For modern people, smartphones have become an integral part of their lives. Such gadgets allow you to keep abreast of all events. Internet access is possible anywhere. Connecting to the network occurs in two ways - through a Wi-Fi channel or a mobile operator. Another advantage of the devices is the presence of a built-in camera. Its resolution is quite enough for high-quality photographs. Now you don’t have to worry about not having a camera at hand to capture a memorable moment.
Manufacturers annually release improved models of smartphones. With each subsequent one, innovative technologies become available to the user. If ten years ago they tried to produce mobile phones in compact sizes, and the smaller they were, the more expensive they were, but now modern smartphones are popularly called “shovels” due to their rather large dimensions. These are the ones that can be considered Huawei Ascend Mate 7. Owner reviews say that this model copes well with tasks designed for tablets. High performance, impressive volume random access memory, gorgeous capacitive screen, powerful battery- all this perfectly describes the Mate 7 smartphone. The appearance also does not disappoint. He's quite presentable. Several color options are available for the buyer. The standard ones include Huawei Ascend Mate 7 16 GB silver and black. Also available in model range and a premium option. It comes in a golden hue and is labeled with the word Gold. It looks simply gorgeous. Externally, it is absolutely not inferior to the famous Apple devices.
Let's figure out what the manufacturer decided to surprise the buyer with, and what innovative ideas he used in his Huawei Ascend Mate 7 model. The price of the device is rather high, we will talk about it in more detail a little later. Did the owners regret the purchase? This is exactly what we have to deal with.
Positioning
In 2014, Huawei introduced its flagship to the mobile digital device market. The main emphasis was placed on high levels of performance and improved software. It is worth noting that two years later the relevance of these indicators has not decreased at all. At the moment, owners of Huawei Ascend Mate 7 (Gold and classic copies) claim that the gadget copes well with all tasks without exception.
At the time of release, the model could rightfully occupy a leading position in the segment of the highest category - premium. However, two years after its release, it was slightly displaced by new devices. The Mate 7 is now positioned as a mid-range device based on features and cost.
This model is equipped with everything that is now used in modern devices. Therefore, we can safely call it alternative solution for that category of buyers who want to have an advanced smartphone at an affordable price.
Equipment
Let's start the presentation of Ascend Mate 7 with a review of the configuration. The manufacturer will not surprise the buyer with anything new. The set is nothing more than standard. It can be seen in the configuration of many similar devices.
Huawei Ascend Mate 7 is packaged in a small cardboard box. For presentability, the manufacturer chose a black background. The model name and logo are printed in gold paint. The gadget itself is packed inside the box. There is no need to look for the battery separately, as it is built into the device. A network adapter is included with the phone. Its output power is 2 A. The manufacturer chose not the best headphones for Huawei Ascend Mate 7. Their characteristics are quite modest. They are an acoustic device with a microphone. The sound is below average, so audiophiles should consider a more worthwhile option. Of course, the kit includes a USB cable. With its help, the smartphone connects to a PC and other equipment, and owners will also use it for charging.
The manufacturer also worried about a special paper clip. It is designed to remove SIM cards and flash drives, since the slots are equipped with a “cunning” lock. An instruction manual and a warranty card are also included in the package. Buyers are advised to immediately check their availability at the point of sale and be sure to check that they are filled.
An important feature of the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 16 GB (in the Premium version - 32 GB) are the screen protection elements. The smartphone is already sold with a special film. Also, importantly, the developers used Corning Gorilla Glass 3 in this model. Glass is famous for its durability. There is no cover included, but given the level of screen protection and quality of materials, purchasing one is not necessary. But what the owner of a new gadget will really need is a memory card. Ascend Mate 7 smartphone supports removable drives up to 64 GB.
Design
What design features will surprise Huawei Ascend Mate 7? A review of the gadget would not be complete without a detailed description of its appearance. First, let's look at its dimensions.
This smartphone cannot be classified as a compact device. Its height is 157 mm. Considering that the developers installed a 6-inch screen on it, this is the minimum figure that one could count on. Thin stripes run along the bottom and top of the front panel. They are decorated in the main color. They display the earpiece, sensors and front camera lens (above). At the bottom is the name of the manufacturer's company. The user will not find the usual soft keys on the panel. They are located directly at the bottom of the screen.
The width of the smartphone is 81 mm. Almost the entire area is occupied by the screen. The frames on the sides are quite narrow. Considering the thickness (7.9 mm), the gadget can easily be classified as a thin device.
There are three color options on sale: classic black, elegant silver and executive gold. It is worth noting that those who want to impress and demonstrate their respectable status purchase the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 Premium Gold. But the most practical option would be a black model. Although it doesn’t look elegant, fingerprints and a layer of dust/dirt are almost invisible.
On the left side there are slots for SIM cards and external storage. They are quite well camouflaged. The smartphone supports two mobile operator cards. One slot has a micro format, the second - nano. There are two mechanical buttons on the right side. The first is the volume rocker, the second is the lock key. In order to make the gadget easier to use, the developers used different coatings for these buttons. Thanks to this, you can find them blindly. The volume control is smooth, and the locking key is knurled.
At the bottom there is room for a small microphone hole and a microUSB port. The placement of the interface cable connector has received mixed reviews. Many people think that using it is not always convenient. But in fairness, we note that there were no categorical statements from the owners on this matter.
The manufacturer has placed a noise-canceling microphone at the top end. Next to it is an audio jack, which is designed to connect headphones.
The back panel is not as informative as the front panel. It has a main camera lens. A single-section flash and stereo speaker are also located here. Since this model is equipped with a security system that reads a fingerprint, there is also a scanner on the back cover. Of course, the company logo could not be avoided. There was a place for it at the very bottom.
Performance
As the manufacturer stated, the level of energy efficiency and performance is the main advantage of Huawei Ascend Mate 7. The characteristics of not every modern device can boast of such indicators. Even today, not all well-known companies have learned to optimize their work processes as much as possible. As time has shown, the Ascend Mate 7 model has virtually no competitors in this category.
In order to achieve high results, the developers installed an ultra-powerful HiSilicon Kirin 925 chipset. This computing platform is a proprietary development of Huawei and is produced by a subsidiary company. The peculiarity of the processor is that it is based on eight real cores. Half of them are ARM Cortex-A15, the rest are ARM Cortex-A7. They operate at frequencies of 1.8 and 1.3 GHz according to the big.LITTLE scheme. Their indisputable advantage is the high level of energy savings. The developers have adjusted the operation of the processor of the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 in such a way that when heavy load all cores are used. This ensures stable and fast functioning of the gadget. However, when the load decreases, only the required number of cores remain working, for example, two, while the rest are simply turned off. The clock speed also changes depending on the level of complexity of the tasks. It can either decrease or increase to a maximum value.
The operation of the sensors and fingerprint scanner is ensured by the independent Smartl3 platform. Considering the entire load placed on this chipset, it turned out that a frequency of 230 MHz would be sufficient for flawless operation.
It is impossible to find analogues in performance even in the line of such global companies as Samsung and Apple.
GPU
Considering the “stuffing”, we cannot remain silent about the fact that the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 smartphone is equipped with an equally efficient Mali-T628 MP4 graphics processor. It features high performance. It is a video card with four modules. Each of them operates at a frequency of 600 MHz. It can hardly be called energy efficient. However, do not forget that it is this processor that is responsible for the quality of the image displayed on the screen. But the latter is still quite large in size and supports HD quality.
Memory
There are several modifications of Huawei Ascend Mate 7 on sale. Premium has 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal memory. Although the younger model cannot boast of such figures, its storage is also quite large. The volume of RAM is 2 GB, and the integrated one is 16 GB. What of this will be available to the user? Not every person knows that the built-in memory is not fully available. Why? Files operating system and the pre-installed software will occupy some part of the storage. For example, in the younger modification, out of 16 GB, only approximately 12 GB can be used.
The amount of memory affects the cost of the gadget. Ascend Mate 7 Premium will cost buyers 1.5 times more expensive. However, the model has quite a lot of potential. As for 16 GB devices, users did not notice any restrictions in operation. This volume is quite enough to install modern applications, games and other software.
