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Huawei Ascend Mate 7 Phablet Review

Apple challenger. Buyers looking for an alternative that has roughly the same size as the iPhone 6 and (only) want to spend about 500 Euros (~$635) should certainly look closer at the new, elegant, and swift Huawei phablet. Are its screen, casing, performance, and the stylish UI 3.0 a challenge for Apple's much pricier newcomer?

For the original German review, see here.

Our Huawei Ascend Mate 7 could certainly be seen as a response of the fast-growing Chinese manufacturer to Apple's iPhone 6 Plus plagued by "bendgate" and software issues. 6-inch phablets can normally be carried around easily in a pocket but not be used with only one hand. However, multimedia content is more enjoyable on larger screens, and the bigger on-screen keyboard facilitates writing. Huawei again relies on a Kirin SoC, which is currently one of the fastest of its kind, unlike the integrated Mali graphics. The IPS screen has a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. The somewhat unusual design of the very well-conceived user interface dubbed Emotion UI 3.0 could also be an attempt to close in on the iPhones' elegant appearance. In addition to the iPhone 6 Plus, we picked current smartphones with a size and performance similar to that of our review sample for our benchmark comparisons. The challengers are: LG G Flex, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005, and the brand new Motorola Moto X 2014.

Case

The back and the edges of Huawei's silver Ascend Mate 7 are primarily made of shimmering, matte aluminum. The material also largely repels fingerprints, and it makes a high-quality and solid impression. The fact that the device can barely be warped matches that. One would have to be very nit-picky to call the existing, minute irregularities production flaws. The narrow bezel points to a great screen-to-body ratio, which reinforces the impression. The smartphone is nice to hold owing to its rounded corners and the lack of sharp edges. However, using it with only one hand will likely only be possible if your name is Dirk Nowitzki. The Mate 7 is relatively light for a metal smartphone of this size.

160.5 mm / 6.32 inch 81.6 mm / 3.21 inch 8.7 mm / 0.3425 inch 176 g0.388 lbs158.1 mm / 6.22 inch 77.8 mm / 3.06 inch 7.1 mm / 0.2795 inch 172 g0.3792 lbs157 mm / 6.18 inch 81 mm / 3.19 inch 7.9 mm / 0.311 inch 185 g0.4079 lbs151.2 mm / 5.95 inch 79.2 mm / 3.12 inch 8.3 mm / 0.3268 inch 168 g0.3704 lbs140.8 mm / 5.54 inch 72.4 mm / 2.85 inch 9.9 mm / 0.3898 inch 145 g0.3197 lbs148 mm / 5.83 inch 105 mm / 4.13 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 1.5 g0.00331 lbs

Connectivity

There is nothing special to say about the interfaces. The power button and volume rocker are on the right, the headphone is connected on the upper edge, the micro-USB port, SIM and SD slots are on the upper left. A fingerprint sensor, which can be used for unlocking the screen, is on the back. That functioned impeccably in the test.

Software

Huawei has put a lot of effort into designing the stylish Emotion UI 3.0. There are some free design themes to choose from, and which include nicely adapted, color-matched icons for many preloaded apps. Compared with other manufacturer UIs, it is immediately noticed that there is no app drawer just like in the older versions of Huawei's user interface. The device relies on home-screen folders like "Tools" or "Google" instead. Notifications are displayed in a timeline. The user can specify whether and how every single app can access the Internet in the feature-rich phone manager. In addition to other tools, a storage cleaner, harassment filter, and notification manager are also found here. They allow controlling the torrent of Android typical notifications comfortably. The manufacturer basically only installs useful, visually adapted stock apps, such as calendar, contacts, recorder, gallery, music, etc., alongside Asphalt 8 and Polaris Office 4.0. Recently installed apps are illuminated - practical.

App GPS Test
App GPS Test

Communication & GPS 

The Wi-Fi module supports the IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n standards and transmits in both the 2.4 GHz band and the less frequented 5 GHz band. It incorporates Bluetooth 4.0 and BLE. A satellite was found within seconds via GPS in a room with a big window. It also remained stable for a much longer time even when increasing the distance to the roof, exterior walls and windows than in other GPS-capable devices that the author has tested under the same circumstances to date. In total, the GPS proved to be accurate and highly responsive.

