colour and style of a Leica camera. The front facing selfie cameras comes with an 8MP sensor that also works well in low light.
The chassis is made from glass on aerospace class aluminum frame. The frame has diamond-cut edges for a rounded finish. The phone is powered by the new Kirin 955, a 64-bit ARM processor clocking at 2.5GHz. For memory and storage, the smartphone comes with 3GB or 4GB of RAM memory and 32GB or 64GB of storage.
True to the trend of releasing flagship duos, two leading smartphones instead of one, Huawei’s P9 has a 5.2-inch display with Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixel) resolution while the P9 Plus has a 5.5-inch display also with Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixel) resolution.
Depending on the market, these smartphones come with Dual SIM and NFC support. The battery capacity of P9 is 3000mAh while the P9 Plus has a 3400mAh battery. However, quick charge is only available on P9 Plus and not P9. When it comes to thinness (or thickness depending on how you see it), the P9 is only a mere 6.95mm while the P9 Plus is not far off, only 6.98mm. You won’t be able to feel the difference.
In terms of colours, the Huawei P9 is available in 6 shades (gold, white, rose gold, prestige gold, grey and silver) while the P9 Plus is only available in gold, grey and white.
Specifications
- Display: 5.2-inch FHD Screen, 2.5D, 1080p (1920 x 1080), 16.7M colours
- Processor: Kirin 955 (64-bit), Octa-core (4 x 2.5 GHz A72+ 4 x 1.8 GHz A53)
- Memory and Storage: 4GB RAM + 64GB ROM or 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM
- Cameras: 12MP x 2, F2.2 BSI CMOS, Dual-tone flash main camera. 8MP, F2.4 front camera.
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi 2.4G/5G, a/b/g/n/ac with Wi-Fi Direct support, Bluetooth 4.2, support BLE, USB Type C (High Speed USB)
- Sensors: Fingerprint Sensor, G-Sensor, Gyroscope sensor, Compass, Ambient Light Sensor, Proximity sensor, Hall effect sensor
- GPS: GPS/A-GPS/Glonass/BDS
- NFC Support: Yes (subject to market)
- Dual SIM Support: Yes (subject to market)
- Dimensions & Weight: 145mm x 70.9mm x 6.95 mm (H x W x D) about 144g (Weight)
- Operating System: Android 6.0 with EMUI 4.1