Despite the impressive parameters of the built-in memory, the developers have provided a way to expand using external drives. The model supports flash drives up to 64 GB. Excellent characteristics - isn't it?!
Huawei Ascend Mate 7: screen review
One of the significant advantages of this gadget is its 6-inch screen. Users note that its characteristics fully meet modern requirements. The developers used IPS technology to produce the matrix. Thanks to this, it was possible to achieve the highest quality image. The result was also influenced by the lack of an air gap between the matrix and the touchscreen.
The picture displayed on the display has a resolution of 1920x1080 px. Not all tablets, let alone smartphones, can boast such figures. The image quality is Full HD. It is impossible to notice “squares” on the screen with the naked eye, since the pixel density is 368 ppi.
The brightness level in Huawei Ascend Mate 7 is good, the reserve is quite enough for comfortable viewing in the sun. The viewing angles are great. Contrast and color distortion can only be observed at a fairly large tilt. On the display, all shades of the palette are displayed richly, without distortion. There is automatic brightness adjustment controlled by special sensors.
Many users noted the presence of protective glass. In order to avoid the accumulation of fingerprints on the front surface of the screen, the manufacturer used an oleophobic coating.
Cameras
The optics in this gadget did not disappoint either. Huawei phone Ascend Mate 7 has two cameras. The main one exceeded all customer expectations. The 13-megapixel matrix allows you to take great pictures. It is based on IMX214, a sensor element from the most popular manufacturer of such devices, of course, Sony. Autofocus and flash have been added to enhance photographic quality. The latter is LED and allows you to take photos in low light.
You must control the rear camera directly from the phone menu. The manufacturer did not provide an independent button on the case. However, in Huawei Ascend Mate 7, the firmware allows you to quickly access the application. To do this, you need to double-click the volume rocker on the volume down side.
This gadget can record video at 30 frames per second. Playback quality - Full HD. Recording is carried out with a resolution of 1920×1080 px.
The smartphone is also equipped with a front camera. A 5-megapixel matrix is responsible for its operation. There is no flash, no autofocus, but thanks to the additional IMAGESmart Engine 2.0 coprocessor, the photos are quite high-quality. Users claim that it copes with Skype conversations and selfies with 5 points.
Battery
As mentioned above, Huawei Ascend Mate 7 is one of the few devices that works as efficiently as possible. In order for the device to function autonomously, the manufacturer used a built-in 4100 mAh battery. Its type is Li-Pol (lithium polymer). Capacitive batteries are rare for thin smartphone models. The Chinese manufacturer has beaten many well-known brands here too.
Owners of gadgets operating on the Android platform know that the duration battery life not the strongest place. However, in this case, everything has changed radically. Thanks to the excellent optimization of all work processes, the battery life of Ascend Mate 7 will be at least 2 days under average load. If you watch a video with headphones at maximum volume and brightness levels, the battery will run out in about 10 hours. Given the large and high-quality screen, many users use a smartphone for reading e-books. In this mode, the charge will last for 20 hours. Lovers of various toys will have to charge the phone after only 4 hours.
I would like to draw the reader’s attention to the “Energy Saving” section. Here three modes are available to the user. Among them there is an economical one. When activated, the device operates in a reduced form, that is, only the main functions are displayed on the screen - calls, messages, clocks and contacts. The remaining applications have been put into hibernation. Using the energy-saving mode, the “life” of the battery can be extended by 30-40 hours.
operating system
Android 4.4.2 is installed on Ascend Mate 7. The proprietary shell is EMUI 3. Interface compared to previous version changed for the better. Basically, all elements got rid of sharp corners, acquiring oval shapes. This allowed us to add some lightness and airiness. Users have noticed certain similarities with Apple's iOS7 OS. And indeed, copying is present. However, similar shells can be seen on devices of different brands, so this cannot be considered a serious disadvantage. The Huawei Ascend Mate 7 update was received with delight by users.
The panel is visually divided into two parts. One displays icons, the other displays notifications. To switch between them, use swipes. If you hold your finger on the main screen, a submenu appears in the form of an arrow, a square and a circle. These controls are specific to Android L.
All telephony is combined into one section. In order to go to messages or dial a number from the phone book, you need to scroll to the right or left side. Now you can find files from the “Gallery” directly through main screen. To do this, just move your finger from top to bottom.
The updates also affected applications. For example, the music player received a new TenSilica DSP chip. Thanks to it, the sound quality has increased to maximum level. Low frequencies sound clean, there is no interference (hum), the same can be said about the mids and highs. Through the speaker, music is played quite loudly, the level is enough to compare with portable devices. The sound is pleasant, there is no wheezing at the maximum level.
Huawei Ascend Mate 7: price
From the above we can conclude that this gadget has no visible shortcomings. Therefore, most readers will ask the question: “How much does this model cost?” The smartphone is a flagship, so a priori it cannot be sold at a low price. The cost for the youngest modification starts from $300. Silver and black copies are sold in this category. But the device with a golden body belongs to the premium segment, so the price for it will start at $450. The most expensive option is the modification with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal memory. For such a device, buyers will have to pay about $600.
The prices, of course, are not cheap, but this smartphone is 100% worth the money spent. Note that Apple models with such characteristics will cost much more.
Currently, some online stores are running promotions that can save you up to $100. However, be careful not to buy a fake.
Conclusion
To summarize, I would like to separately highlight all the significant advantages of this model. First of all, it is a metal case, which is quite resistant to various types of mechanical damage. The assembly exceeded all expectations of buyers and experts; its quality leaves no room for doubt. The presence of a fingerprint scanner allows you to maximize the protection of owner data. The modern screen coating has also received a lot of praise, so purchasing a case for Huawei Ascend Mate 7 is not necessary. Of course, the cameras and speaker deserve attention. They function at a high level.
Those who decide to purchase this device will definitely not regret their purchase. This is evidenced by numerous reviews from happy owners.
- Class: smartphone
- Case materials: glass and metal
- Operating system: Google Android 4.4.2
- Processor: 4 cores + 4 cores, HiSilicon Kirin 925
- RAM: 2 GB
- Data storage memory: 16 GB
- Interfaces: Wi-Fi (b/g/n), Bluetooth 4.0, 3.5 mm headset
- Screen: capacitive, IPS 6" with a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels
- Camera: 13 MP (main), 5 MP (front)
- Additionally: accelerometer, light and proximity sensors
- Battery: non-removable, lithium polymer (Li-Pol) capacity 4100 mAh
- Dimensions: 157x81x7.9 mm
- Weight: 185 g
Contents of delivery
The smartphone comes in a small black cardboard box. On its front side, “ASCEND MATE” is written in golden color and below is the company logo of the same color.
Having opened the package, you will find on top an envelope with documentation and a special metal clip for removing the slot for installing a SIM card. The following things are packed in a separate box: a network adapter with an output current of 2A, a USB cable and a headset. All of them are made in white.
A technical film without inscriptions is glued to the smartphone screen, so you can safely use it as a protective film.
Introduction
We got acquainted with the device even before Honor 6 and Mate 7 were presented at IFA 2014. The first impression was mixed, apparently because we were expecting something more and original from the exhibition, at least I personally did. After the “ifa”, it turned out that products from Huawei, in general, look quite up to par, since other manufacturers demonstrated devices that differed little from the previous generation of their lines. Although devices from Huawei do not have outstanding technical characteristics or other significant features - these are simply high-quality gadgets, brought to mind.
Today we will talk about the flagship device Huawei Ascend Mate 7. What is so remarkable about this model? As already mentioned, Huawei tried to take into account all the wishes of consumers: you wanted a thin metal case - get it and sign for it; powerful processor- Please; a cool camera - no question, a fingerprint scanner - too! Some potential buyers were expecting a high QHD resolution in the Mate 7, but, alas, there is only FullHD here. However, I believe that QHD resolution on a screen up to 6 inches is more of a marketing ploy: it is almost impossible to distinguish between FullHD and QHD displays; the quality of the matrix is more important. The only unclear point is the amount of RAM. The expensive Ascend Mate 7 has 2 GB, and the more affordable “sixth” Honor has 3.