Telephony & Voice Quality

The phone app only has few additional features worth mentioning, such as a pocket mode and SIP manager for Internet telephony, which merge seamlessly into the overall design. The author called a landline number from the German D1 net for the test. The contact's voice was very intelligible and sounded warm and natural. Although the caller's voice was absolutely intelligible, it was also a bit muffled and hollow.

Cameras & Multimedia

The primary camera's resolution of 13 MP is impressive. The backlit BSI sensor promises a better yield of light. However, it cannot prevent image noise indoors, although it is moderate compared with other smartphone cameras. The camera shoots good pictures for a smartphone unit in daylight. Huawei has managed to unite image sharpness, detail richness, and noise cancelling fairly well. Exposure is a bit short, but some pictures have a light HDR touch to them owing to a subtle brightening of shadows. Low-contrast textures like the twigs of a leafless tree look muddy in particular at the picture's edges. We very much liked the rather natural color reproduction and decent exposure range that prevents faded lights. The camera app provides some extras like photo effects and a Best Picture mode. Good news not only for selfie fans: The image quality of the 5 MP webcam sticks out positively from most of its counterparts.

Slight underexposure for rescuing lights?
Slight underexposure for rescuing lights?
Image noise was hardly noticed in daylight.
Image noise was hardly noticed in daylight.
Balanced colors, subtle brightening of shadows, unfocused edges.
Balanced colors, subtle brightening of shadows, unfocused edges.
Indoor shoot: We have seen worse noise.
Indoor shoot: We have seen worse noise.

Image Comparison

Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.

Scene 1Scene 2Scene 3

Accessories

Not even a power supply was included for our review sample. However, the device's page states that one is normally part of the delivery, alongside a USB cable, stereo headphones and quick-start guide.

Warranty

We did not find any device specific information, but a two-year warranty is the rule for Huawei.

Input Devices & Controls

The clearly arranged keyboard does not have anything special to offer apart from a swype feature. Huawei does not implement a number row. As usual, word suggestions are faded in at the top. Owing to the accurate and responsive touchscreen as well as enough surface area, it was possible to use the keyboard confidently and quite speedily. However, we have make deductions here because the feature for single-handed operation, which is to move the keyboard and navigation bar closer to the thumb, completely denied work.

Display

16:9 is again the aspect ratio of choice. In our opinion, the Full HD resolution (367 ppi) of the razor-sharp IPS screen utilizes the six inches perfectly. Higher pixel densities only look better on paper, even if the marketing strategies created by the manufacturers want to suggest something else. Despite the good illumination of 93%, our review sample exhibited subtle halos at its edges in dark content. The maximum brightness is well above average compared with other, modern smartphones, but it is not top. A superb contrast of 980:1 results in conjunction with the very good black level of 0.46 cd/m². For comparison, the iPhone 6 has a slightly higher brightness, but its black level of 0.62 cd/m² "only" leads to a contrast of 837:1.

446
cd/m²
456
cd/m²
477
cd/m²
445
cd/m²
451
cd/m²
467
cd/m²
447
cd/m²
452
cd/m²
452
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 477 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 454.8 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 93 %
Center on Battery: 451 cd/m²
Contrast: 980:1 (Black: 0.46 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 2.49 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 2.88 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB SSD
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
Screen
-51%
-15%
4%
-51%
Brightness middle
451
309
-31%
519
15%
335
-26%
259
-43%
Brightness
455
311
-32%
496
9%
342
-25%
263
-42%
Brightness Distribution
93
96
3%
90
-3%
81
-13%
91
-2%
Black Level *
0.46
0.62
-35%
0.1
78%
Contrast
980
837
-15%
3350
242%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
2.49
4.96
-99%
3.67
-47%
6.14
-147%
6.52
-162%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
2.88
5.69
-98%
3.78
-31%
5.27
-83%
3.05
-6%
Gamma
2.41 91%
2.42 91%
2.39 92%
2.31 95%
CCT
7985 81%
7327 89%
7559 86%
6226 104%

* ... smaller is better

DeltaE determines to what extent the reproduced colors deviate from the target. The ascertained rates of less than 3 (Grayscale and ColorChecker) point to an unusually high color accuracy, which can be confirmed subjectively. Not even the iPhone 6 Plus that is very good in this field can compete with that. Assuming a color gamut close to sRGB, the screen should even satisfy demanding, semi-professional photographers.

CalMAN Grayscale
CalMAN Grayscale
CalMAN ColorChecker
CalMAN ColorChecker
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps
CalMAN Color Management
CalMAN Color Management

The maximum brightness can even defy the ambient light on sunny days as long as bright objects are not reflected on the screen.

