What's smarter than a smartphone?

Going by the geeky wallpaper that was splashed all over the stage during the Mate 10's launch event in Dubai, I got an impression that Huawei was dead serious about its claims of coming up with something that will trump a smartphone.
An intelligent phone, anyone?
All the classic Huawei USPs are there in the Mate 10: it's a big phone with a premium metallic finish (that still collects annoying fingerprint smudges), though the design is minimalistic. It's also the first Mate to not have the Huawei branding right up front, going the same path as the P10 and Samsung (beginning with the Galaxy S8), though the Mate 10 Pro still has it.
Speaking of its big brother, the Mate 10 clocks in at 5.9 inches, a tad smaller than the Pro's 6 inches, though with a more garden-variety 16:9 aspect ratio, the former looks bigger. And I love the way the bezels work on the sides: they're just about a millimetre, so the device maximises the real estate. Those on top and below, meanwhile, are equally-sized, just enough to accommodate the earpiece and camera, and physical home button-cum-fingerprint sensor (which works fast) respectively; it does contribute to overall bulk, but I found it just right aesthetically.
The only other buttons you'll see on it are the power and volume rocker, both located on the right edge.
Of course, all these are nothing compared to what Huawei is really touting in this device: the AI-powered Kirin 970 chip that comes with a dedicated NPU - neural-network processing unit. In layman's terms, it does a variety of things more intelligently for you; for example, it instantly responds to real-time and real-world situations, and adjusts CPU performance accordingly. Its AI computation, as Huawei says, can boost efficiency by up to 50 times and performance by up to 25 times. The chip was also built to understand how you use the device, and can even predict the most efficient modes and optimise it, so it stays in tip-top shape. No wonder the Mate 10 is blazing fast.
Sliding over to the camera, we have a Leica-powered dual-lens snapper - one a 12MP colour lens, the other a 20MP monochrome one, much similar to the P10, though only the former has OIS. And both have an aperture of f/1.6 - another first for this set-up. It does great in low-light situations, and you have a variety of modes that you can play with, including what is becoming a staple nowadays, portrait, which - you guessed it - can blur the background. The 8MP-front camera, meanwhile, does a fair job, though I find that the beautification features smoothen your face a bit too much. Thanks to that AI-bannered chip, the Mate 10 can identify various types of scenes and objects - in real-time - and automatically adjusts colour and brightness to make sure you get that perfect shot.
Battery won't be an issue; after a whole day's use, I was happy to discover that I still had an impressive, almost 30 per cent life left. Restrict yourself to just doing the essentials and there's a pretty good chance it can last almost two days. However, there's still no wireless charging to be found.
And before we forget, the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro are the first devices anywhere in the world that come pre-loaded with the Dubai Font.
AND SO...
Huawei has done it again with the Mate 10. It's a steal at this price, not as expensive as the other flagships it's aiming for. You can actually feel the performance in your hands. However, given the slimmer profile of other flagships, I feel some users might just find it a bit bulky.
Processor
Huawei Kirin 970 (octa-core), i7 co-processor, MP12 GPU, NPU
Memory
4GB
Storage
64GB, microSD up to 256GB
Display
5.9" FullView IPS LCD, 16:9, 2560 x 1440, 499ppi
Camera
Main - dual 12MP RGB (OIS) + 20MP monochrome, 4K; front - 8MP
Platform
Android 8.0 Oreo, EMUI 8.0
Connectivity
WiFi, Bluetooth 4.2, USB Type C, DisplayPort 1.2, NFC
Durability
IP67 - water-/dust-resistant
Battery
4000mAh
Price
Dh2,299
Pros
Top-end design, great camera, good value for money
Cons
No wireless charging, too bulky for some
Author's rating
8.5/10
alvin@khaleejtimes.com

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