At the time of writing, unfortunately, the exact start date of sales and, most importantly, the price are unknown. Most likely, Mate 7 will hit store shelves in mid-November, and the price will be 25,000 - 27,000 rubles, I think it all depends on the dollar exchange rate. Eldar Murtazin, in a tweet dated 17.10, wrote: “... if you were waiting for some equipment, but money is too tight, then go and buy it on the weekend. Then it will be more expensive."
Design, dimensions, control elements
I wouldn't want to be a bore and say that the Mate 7 is copied from HTC One Max. Even if this is so, then this fact is only to the benefit of Huawei, and will not harm HTC. Dimensions Ascend – 157x81x7.9 mm, weight – 185 grams; Dimensions of HTC One Mac – 164.5x82.5x10.3 mm, weight – 217 grams. Huawei is shorter, thinner, narrower and lighter. In any case, the Chinese company tried to make it better and prettier.
The device will be available in three colors: white, black and gold. I liked the device in a gold-colored case simply because it looks very unusual against the background of similar dark or light smartphones. We reviewed the Mate 7 in light. The backing of the front panel is white, I would say milky. The thin edging around the perimeter of the matrix is black, almost blending into the background of the display. The frames on the right and left are only 2.9 mm. On a black gadget they are completely invisible, it seems that this is a smartphone that has no screen frames. Interestingly, the ratio of screen area to front surface area is 83%.
Despite the fact that I prefer smaller smartphones, Huawei fits perfectly in the hand, it is easy to use, and you do not feel discomfort due to its large size. In some situations, you still have to shift the gadget in your palm in order to reach the desired element in the interface. From the point of view of ergonomic design, everything here is at the highest level!
The display is protected by durable Corning Gorilla Glass 3. After several weeks of active use of the device, not a single scratch or scuff was left on the glass. The surface is covered with an oleophobic layer, since fingerprints, although they remain, are very easily and quickly removed. The finger glides across the display smoothly, without jerking.
The edging on the device is made of white glossy plastic. It forms a small edge, thereby protecting the screen surface from external influences, for example, when the Mate 7 is placed face down.
The side edges and almost the entire back panel are made of light-colored metal. There are two decorative chamfers on the edges. They play beautifully when hit by light. We saw something similar in the iPhone 5 and 5S. During quite a long period of use of the Ascend, the back surface remained without damage, although I carried it in my pocket along with the iPhone 5, on which the “iron” Draco bumper was put on.
Naturally, it is extremely difficult to make a solid metal case; in any case, the signal needs to exit the device. That's why the Mate 7 has two plastic inserts, painted in the same color as the body. They are on the reverse side, top and bottom. The width of each is only 8 mm.
I was pleased with the assembly of the gadget: when you squeeze it in your hand, there is no creaking or crunching, there is no play in the plastic inserts, buttons and slots for SIM and memory cards.
At the top center is a speech speaker covered with a small silver metal mesh. The volume is high, on the street or in the subway you can hear your interlocutor without problems. Mostly mid frequencies are heard, but there are also low and high frequencies. The timbre is pleasant. You are heard clearly and intelligibly.
To the left of the speaker are light and proximity sensors, and a front camera. There are no touch buttons under the display; they are on-screen.
At the bottom there is a microphone and microUSB. Perfectionists will cry, because for some reason the “microUSB” is shifted to the left relative to the central axis by several millimeters. At the top is a second microphone and a 3.5 mm audio output for headphones or a headset.
The volume rocker key and power button are on the right. They are made of metal, the surface is ribbed. Their stroke is minimal, the pressure is soft. Placing the lock button in the right center is the right decision and is convenient to use.
At the top left are two metal slides: the one above is for a micro SIM card, and the one below is for a memory card. Typically, gadgets of this class do not have microSD slots.
On the back of the device: a large camera eye protruding a millimeter above the body, a flash and a hole where the speaker is located speakerphone. Huawei Mate 7 also has a fingerprint sensor (square, slightly recessed, with smoothed edges). Of course, they are unlikely to surprise anyone these days, but it’s a nice little thing. Unlike, for example, the sensor in Samsung, where you need to swipe your finger across the screen and then on a button (which, frankly, works poorly), in the Mate 7 you just need to put your finger on it. And it doesn’t matter how: the scanner recognizes the fingerprint in any position of the device or finger. The function works faster than standard screen unlocking.
Comparative sizes:
Huawei and Apple iPhone 5
Huawei and Nexus 5
Huawei and Huawei M1 tablet
Display
Huawei decided not to waste time on trifles, so the Ascend Mate 7 uses a screen with a diagonal of 6 inches. Physical size – 74x132 mm. I already talked about the minimal frames around the perimeter of the display - it looks awesome! The frame is 10 mm on top, 14 mm on the bottom. There is an anti-reflective coating that does a good job of filtering sunlight and other bright objects reflected by the screen.
Contrary to expectations, this model has FullHD resolution, not QuadHD. I don’t see the difference, especially on a screen of 6 inches or less. Compared with LG G3 and Samsung Galaxy Note 4. It is not the resolution that plays a role here, but the quality of the matrix. Installed in Mate 7 IPS matrix Japan Display Inc.
I was pleased with the quality of the screen: pure white, pleasant saturated colors, high brightness (information can be read without problems even in bright sunlight). Below I compared two matrices - in ZTE Nubia 7 MAX and LG G3.
ZTE Nubia 7 MAX and Huawei Ascend Mate 7
In this case, there is no big difference; ZTE slightly cheats with the white balance, slightly increasing the red color. The brightness is slightly higher on Huawei.
LG G3 and Huawei Ascend Mate 7
It would seem that LG should put Huawei on its back, but no. The G3 matrix greatly shifts the picture into warm shades. On slopes the difference is even more obvious. Brightness is higher again on Huawei Mate 7.
Traditionally, in the Huawei settings there is a “Color Temperature” item. I don’t recommend touching it, you’ll only make it worse.
Brightness is set either manually or automatically. The range of regulation is wide. At night you can read a book without eye strain.
The capacitive touch layer supports up to 10 simultaneous touches. The sensitivity is excellent. In the “Control” section there is even a “Work with gloves” mode.
For those who are not used to reaching the right places on the screen with a large diagonal, the developers have created the “One-Hand Control” function. True, this only applies to controls, the dialer and some other things.
Here are a few more original features:
Black color
Battery
The device has a non-removable lithium polymer (Li-Pol) battery with a capacity of 4100 mAh. Well done Huawei for fitting so much into such a thin body. capacious battery.
Those who often change smartphones to Android or simply test gadgets on this operating system know that the operating time of these devices is usually approximately the same, regardless of battery capacity. Of course, if the device is not equipped with a 4100 mAh battery. Therefore, the Mate 7 “lives” for 27-35 hours according to the following scheme: 30-40 minutes of calls, about 7 hours of 4G (background updating of mail, Twitter, etc.), 3-4 hours of active connection in Wi-Fi networks(website browsing, reading Twitter, email, etc.), about two to three hours of photography.
Video watchers can count on 9-10 hours: maximum brightness, maximum volume to headphones. On toys, drain the battery in about four hours. In book reading mode, the device will last no more than 20 hours.
There is a section “Energy Saving”. It's easy to switch between Energy Saving, Smart and Normal modes. When you activate the first one, only the necessary functions will be displayed on the phone screen: calls, messages, contacts and time. In this mode, the device operates for about 40 hours.
Communication capabilities
In this section, in order not to inflate the review, it is worth describing the most important thing: Mate 7 works with LTE CAT 6 networks, it has Wi-Fi b/g/n (dual-band, DLNA, Wi-Fi Direct, WiFi hotspot), Bluetooth version 4.0 (A2DP, EDR, LE), NFC chip.
It is easy to connect Flash devices to USB (OTG mode).
Huawei has GPS and GLONASS. It functions stably, the speed is very high: even near the window up to 10 satellites are “visible”.
Memory, memory card
Inside the Ascend Mate there is 2 GB of RAM. The funny thing is that it's more affordable Huawei Honor 6 (costs 17,000 rubles) is equipped with three “gigs”. Even the company’s representative office cannot answer why such a conflict occurred. It seems to me that this was done in order to distinguish Honor 6 from the general mass of devices with FullHD screens, since up to 20,000 rubles, such gadgets almost all have the same parameters and 2 GB of RAM.