The Mate 7's colors largely remain true even in very narrow viewing angles. However, moderate brightness losses are noticed quite early when the screen is tilted. IPS is capable of more, as the Asus MeMO Pad 7 proves. But that is complaining on a very high level.

Performance

The HiSilicon Kirin 925 is an ARM-based octa-core SoC with two CPU clusters. One cluster is comprised of four energy-efficient A7 cores that clock with up to 1.3 GHz, and the other of four faster A15 cores that are enabled in demanding computations and can achieve up to 1.8 GHz (big.LITTLE design). The benchmark chart and the comparison with other current premium smartphones in our database show that the processor's performance belongs in the high-end sector, particularly in multi-threading, and that it can even compete with the lightning-fast A8 dual-core in the iPhones from 2014. Its single-core performance is not as good. Like in most modern smartphones from Huawei, AndroBench 3 used for assessing the storage performance does not record any pleasing results. Though the sequential read performance can just still be called clearly below average, the achieved 7.32 MB/s in the random read 4K test belongs to the lower end of comparable devices. 

Geekbench 3
32 Bit Multi-Core Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
3178 Points
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
2366 Points -26%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
2874 Points -10%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
3005 Points -5%
32 Bit Single-Core Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
893 Points
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
923 Points +3%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
1609 Points +80%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
1003 Points +12%
3DMark
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Physics (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
11851 Points
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
14506 Points +22%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
9473 Points -20%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
16354 Points +38%
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Graphics Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
14432 Points
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
19226 Points +33%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
23937 Points +66%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
20806 Points +44%
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
13766 Points
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
17930 Points +30%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
17873 Points +30%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
19619 Points +43%
AndroBench 3-5
Random Write 4KB (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
1.05 MB/s
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
1.38 MB/s +31%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
2.43 MB/s +131%
Random Read 4KB (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
7.32 MB/s
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
16.02 MB/s +119%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
13.49 MB/s +84%
Sequential Write 256KB (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
10.43 MB/s
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
16 MB/s +53%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
27.42 MB/s +163%
Sequential Read 256KB (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
51.2 MB/s
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
110.2 MB/s +115%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
140.7 MB/s +175%
AnTuTu v5 - Total Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
42181 Points
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
50360 Points +19%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
43985 Points +4%

The browser benchmark scores once again prove that users who find highest Internet browsing speed important will hardly get around Apple's iPhones. Our review sample exhibited absolutely inconsistent results. It looked very good in Octane v2 (which prefers the used Chrome browser), but SunSpider and Mozilla Kraken place the Mate 7 in the last place of current smartphones. Subjectively, we enjoyed browsing, but we have also seen this somewhat better on other devices.

Sunspider - 1.0 Total Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
666 ms *
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
1003 ms * -51%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
347.4 ms * +48%
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB SSD
1003 ms * -51%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
777 ms * -17%
Octane V2 - Total Score (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
6552 Points
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
3870 Points -41%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
7276 Points +11%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
5403 Points -18%
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
5414 ms *
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
7795 ms * -44%
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
4470 ms * +17%
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB SSD
8574 ms * -58%
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
6243 ms * -15%

* ... smaller is better

Games

The integrated graphics solution dubbed Mali-T628 MP6 is now more found in the upper range. It is, however, still strong enough to render even demanding games smoothly. In any case, it incorporates features like OpenGL ES 3.0, OpenCL 1.1, and DirectX 11, making it reliable for the foreseeable future. Overall, the GPU can almost compete with the widespread Adreno 330 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 / 801). However, 3DMark records an advantage of as much as 22 to 44% for this chip in the LG G Flex and Motorola Moto X 2014 over the Mali graphics. The still beautiful Asphalt 7 ran absolutely lag-free, and we did not have any problems with the controls using the position sensor.

Emissions

Temperature

The phablet reached a maximum load temperature of 40 °C, which was not a problem for the tester.

