Why the Huawei Mate 9 is the best

A big screen in a small package, epic battery life and Android Nougat.

With the cancellation of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7, the Huawei Mate 9 has taken the crown as the best Android phone with a big screen. But it's more than just a winner by default — Huawei offers fantastic longevity thanks to an enormous 4, 000mAh battery, along with a pared back UI, complemented by the latest version of Android. This is a beast of a phone.

The second-generation Leica-branded dual-camera setup also ups the stakes when it comes to imaging. It isn't necessarily the simplest smartphone shooter to use, but the Huawei/Leica camera app offers neat features like surprisingly realistic depth effects, and a highly capable manual shooting mode.

LG V20

LG needed to raise its game after the modular mess that was the G5, and that's exactly what Samsung's local rival did with the V20. LG's 5.7-incher gets you the same guts as the G5, without any of the modular nonsense, and with much improved build quality and some unique features thanks to the second display. As before, you can use the secondary ticker above the main screen to see app shortcuts, show a personal message or view notifications.

And the removable battery option is back, with the V20's 3, 200mAh swappable cell living behind a metal back panel, which pops off when you hit the release switch.

On the camera side —where the phone really shines — the V20 is every bit as good as the G5, with a main 16-megapixel sensor behind an f/1.8 lens, and a secondary wide-angle camera for fitting in more detail. LG's also packed in new autofocus and stabilization technologies not present in that phone for even smoother video.

Bottom line: The V20 is easily LG's best phone ever. You get the proven cameras of the G5, along with Android Nougat and a solid metal chassis, plus the rarity of a removable battery.

One more thing: LG hasn't announced any plans to range the V20 in Europe, so don't hold your breath for an official way to buy the phone in that part of the world.

Samsung Galaxy Note 5

For all the fuss about this year's Galaxy Note, last year's stylus-toting offering, the Note 5, has aged remarkably well. Across the board, you're looking at a similar feature set to the now-cancelled Note 7, just a little less barnstorming across the board. A slightly older Exynos processor, and a 16-megapixel (optically stabilized) camera that doesn't quite match the Note 7's in low light, but is still damn good in its own right.

And the Android 6.0 Marshmallow update that landed earlier this year has given the Note 5 new life, porting over many of the features from the Galaxy S7. What's more, Samsung has largely kept on top of rolling out Android's important monthly security updates for the phone.

Bottom line: The Note 5 is still a fantastic phone, even by the standards of late 2016. In fact, it gives some of the lesser flagships of this year a run for their money. (And you'll be able to use it on an airplane, too!)

One more thing: Samsung never officially released the Galaxy Note 5 in Europe, so if you're importing and using it on European networks, be sure to check that the model you're buying will work with your carrier's cellular bands.

Conclusion

The Huawei Mate 9 is one of the year's best Android phones, a huge improvement upon Huawei's earlier efforts, and the best big-screened Android handset. If you want a phone with dependable battery life, strong performance and a big, attractive screen in a surprisingly small chassis, look no further.

Huawei Mate 9

Huawei has made great progress over the past year, and its latest flagship, the Mate 9, stands out as the best big phone for buyers outside the United States. That's largely thanks to Huawei's much improved EMUI 5 software experience, based on Android Nougat. But the Mate 9 also benefits from a massive 5.9-inch 1080p screen in a body the same size as last year's 5.7-inch Nexus 6P.

Beyond its size and software, the Mate 9 nails the fundamentals of a great Android experience, with quick performance, an ample 64GB of storage as standard, plus microSD expansion, and a capable dual camera setup. Unlike LG, Huawei combines two cameras with the same focal length, but with one OIS (optical image stabilization) 12MP camera capturing colors, and the other, a 20MP monochrome sensor, picking up fine detail. The result is a camera setup that often goes toe-to-toe with the best out there, and can produce some interesting creative effects thanks to its second sensor.

Bottom line: Huawei's much-improved software — together with great build quality, performance and dependable cameras — makes for a fantastic big-screened experience.

One more thing: The Huawei Mate 9 isn't currently available through any U.S. carriers — instead you'll have to buy the unlocked version, which works on T-Mobile and AT&T (and their MVNOs), as well as just about every global LTE network.

Source: www.androidcentral.com