We had a sample with 16 GB of Flash memory. About 12 GB free. However, there is no need to worry, since there is a slot for a microSD memory card. The maximum volume is 64 GB.
Camera
Lately, I've only been interested in cameras in flagship devices. Why? Everything is very simple: in 99% of cases, the hardware in such devices is so cool that it can handle anything, plenty of memory, screens for every taste. The cameras are also about the same, but the difference comes when you shoot not on a bright sunny day, but, say, in cloudy weather, in the evening, at night or indoors with artificial lighting. It is in such conditions that you have to choose a smartphone in terms of shooting quality.
Huawei Mate 7 has two modules: the main one is 13 MP, the front one is 5 MP. The second is wide-angle, for the best “selfies”.
The main camera lens is equipped with an F2.0 aperture, while the front camera has an F2.4 aperture. The minimum ISO value is 50, the maximum is 3200. Maximum value shutter speed – 1/16, minimum 1/25000.
The picture quality is quite good; during the day, as I said, all cameras shoot approximately the same. The Mate 7 handles well indoors thanks to its open notch. At night, Huawei “paints” a slightly darker picture than its direct competitors, including Honor 6, but there is noticeably less noise. Focus is always accurate and fast, white balance does not raise any questions. The bokeh, as you understand, at F2.0 is beautiful, pleasantly blurs the background.
The device shoots video in a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels at 30 frames per second. The quality is average, the picture is soapy, the sharpness is weak, the exposure is very rough. The sound is clear, stereo. There is an HDR video mode, but only at 720p.
Front-camera Takes wide-angle shots. Records video in 1080p resolution at 15 fps.
P.S. When we were at the Huawei office, we were told that the Mate 7 has optical stabilization, but only now it turned out that it is not there. Therefore, part of the section about the camera had to be shortened.
Interface
Bottom left to right: entrance to the gallery (previously there were thumbnails displayed there, now only an icon, inconvenient), creating a frame, effects. Swipe left or right to switch: focus (the camera takes several frames with different focus, then you can select the point of focus), photos and videos. At the top is the flash, switching to the front camera and back, menu.
Menu
When you click on the icon, you get to the “quick” menu: decorations, panorama, HDR, audio note, successful photos, watermark.
Advanced settings:
You can select Fingerprint. In this case, it’s easy to do “self-care” by touching the sensor on the back side.
By holding your finger on the screen for a long time while taking a photo, you activate the selection of the exposure point.
In the video settings, electronic stabilization is enabled or disabled. You will see the rest in the screenshots.
EXIF information from a photo file
Characteristics of the video file recorded on the main camera:
- Format: MP4
- Video: AVC, 22 Mbit/s
- Resolution: 1920x1080, 30 fps
- Audio: AAC, 96 Kbps
- Channels: 2 channels, 48 KHz
Examples of photos taken with the main camera:
In room:
In the dark:
Example photo with front camera:
Performance
The smartphone from Huawei is traditionally built on its own HiSilicon Kirin 925 chipset: big.LITTLE architecture, 4 ARM Cortex-A15 cores (1.8 GHz) plus another 4 ARM Cortex-A7 cores (1.3 GHz), for processing sensors and sensors For fingerprints there is a separate Smartl3 chip. To work with graphics, the Mali-T628 MP4 accelerator is used: 6 GPU cores with a frequency of 600 MHz, support for OpenGL ES 3.0, Open VG 1.1, OpenCL 1.1, DirectX 11, 4xFSAA, 16xFSAA, second generation Midgard architecture.
I think you understand that with such hardware the device does not slow down at all. There were no friezes of the shell, no glitches or crashes from the system. All games that were tested on Huawei Ascend Mate 7 ran without problems (Real Racing 3, Modern Combat 5, GTA SA, Dead Trigger 2, and so on).
Below you can see screenshots from different games:
Brief information and performance tests.
Technology has come a long way since the first Mate. Therefore, it is not surprising that after two years and two generations of its 6-inch “assistants”, the company introduced a new smartpad with even more powerful filling, modern design and cool functionality, which includes the updated EMUI 3.0 shell and a fingerprint sensor that works like a clock. All these features, as well as the recognized lucky number in the name, can make Mate7 a leader in the smartped segment.
Equipment
I was pleasantly surprised by the package included with the smartphone. The Mate7 itself, a set of documentation with a paper clip, a power supply with a current of 2A, a microUSB cable and a wired headset are neatly packed in a strict, presentable box.
Design and ergonomics
The manufacturer has radically reworked the appearance of the new smartpad. The design of previous generations of Mates cannot be compared to the metallic, monolithic and modern Mate7. The smartphone is a little strict, thin, only 7.9 mm, smooth, well assembled.
In contrast to the glass front panel with a thin black border, most of the back and sides are made of aluminum with a smooth matte finish. At the same time, the slightly cut ribs look cool, and the plastic inserts at the top and bottom do not spoil the appearance at all.
On the back panel, in addition to the main camera and flash noticeably protruding above the body, the fingerprint sensor, framed in gloss, stands out. Thanks to its thoughtful placement, the sensor is easily located blindly.
Despite the huge screen, Mate7 turned out to be ergonomic. Thanks to the flat edges, the smartphone fits well in the hand, and the matte texture prevents it from slipping. And software add-ons minimize the inconvenience associated with a large display.
Let me add that the new product weighs 185 g.
Display
The 6-inch screen is made according to IPS technology with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, while the density is 368 ppi. This display has no weak points - viewing angles are maximum, color rendition is natural and bright, the picture is clear and rich. In addition, the screen is covered with protective glass with an oleophobic coating, which copes well with fingerprints.
The matrix brightness reserve is enough for normal text reading incoming message on a sunny day. In addition, the touch layer is responsive and accurate, it supports up to 10 simultaneous touches.
Keyboard, gestures, one-handed control
Mate7 received a simply huge on-screen keyboard, regardless of the position of the screen. The keys are large and the layout accurately recognizes touches. In addition, Swype is built right into the system.
It's hard to imagine a modern smartpad without gesture support and one-handed control. Mate7 doesn't lag behind the competition. In the settings menu there is a separate sub-item “Management”, which contains all the software tricks for ease of use of such a large smartphone.
You can enable gestures to lower the volume or mute the sound, quickly answer a call, and easily move icons between desktops.
In addition, one-handed control is implemented - you just need to tilt the device to the right or left to zoom out and move the keyboard or navigation panel in the desired direction. In this case, there will be no problems with typing with your thumb.
You can immediately increase the sensitivity of the touch layer to operate the smartphone with gloves, enable support for a branded case, and use a special control button, which also greatly facilitates navigation in the system.
I note that you can even customize the appearance of the navigation bar by changing the combination of buttons, and even use a convenient touch key to open the notification panel, or a small button to hide this panel.
Fingerprint's scanner
Of course, the Mate7 is far from the first smartphone with a fingerprint scanner. But here is one of the best implementations of the sensor. You get used to it in a matter of minutes.
First, you need to save at least one fingerprint in a special sub-item of the settings menu. The system will prompt you to choose how to lock your smartphone with a PIN code or password, and then the sensor settings will appear. It is useful for unlocking Mate7, accessing hidden files and blocked applications. In addition, you can take a quick photo by holding your finger on the sensor.
Now, to unlock your smartphone, you just need to place your registered finger on the scanner, even with the screen turned off.
The sensor works really quickly and accurately, without swiping and long trying on the position of the finger.
Sound
A relatively small speaker located on the back panel of the smartpad provides incredibly loud, clear and rich sound, with elastic bass and ringing high frequencies. The user does not need a Bluetooth speaker to watch movies or play favorite tracks.
By the way, the smartphone also supports active noise reduction, although only when using a special headset, which is sold separately.
Interface and software
Smartpad works under Android control 4.4.2 KitKat with updated EMUI 3.0 graphical shell. At first glance, it seems that the innovations are insignificant. But in fact, many settings have appeared and additional features customization. One of the pleasant innovations is an improved OS update system that supports installation new version operating systems via USB from a computer or using a local file.