 29.4 °C
85 F
28.8 °C
84 F
31.9 °C
89 F
 
 29.4 °C
85 F
29.1 °C
84 F
32 °C
90 F
 
 28.6 °C
83 F
28.7 °C
84 F
30.6 °C
87 F
 
Maximum: 32 °C = 90 F
Average: 29.8 °C = 86 F
28.4 °C
83 F
28.4 °C
83 F
28.6 °C
83 F
28.9 °C
84 F
28.9 °C
84 F
28.8 °C
84 F
29 °C
84 F
29 °C
84 F
28.7 °C
84 F
Maximum: 29 °C = 84 F
Average: 28.7 °C = 84 F
Room Temperature 21 °C = 70 F | Voltcraft IR-350
(±) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 37.2 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 32.7 °C / 91 F for the devices in the class Smartphone.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 39.8 °C / 104 F, compared to the average of 35 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 56 °C for the class Smartphone.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 38.4 °C / 101 F, compared to the average of 33.8 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 29.8 °C / 86 F, compared to the device average of 32.7 °C / 91 F.

Speakers

The relatively loud mono speaker did not make a good impression in the test, but it was not annoying either. There was no sign of bass or dynamics, and it completely lacked surround. Voices are well intelligible and present but sometimes sound a bit hoarse. At least the sound is mid-heavy enough that playback never sounded piercing. The tester was not plagued by volume fluctuations either. When placed on a table, the speaker rests on its surface.

Energy Management

Power Consumption

Among the few 6-inch phablets that we tested in the past twelve months, the Mate 7 proved to be the most economical in load, as it would usually only occur in games. The consumption is exactly on average in idle mode (avg).

Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0 / 0.1 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 1.2 / 1.7 / 1.8 Watt
Load midlight 2.3 / 3 Watt
 color bar
Key: min: dark, med: mid, max: light        Voltcraft VC 940
Currently we use the Metrahit Energy, a professional single phase power quality and energy measurement digital multimeter, for our measurements. Find out more about it here. All of our test methods can be found here.

Battery Runtime

Approximately 11.5 hours in the practical Wi-Fi test is roughly half an hour less than the average runtime of all 6-inch phablets from the past twelve months. LG's G Flex is particularly good in this exercise. The aforementioned phone manager also provides the user with different, cleverly implemented energy-saving options. For example, it is possible to display especially power-devouring applications with a close function in the notification field, and to determine which apps are to be automatically closed in standby.

Battery Runtime
WiFi Surfing
11h 27min
Load (maximum brightness)
4h 13min
Battery Runtime
WiFi (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
687 min
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
1014 min
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
777 min
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB SSD
1081 min
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
617 min
Load (sort by value)
Huawei Ascend Mate 7
Mali-T628 MP6, Kirin 925, 16 GB eMMC Flash
253 min
LG G Flex
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB eMMC Flash
314 min
Apple iPhone 6 Plus
PowerVR GX6450, A8, 64 GB eMMC Flash
199 min
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005
Adreno 330, 800 MSM8974, 32 GB SSD
209 min
Motorola Moto X 2. Gen 2014
Adreno 330, 801 MSM8974AC, 16 GB eMMC Flash
165 min

Verdict

Huawei Ascend Mate 7.
Huawei Ascend Mate 7.

In total, Huawei's iPhone rival made a very good impression in the test. Apart from the graphics unit that we "only" see in the upper range, it provides premium-range performance. The minor weaknesses that we could measure are more theoretical. Multimedia friends will be satisfied with the good, big screen and the more than just useful camera. However, they will have to accept the poor sound. We found the Emotion UI 3.0 functionality good and its looks very attractive. The phone manager bursts with useful features that are a real added value and are a unique selling point of Huawei's new smartphones. 

The elegant and solid casing of the Ascend Mate 7 does not need to fear comparison with contenders from Apple. The screen-to-body ratio should even be superior to the iPhone 6 Plus (although it is thinner). The fingerprint sensor can be listed as a striking feature. GPS is available everywhere, but rarely with such a good reception performance. Objectively, our Huawei Ascend is technically almost equal to and otherwise fully on par with the Apple rivals, but the iPhone 6 Plus with the same storage capacity costs 60% more. However, experience shows that regular Apple customers will not be open for these factual arguments. Buyers who can adapt to the size and to Android receive a clear purchase recommendation from us. This much phablet for this price is not found everywhere.

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In review: Huawei Ascend Mate 7. Test model courtesy of Huawei Germany.
In review: Huawei Ascend Mate 7. Test model courtesy of Huawei Germany.