Traditionally, all applications are located on desktops. There are themes that change not only the wallpaper, but also the appearance of icons, you can change the animation of turning tables and much more.
The notification shade distributes events over time, and on the right, in the “Icons” tab, there are many quick settings switches.
In addition, the user has two interface styles available - normal and simplified with large icons, larger fonts and slightly lighter functionality.
A good set of applications is pre-installed. It's cute and comfortable file manager, “Phone Manager” for keeping your smartphone clean and tidy, as well as Polaris Office.
In the settings menu, you can use the built-in pedometer, which background counts the number of steps taken. By the way, quite accurately.
Performance
The manufacturer equipped the new product with a system on a chip of its own production, HiSilicon Kirin 925. It includes 4 Cortex-A15 cores with a frequency of 1.8 GHz, another 4 Cortex-A7 cores with a frequency of 1.3 GHz and another energy-efficient companion core with a frequency of 230 MHz for sensor management. Also installed graphics adapter Mali-T628MP4, 2 GB RAM and internal storage 16 GB capacity, expandable via memory card. By the way, a configuration with 32 GB of memory, 3 GB of RAM and support for Dual SIM will appear soon.
Mate7 shows some of the best results in synthetic tests, consistently placing in the top three. The smartpad works perfectly smoothly, the device instantly responds to any user action. In addition, the smartphone can easily cope with even the most resource-intensive tasks, games, movies Full resolution HD and many open browser tabs.
Camera
The main photo module has a 13 megapixel matrix, autofocus, flash and F2.0 aperture. In addition, the smartphone is equipped with a front 5 MP camera for video calls and selfies. The main photo module takes photos with a resolution of 4128 x 3096 pixels and Full HD video.
The application interface is minimalistic and simple. But the camera has excellent functionality. There are color filters and effects, panoramic shooting, HDR, continuous shooting. You can also take a photo with a watermark or audio note. There are many settings available to the user, including manual adjustment of ISO, white balance, exposure, saturation, contrast and brightness.
There is a 3.5 mm audio slot on the top edge of the device, and microUSB on the bottom.
Memory card slots and micro SIM installed on the left side.
Working hours
It's hard to believe, but this thin body fits a 4100 mAh lithium-polymer battery. Mate7 shows simply outstanding autonomy - even if you fully load it, it will last several times longer than other smartphones. And all thanks to an optimized system and energy-efficient hardware.
So, in active use mode, the smartpad will easily last two days. Moreover, even without special optimizations you can get 4.5-5 hours of screen operation. In a more gentle mode, the battery charge will last for 3-4 days.
There are several power saving modes that actually work. The first optimizes the operation of network modules, the second limits the functionality of the smartpad to the maximum, includes the simplest interface that will only allow you to make calls and send text messages. Maximum energy saving can more than double your battery life!
Impression
With Mate7, Huawei is entering a completely new level of smartphone manufacturing. For me, this smartpad is the best device the manufacturer has ever released. It's stylish, sleek and thin, with a bright 6-inch screen, top-notch performance, a high-quality fingerprint sensor that really makes life easier, impressive battery life, a 13 MP camera, and a beautiful and functional EMUI 3.0 graphical shell. I didn’t find a single disadvantage of the smartphone, even big screen did not greatly affect the ergonomics of the device, everything is thought out to the smallest detail. From now on, the Huawei logo will evoke associations with the Mate7.
PECULIARITIES
Stylish metal body.
6-inch Full HD screen.
Fingerprint sensor.
High level of productivity.
EMUI 3.0.
13 MP camera.
Long battery life.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Model Huawei Mate7 MT7-L09 (51091966)
- Standard GSM 850/900/1800/1900, UMTS 850/900/1900/2100/AWS, LTE FDD Band 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/20/28(Aphase), LTE TDD Band 40
- Dimensions 15.7 x 8.1 x 0.79 cm
- Weight 185 g
- CPU HiSilicon Kirin 925, 8-core, 4 cores 1.8 GHz (Cortex-A15) + 4 cores 1.3 GHz (Cortex-A7) + companion core
Information about the make, model, and alternative names of the specific device, if available.
Design
Information about the dimensions and weight of the device, presented in different units of measurement. Materials used, colors offered, certificates.
| Width Width information - refers to the horizontal side of the device in its standard orientation during use. | 81 mm (millimeters) 8.1 cm (centimeters) 0.27 ft (feet) 3.19 in (inches) |
| Height Height information - refers to the vertical side of the device in its standard orientation during use. | 157 mm (millimeters) 15.7 cm (centimeters) 0.52 ft (feet) 6.18 in (inches) |
| Thickness Information about the thickness of the device in different units measurements. | 7.9 mm (millimeters) 0.79 cm (centimeters) 0.03 ft (feet) 0.31 in (inches) |
| Weight Information about the weight of the device in different units of measurement. | 185 g (grams) 0.41 lbs 6.53 oz (ounces) |
| Volume The approximate volume of the device, calculated based on the dimensions provided by the manufacturer. Refers to devices with the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped. | 100.46 cm³ (cubic centimeters) 6.1in³ (cubic inches) |
| Colors Information about the colors in which this device is offered for sale. | Black Silver Golden |
| Materials for making the case Materials used to make the device body. | Aluminium alloy Glass |
SIM card
The SIM card is used in mobile devices to store data that certifies the authenticity of mobile service subscribers.
Mobile networks
A mobile network is a radio system that allows multiple mobile devices to communicate with each other.
| GSM GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) is designed to replace the analogue mobile network (1G). For this reason, GSM is often called a 2G mobile network. It is improved by the addition of GPRS (General Packet Radio Services), and later EDGE (Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution) technologies. | GSM 850 MHz GSM 900 MHz GSM 1800 MHz GSM 1900 MHz |
| TD-SCDMA TD-SCDMA (Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access) is a 3G mobile network standard. It is also called UTRA/UMTS-TDD LCR. It is designed as an alternative W-CDMA standard in China by the Chinese Academy of Telecommunications Technology, Datang Telecom and Siemens. TD-SCDMA combines TDMA and CDMA. | TD-SCDMA 1880-1920 MHz TD-SCDMA 2010-2025 MHz |
| UMTS UMTS is an abbreviation for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System. It is based on the GSM standard and belongs to 3G mobile networks. Developed by 3GPP and its biggest advantage is providing greater speed and spectral efficiency thanks to W-CDMA technology. | UMTS 850 MHz UMTS 900 MHz UMTS 1900 MHz UMTS 2100 MHz |
| LTE LTE (Long Term Evolution) is defined as a technology fourth generation(4G). It is developed by 3GPP based on GSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSPA to increase the capacity and speed of wireless mobile networks. The subsequent technology development is called LTE Advanced. | LTE 800 MHz LTE 850 MHz LTE 900 MHz LTE 1700/2100 MHz LTE 1800 MHz LTE 1900 MHz LTE 2100 MHz LTE 2600 MHz LTE-TDD 2300 MHz (B40) LTE-TDD 2500 MHz (B41) LTE-TDD 2600 MHz (B38) LTE 700 MHz (B28) |
Mobile communication technologies and data transfer speeds
Communication between devices on mobile networks is carried out using technologies that provide different data transfer rates.
Operating system
An operating system is a system software that manages and coordinates the operation of hardware components in a device.
SoC (System on Chip)
A system on a chip (SoC) includes all the most important hardware components of a mobile device on one chip.
| SoC (System on Chip) A system on a chip (SoC) integrates various hardware components, such as a processor, graphics processor, memory, peripherals, interfaces, etc., as well as the software necessary for their operation. | Huawei HiSilicon KIRIN 925 |
| Technological process Information about technological process, on which the chip is made. Nanometers measure half the distance between elements in the processor. | 28 nm (nanometers) |
| Processor (CPU) The primary function of a mobile device's processor (CPU) is to interpret and execute instructions contained in software applications. | 4x 1.8 GHz ARM Cortex-A15, 4x 1.3 GHz ARM Cortex-A7 |
| Processor size The size (in bits) of a processor is determined by the size (in bits) of the registers, address buses, and data buses. 64-bit processors have higher performance compared to 32-bit processors, which in turn are more powerful than 16-bit processors. | 32 bit |
| Instruction Set Architecture Instructions are commands with which the software sets/controls the operation of the processor. Information about the instruction set (ISA) that the processor can execute. | ARMv7 |
| Number of processor cores The processor core executes software instructions. There are processors with one, two or more cores. Availability more cores increases performance by allowing multiple instructions to be executed in parallel. | 8 |
| CPU clock speed The clock speed of a processor describes its speed in terms of cycles per second. It is measured in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz (GHz). | 1800 MHz (megahertz) |
| Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) Graphics processing unit (GPU) handles calculations for various 2D/3D graphic applications. IN mobile devices ah it is used most often by games, consumer interface, video applications, etc. | ARM Mali-T628 MP4 |
| Number of GPU cores Like a CPU, a GPU is made up of several working parts called cores. They handle graphics calculations for various applications. | 4 |
| GPU clock speed Speed of work is clock frequency GPU speed, which is measured in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz (GHz). | 600 MHz (megahertz) |
| Amount of random access memory (RAM) Random access memory (RAM) is used by the operating system and all installed applications. Data stored in RAM is lost after the device is turned off or restarted. | 2 GB (gigabytes) 3 GB (gigabytes) |
| Type of random access memory (RAM) Information about the type of random access memory (RAM) used by the device. | LPDDR3 |
| Number of RAM channels Information about the number of RAM channels that are integrated into the SoC. More channels mean higher data rates. | Dual channel |
| RAM frequency The frequency of RAM determines its operating speed, more specifically, the speed of reading/writing data. | 800 MHz (megahertz) |
Built-in memory
Each mobile device has built-in (non-removable) memory with a fixed capacity.
Memory cards
Memory cards are used in mobile devices to increase the storage capacity for storing data.
Screen
The screen of a mobile device is characterized by its technology, resolution, pixel density, diagonal length, color depth, etc.
| Type/technology One of the main characteristics of the screen is the technology by which it is made and on which the quality of the information image directly depends. | IPS |
| Diagonal For mobile devices, screen size is expressed by the length of its diagonal, measured in inches. | 6 in (inches) 152.4 mm (millimeters) 15.24 cm (centimeters) |
| Width Approximate screen width | 2.94 in (inches) 74.72 mm (millimeters) 7.47 cm (centimeters) |
| Height Approximate screen height | 5.23 in (inches) 132.83 mm (millimeters) 13.28 cm (centimeters) |
| Aspect Ratio The ratio of the dimensions of the long side of the screen to its short side | 1.778:1 16:9 |
| Permission Screen resolution shows the number of pixels vertically and horizontally on the screen. More a high resolution means sharper detail in the image. | 1080 x 1920 pixels |
| Pixel Density Information about the number of pixels per centimeter or inch of the screen. Higher density allows information to be displayed on the screen with clearer detail. | 367 ppi (pixels per inch) 144 ppcm (pixels per centimeter) |
| Color depth Screen color depth reflects the total number of bits used for color components in one pixel. Information about the maximum number of colors that the screen can display. | 24 bit 16777216 flowers |
| Screen area Approximate percentage of screen area occupied by the screen on the front of the device. | 78.29% (percentage) |
| Other characteristics Information about other screen features and characteristics. | Capacitive Multi-touch Scratch resistance |
| Corning Gorilla Glass 3 LTPS (Low Temperature PolySilicon) Oleophobic (lipophobic) coating |
Sensors
Different sensors perform different quantitative measurements and convert physical indicators into signals that a mobile device can recognize.
Main camera
The main camera of a mobile device is usually located on the back of the body and is used for taking photos and videos.
| Sensor model Information about the manufacturer and model of the photo sensor used in the device's camera. | Sony IMX214 Exmor RS |
| Sensor type Digital cameras use photo sensors to take photographs. The sensor, as well as optics, are one of the main factors in the quality of the camera in a mobile device. | CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductor) |
| Sensor size Information about the dimensions of the photosensor used in the device. Typically, cameras with larger sensors and lower pixel densities offer higher image quality despite the lower resolution. | 4.69 x 3.52 mm (millimeters) 0.23 in (inches) |
| Pixel size The smaller pixel size of the photosensor allows the use more pixels per unit area, thus increasing resolution. On the other hand, a smaller pixel size can have a negative impact on image quality at high ISO levels. | 1.127 µm (micrometers) 0.001127 mm (millimeters) |
| Crop factor The crop factor is the ratio between the dimensions of the full-frame sensor (36 x 24 mm, equivalent to a frame of standard 35 mm film) and the dimensions of the device's photosensor. The indicated number represents the ratio of the diagonals of the full-frame sensor (43.3 mm) and the photosensor specific device. | 7.38 |
| ISO (light sensitivity) ISO indicators determine the level of light sensitivity of the photosensor. A lower value means weaker light sensitivity and vice versa - higher values mean higher light sensitivity, i.e. better ability of the sensor to work in low light conditions. | 50 - 3200 |
| Diaphragm | f/2 |
| Excerpt Shutter speed (exposure time) refers to the amount of time the camera's shutter is open while taking pictures. The longer it is open, the more light reaches the photosensor. Shutter speed is measured in seconds (eg 5, 2, 1) or fractions of a second (eg 1/2, 1/8, 1/8000). | 1/15 - 1/25000 |
| Flash type The most common types of flashes in mobile device cameras are LED and xenon flashes. LED flashes produce softer light and, unlike brighter xenon flashes, are also used for video shooting. | LED |
| Image Resolution One of the main characteristics of mobile device cameras is their resolution, which shows the number of horizontal and vertical pixels in the image. | 4160 x 3120 pixels 12.98 MP (megapixels) |
| Video resolution Information about the maximum supported resolution when shooting video with the device. | 1920 x 1080 pixels 2.07 MP (megapixels) |
Information about the maximum number of frames per second (fps) supported by the device when shooting video at the maximum resolution. Some of the main standard video shooting and playback speeds are 24p, 25p, 30p, 60p. | 30fps (frames per second) |
| Characteristics Information about other software and hardware features related to the main camera and improving its functionality. | Autofocus Digital zoom Digital image stabilization Geographical tags Panoramic photography HDR shooting Touch Focus Face recognition White Balance Adjustment ISO Setting Exposure compensation Scene Selection Mode |
| 5-element lens |
Additional camera
Additional cameras are usually mounted above the device screen and are used mainly for video conversations, gesture recognition, etc.
| Diaphragm Aperture (f-number) is the size of the aperture opening that controls the amount of light reaching the photosensor. A lower f-number means the aperture opening is larger. | f/2.4 |
| Image Resolution Information about the maximum resolution of the additional camera when shooting. In most cases, the resolution of the secondary camera is lower than that of the main camera. | 2592 x 1952 pixels 5.06 MP (megapixels) |
| Video resolution Information about the maximum supported resolution when shooting video with an additional camera. | 1920 x 1080 pixels 2.07 MP (megapixels) |
| Video - frame rate/frames per second. Information about the maximum number of frames per second (fps) supported by the secondary camera when shooting video at the maximum resolution. | 15 fps (frames per second) |
Audio
Information about the type of speakers and audio technologies supported by the device.
Radio
The radio of the mobile device is a built-in FM receiver.
Location determination
Information about the navigation and location technologies supported by your device.
WiFi
Wi-Fi is a technology that provides wireless communication for transmitting data over close distances between various devices.
Bluetooth
Bluetooth is a standard for secure wireless data transfer between various devices of different types over short distances.
USB
USB (Universal Serial Bus) is an industry standard that allows different electronic devices to exchange data.
Headphone jack
This is an audio connector, also called an audio jack. The most widely used standard in mobile devices is the 3.5mm headphone jack.
Connecting devices
Information about other important connection technologies supported by your device.
Browser
A web browser is a software application for accessing and viewing information on the Internet.
Video file formats/codecs
Mobile devices support different video file formats and codecs, which respectively store and encode/decode digital video data.