Specifications

Huawei Ascend Mate 7 (Y5 Series)
Processor
HiSilicon Kirin 925 8 x 1.8 GHz, Cortex-A15 / Cortex-A7, big.LITTLE (4x A7 + 4x A15)
Graphics adapter
ARM Mali-T628 MP6, Core: 600 MHz, GPU core speed is an assumption
Memory
2048 MB 
Display
6.00 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel, capacitive (10 points), IPS, IPS-NEO, glossy: yes
Storage
16 GB eMMC Flash, 16 GB 
, 11 GB free
Connections
1 USB 2.0, Audio Connections: 3.5 mm headphone jack, Card Reader: micro-SD, 1 Fingerprint Reader, Sensors: proximity, ambient light, accelerometer, compass, g-sensor, gyroscope, fingerprint
Networking
802.11a/b/g/n (a/b/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/), Bluetooth 4.0 (BLE-Support), 4G (LTE): Cat.6 300 Mbps (download), 50 Mbps (upload), Band 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/20/28 (FDD), Band 40 (TDD); 3G (UMTS/DC-HSPA+): HSDPA+: 42 Mbps, HSUPA: 11,5 Mbit/s, 850/900/1700/1900/2100 MHz
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 7.9 x 157 x 81 ( = 0.31 x 6.18 x 3.19 in)
Battery
Lithium-Polymer, 4100 mAh
Operating System
Android 4.4 KitKat
Camera
Webcam: primary camera: 13 MP BSI, AF, LED flash; front camera: 5.0 MP
Additional features
Speakers: mono, Keyboard: virtual, browser, data backup, energy manager, designs, FM radio, audio recorder, music player, flashlight, file manager, accessories app, app center, HiCare, Zinio, Todoist (1 year Premium free), Bitcasa online storage (1 year 50 GB free) Gameloft, 24 Months Warranty
Weight
185 g ( = 6.53 oz / 0.41 pounds) ( = 0 oz / 0 pounds)
Price
500 Euro

 

Aluminum, glass,...
Aluminum, glass,...
...and rounded shapes...
...and rounded shapes...
...make an elegant impression.
...make an elegant impression.
Flash, camera, fingerprint sensor, speaker.
Flash, camera, fingerprint sensor, speaker.
SIM and SD-card slots
SIM and SD-card slots
From Moonlight Silver...
From Moonlight Silver...
...to Obsidian Black.
...to Obsidian Black.
Themes.
Themes.

Similar Devices

Devices with the same GPU

Samsung Galaxy Alpha SM-G850F Smartphone Review
Mali-T628 MP6, Exynos 5430 Octa, 4.70", 0.115 kg

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Huawei Mate 50 Pro smartphone review: The camera star has problems
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Huawei Nova 10 Pro review - High-end smartphone with 60 MP selfie camera
Adreno 642L, Snapdragon SD 778G 4G, 6.78", 0.191 kg
Huawei Mate Xs 2 review - Foldable smartphone with handicap
Adreno 660, Snapdragon SD 888 4G, 7.80", 0.255 kg

Links

  • Manufacturer's information

Compare Prices

Pros

+Light
+Elegant, solid aluminum casing
+Slim bezel
+Bright, viewing angle screen with outstanding color reproduction
+Lightning fast CPU performance
+Very good GPU performance
+Stylish, useful UI
+Phone manager app
+Very good primary camera for a smartphone
+Feasible webcam
+Responsive, highly receptive GPS
 

Cons

-Cannot be used with one hand, one-hand feature defect
-Assessed storage throughput low
-Browsing could be smoother
-Lack of an app drawer needs getting used to
-Mono speaker too inferior for multimedia

Shortcut

What we like

The phablet looks very elegant owing to the narrow bezel and aluminum casing.

What we'd like to see

Sound on par with HTC.

What surprises us

Didn't anyone try the single-handed operation feature? Or was it just defective in our review sample?

The competition

LG G Flex

Apple iPhone 6 Plus

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005

Motorola Moto X 2014

Rating

Huawei Ascend Mate 7 - 10/23/2014 v4(old)
Sven Kloevekorn

Chassis
86%
Keyboard
68 / 75 → 91%
Pointing Device
89%
Connectivity
45 / 60 → 75%
Weight
89%
Battery
92%
Display
88%
Games Performance
61 / 63 → 97%
Application Performance
49 / 70 → 70%
Temperature
88%
Noise
100%
Audio
55 / 91 → 60%
Camera
67%
Average
75%
84%
Smartphone - Weighted Average
Sven Kloevekorn, 2014-10-27 (Update: 2018-05-15)