Battery
Mobile device batteries differ from each other in their capacity and technology. They provide the electrical charge necessary for their functioning.
| Capacity A battery's capacity indicates the maximum charge it can hold, measured in milliamp-hours. | 4100 mAh (milliamp-hours) |
| Type The type of battery is determined by its structure and, more precisely, the chemicals used. Exist different types batteries, with lithium-ion and lithium-ion polymer batteries most often used in mobile devices. | Li-polymer |
| 2G latency 2G standby time is the period of time during which the battery charge is completely discharged when the device is in stand-by mode and connected to a 2G network. | 648 h (hours) 38880 min (minutes) 27 days |
| 3G latency 3G standby time is the period of time during which the battery charge is completely discharged when the device is in stand-by mode and connected to a 3G network. | 648 h (hours) 38880 min (minutes) 27 days |
| Characteristics Information about some additional characteristics device battery. | Fixed |
Specific Absorption Rate (SAR)
The SAR level refers to the amount of electromagnetic radiation absorbed by the human body while using a mobile device.
| Head SAR level (EU) The SAR level indicates maximum amount electromagnetic radiation to which the human body is exposed when holding a mobile device next to the ear in a conversation position. In Europe the maximum permissible value SAR for mobile devices is limited to 2 W/kg per 10 grams of human tissue. This standard established by the CENELEC Committee in accordance with IEC standards, subject to the ICNIRP guidelines of 1998. | 1.54 W/kg (Watt per kilogram) |
| Body SAR level (EU) The SAR level indicates the maximum amount of electromagnetic radiation to which the human body is exposed when holding a mobile device at hip level. The maximum permissible SAR value for mobile devices in Europe is 2 W/kg per 10 grams of human tissue. This standard has been established by the CENELEC Committee in compliance with the ICNIRP 1998 guidelines and IEC standards. | 0.763 W/kg (Watt per kilogram) |
| Head SAR level (US) The SAR level indicates the maximum amount of electromagnetic radiation that the human body is exposed to when holding a mobile device near the ear. The maximum value used in the USA is 1.6 W/kg per 1 gram of human tissue. Mobile devices in the US are regulated by the CTIA, and the FCC conducts tests and sets their SAR values. | 0.908 W/kg (Watt per kilogram) |
| Body SAR level (US) The SAR level indicates the maximum amount of electromagnetic radiation to which the human body is exposed when holding a mobile device at hip level. The highest permissible SAR value in the USA is 1.6 W/kg per 1 gram of human tissue. This value is set by the FCC, and the CTIA monitors mobile devices' compliance with this standard. | 1.265 W/kg (Watt per kilogram) |
The September new products presented at IFA 2014 are gradually going on sale, and today we will get acquainted with one of the most interesting smartphones of the fall - the flagship Huawei Mate7. How can a hero attract a buyer? For example, an all-metal case, a productive platform, good software optimization, and a capacious battery. But it also has other positive aspects, which we will discuss in our review.
Equipment
Huawei Mate7 comes in a stylish large box. Having opened it, you can see the smartphone itself on the pallet; documentation and a paper clip for removing SIM card and memory card trays are hidden in the lid of the package; under the smartphone – Charger 2A, cable and simple headset.
Design and usability
Externally, Huawei Mate7 is a typical modern phablet.
The front panel is covered with protective glass, framed by a thin plastic edging that barely rises above its surface. Naturally, most of it is occupied by the screen (according to the manufacturer, 83% of the area).
The side frames are only 2.9 mm thick, the top – 10.5, bottom – 13 mm. The smartphone uses on-screen control keys, so you can only see the manufacturer’s logo under the display. Above the screen there is a set of sensors, a front camera, a narrow strip of earpiece and a small indicator light.
Most of the body is made of metal, Huawei Mate7 is pleasantly cool on the hand. Small plastic inserts can be seen only in the upper and lower parts of the back; behind them are hidden the antennas of the wireless modules. Here you can also find a slightly protruding camera lens, a flash diode, a fingerprint scanner recessed into the body and a small multimedia speaker grille.
The side edges are flat. The MicroSIM and MicroSD trays are located on the left, and the lock and volume keys are on the right. The main microphone and interface connector can be found at the bottom, and at the top there is an additional microphone and mini-jack.
The build quality is excellent, all the parts fit perfectly together, the smartphone looks and feels solid. For a six-inch device, Huawei Mate7 has no problems with ergonomics. The corners and edges of the case are rounded, so it fits comfortably in the hand and does not dig into the palm of anything.
The physical keys are clearly visible to the touch, have a clear action, and are comfortable to use. The lock button is made of metal and has notches on it. The volume control, on the contrary, is plastic and smooth, so it will be difficult to confuse the keys.
The manufacturer claims that in terms of ease of use, Huawei Mate7 is comparable to 5.7-inch smartphones. But this is cunning, after all, the same Note 4 is a couple of millimeters narrower and lower, which significantly affects the usability of the phablet.
If we talk about personal feelings, it was difficult for me to reach the upper third of the display; to do this, I need to tilt the smartphone towards me.
The review included a black version of the smartphone; in fact, it looks dark gray. In addition, Mate7 is available in silver and gold (bronze), but at first only black and silver models will be supplied to the Ukrainian market.
Display
Installed in Huawei Mate7 IPS display 6 inches diagonal and 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution. The JDI matrix is used, there is no air gap between the glass and the panel, and a protective film is glued to the screen out of the box.
Measurements showed that the minimum screen brightness is 8.8 cd/m2, the maximum is 372 cd/m2, contrast is 1 in 1019. The quality of factory calibration is traditionally good level, deviations of most parameters are minimal. Auto brightness adjustment works correctly.
In the screen settings you can adjust the color temperature and turn off the indicator light. In the “Management” section you can enable “work with gloves”.
In addition, at Huawei screen Mate7 has maximum viewing angles, a normal oleophobic coating, good outdoor readability and a comfortable minimum brightness. The color rendition of the display is calm and natural, and the FullHD resolution (368 ppi) is enough to make even small font look smooth - in all respects we have a good screen.
Hardware platform
The heart of Huawei Mate7 is the HiSilicon Kirin 925 system-on-chip. The platform of the Huawei subsidiary is built according to the big.LITTLE (4+4+1) scheme, it contains energy-efficient 4 Cortex-A7 cores operating at frequencies up to 1.3 GHz, 4 productive Cortex-A15 cores (up to 1.8 GHz) and one auxiliary i3 core (0.23 GHz) providing operation of sensors and sensors. The video core is Mali-T624 MP4, 600 MHz. The processor is made according to the 28 nm process technology.
The solution used is similar to Samsung Exynos chips, which the company uses in and. The amount of RAM is 2 GB, built-in memory is 16 (11.5 GB free), there is a slot for memory cards. Communication capabilities smartphones support all common communication standards (except CDMA), Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.1 b/g/n, NFC.
In addition to the standard one (as in the review), there is a version of Huawei Mate7 with 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB of permanent memory and support for two SIM cards. It will be available for sale later.
In synthetic tests, the Mate7 demonstrates results comparable to current flagships. The speed of operation during normal use depends on the selected power consumption mode, of which there can be three in total: energy saving (calls and messages only), smart (automatically adjusting the processor frequency and network operation) and normal (maximum performance).
In general, the Smart mode is enough for daily comfortable use of the smartphone, especially if your usage profile is reading news, listening to music and other simple tasks. If a heavy application is launched in this mode or you begin to actively switch between programs, there may be slight delays in the smartphone’s response. In such cases, it is better to turn on the “Normal” power consumption mode - there are no complaints about the speed of operation, it is great for games and others resource-intensive applications.
We checked the operation of popular games (Real Racing 3, GTA 3, Asphalt 8), they all run without problems at maximum settings.
The operation of the Wi-Fi and GPS modules also did not raise any questions.
Calls, multimedia
Officially, the MT7-TL09 version will be sold in Ukraine - this is the international version of Mate7, it supports one SIM card. Other versions of the smartphone (international MT7-TL10 and others) support two SIM cards; a second Nano-SIM card can be installed instead of a memory card, such as in .
Telephone functionality is implemented in Huawei Mate7 at the proper level. The calling speaker turned out to be loud, it has a pleasant sound, although without a hint of volume. Conversation is also good, the voices of the interlocutors sound natural, the volume is enough in most situations. Due to the rather large and heavy body, the vibration alert turned out to be weaker than average, and sometimes you can miss it.
The smartphone supports many codecs and scores 500 points in the Antutu Video test. The quality of music playback deserves special attention. The SoC integrates a Tensilica HiFi 3 DSP processor, which is responsible for processing music, conversations, and other sound signals. Such a solution will not provide the quality of a professional player or other “big” source, but it has produced results. Huawei Mate7 has detailed, clear sound with a good volume reserve. The smartphone easily copes not only with regular earplugs, but also with slightly larger headphones, for example, Creative Aurvana Live!
Operating system and shell
Huawei Mate7 runs under operating system Android systems 4.4.2 KitKat with EMUI 3.0 shell.
The general logic of the shell remains the same - all applications in it are placed on desktops and sorted into folders. It is possible to change the effects of scrolling through desktops that are familiar to EMUI, support for design themes that can be applied either completely or assemble your own theme from individual elements (icons, wallpapers, ringtones, fonts) of different themes.
Your smartphone has an application for creating backup copies and Phone Manager. The latter allows you to configure which applications will send notifications and which will not, which programs will have access to the Internet (Wi-Fi and mobile), you can immediately disable background work selected programs, which will save battery power.
The interface has small optimizations for comfortable one-handed operation. These include docking text and telephone keyboards and on-screen keys to the edges of the screen. You can add two additional keys to the virtual keys to open the notification panel and collapse the block of buttons anywhere in the interface.
Fingerprint's scanner
All more smartphones Along with a set of familiar sensors, it receives a fingerprint scanner and Huawei Mate7 is no exception. The scanner was placed in a recess under the camera.
Using the sensor, you can unlock your smartphone, provide access to selected applications, and deny access to selected files, which will be moved to the “Personal” category. Huawei Mate7 can store 5 fingerprints.
At the moment, among Android smartphones, the hero of the review has the best implementation of the scanner; in terms of accuracy, speed and percentage of successful operations, it is comparable to the iPhone 6 or even slightly superior to it. To unlock the screen, simply place your finger on the scanner; no additional actions or button presses are required from the user. If the device is lying on the table, you can simply enter a password or PIN code; no additional clicking of “OK” is required.
Working hours
The Huawei Mate7 case hides a non-removable battery with a capacity of 4100 mAh.
In normal average load mode, in “smart” energy saving mode, with auto-sync enabled, dialing installed programs(messengers and others) the smartphone works for two days. With the inserted card “OGO!” and activated data transfer in the “normal” energy saving mode, you can count on about a day and a half of work, which can be considered quite good results.
In mode reading all wireless communications are disabled, including data transfer to mobile network, and the display brightness is set to 200 cd/m². When listening music automatic data synchronization and data transfer worked. The sound volume in the headphones is at 12 out of 15 possible levels. All music files are in MP3 format, bitrate 320 Kbps.Navigation includes route planning in Google app Navigation. The brightness is set to 200 cd/m², all data communication modules are disabled. During playback video Data transmission on the mobile network is active, the display brightness is set to 200 cd/m², the sound volume in the headphones is at level 12 out of a possible 15. Video file format is MKV, resolution 1024x432 pixels, frame rate 24. Playing video from Youtube was accompanied not only by working on a Wi-Fi network, but also by active data transfer. The display brightness is set to 200 cd/m², the sound volume in the headphones is set to 12 out of 15 possible levels. *– data were obtained under similar conditions, but with brightness set to 50% of possible You can get acquainted with the testing methodology in material.Cameras
The smartphone has two cameras. The main one uses a Sony IMX214 module with a resolution of 13 megapixels, has autofocus, LED flash, f/2.0. The front camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels. Image processing is provided by the IMAGESmart Engine 2.0 coprocessor.
The camera application has an extremely ascetic interface with a minimal number of settings. Eat basic settings resolution, where to save pictures, white balance, ISO and several shooting modes (auto, HDR, panorama, continuous shooting with best frame selection, watermark). You can use the fingerprint scanner to take pictures, and to quickly launch the camera, just turn the Mate7 horizontally and press the volume down key twice.
Photos taken with the main camera:
The manufacturer claims that the camera starts up in 1.3 seconds; the application informs about the startup time if the launch option with the creation of a photo is selected in the settings. Our sample usually launched the camera in 0.8-0.9 seconds, but such photos often turn out blurry, so it’s easier to launch the camera and take a photo by pressing the volume key again, then such problems are not observed.
An example of shooting FullHD video:
In general, the main camera of Huawei Mate7 demonstrates photo quality that is normal for modern flagships, autofocus is quite fast, and it takes good photos in low light.
Photos taken with the front camera:
Results
Huawei Mate7 is an excellent example of a modern, balanced phablet. It has a nice metal body, a fairly powerful hardware platform, an excellent FullHD screen, a capacious battery, good cameras and a bonus in the form of a convenient fingerprint scanner. On the one hand, there is nothing special about all this, but the combination of all these parameters in one device creates the feeling of a high-quality smartphone that deserves the title of flagship. Therefore, if you are looking for a device of this format, the Mate7 is worth paying attention to.
Unfortunately, all this is overshadowed by one fact. According to the latest information, Huawei Mate7 should go on sale at the end of December or beginning of January 2015. Due to currency exchange rate fluctuations, the expected cost of the smartphone will be 8,777 hryvnia, which is somewhat high, and the version with 3 GB of RAM will be priced at 9,999 hryvnia. At the same time, the smartphone has quite a lot of competitors - these are both already on sale and cheaper devices from 2014, so we cannot guarantee that the buyer will wait for his Mate7.
Liked:
Materials, case dimensions
Excellent FullHD screen
Sufficiently powerful hardware platform
Capacious battery, good autonomy
Main camera
Implementation of a fingerprint scanner, quality of music playback in headphones
Did not like:
- long time to market
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HUAWEI Ascend Mate 7 MT7-L09 (Black) 3,899 - 4,899 UAH Compare prices |
| Type | Smartphone |
| SIM card type | Micro-SIM |
| Standard | GSM 850/900/1800/1900, UMTS 850/900/1900/2100/AWS, LTE FDD 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/20/28 |
| High speed data transfer | GPRS, EDGE, HSPA+, HSDPA (up to 42 Mb/s), LTE Cat.6 UL (up to 300 Mb/s) |
| Number of SIM cards | 1/2 |
| operating system | Android 4.4 (KitKat) + Huawei Emotion UI 3.0 |
| RAM, GB | 2 |
| Built-in memory, GB | 16 |
| Expansion slot | microSD |
| Dimensions, mm | 157x81x7.9 |
| Weight, g | 185 |
| Protection from dust and moisture | — |
| Accumulator battery | 4100 mAh |
| Operating time (manufacturer's data) | no data |
| Diagonal, inches | 6 |
| Permission | 1920×1080 |
| Matrix type | IPS |
| PPI | 368 |
| Dimming sensor | + |
| Touch screen (type) | touch (capacitive) |
| Other | 16 million colors, protective glass Gorilla Glass 3 |
| CPU | Hisilicon Kirin 925 + GPU Mali-T628 MP4 |
| Kernel type | Cortex-A15 + Cortex-A7 |
| Number of Cores | 4+4+1 |
| Frequency, GHz | 1,8/1,3/0,23 |
| Main camera, MP | 13 |
| Autofocus | + |
| Video shooting | 1920x1080 pixels, 30 fps |
| Flash | LED |
| Front camera, MP | 5 |
| Other | digital zoom, image stabilization, touch focus, face detection, panoramic shooting |
| WiFi | 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct |
| Bluetooth | 4.0 |
| GPS | + (GLONASS) |
| IrDA | — |
| NFC | + |
| Interface connector | USB 2.0 (micro-USB) |
| Audio jack | 3.5 mm |
| MP3 player | + |
| FM radio | + |
| Type of shell | monoblock |
| Keyboard type | screen input |
| More | proximity and light sensors, accelerometer, E-compass, gyroscope, GPS receiver, vibration alert, fingerprint sensor, metal case |
The product was provided for testing by Huawei,