Introduction
Although it's not marketed as widely as the P9, the Huawei P9 Plus has enough tricks in its pocket to surpass the P9 fugleman if given the chance.
The P9 Plus builds upon the premium P9 with a bigger AMOLED display, beefier memory and battery, and, of course, its key feature - the pressure sensitive technology or Press Touch as Huawei calls it.
Indeed, the P9 Plus will finally show Huawei's interpretation of the pressure sensitive screen, as the Force Touch-enabled model of the Huawei Mate S (their first phone with it) was harder to find than a long lost pirate treasure.
The Huawei P9 Plus employs a beautiful metal unibody as its P9 sibling, and is powered by the same Kirin 955 chip. There is 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage by default, while the Leica camera setup remains untouched - dual 12MP sensors - color and monochrome. The selfie camera got upgraded with a wider aperture and auto focus, though, so we could expect better shots especially in low-light.
Huawei P9 Plus key features
- Aluminum unibody
- 5.5" 1080p AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 401ppi
- Press Touch pressure-sensitive display
- HiSilicon Kirin 955 chipset: octa-core CPU (4xCortex-A72 @ 2.5GHz plus 4xCortex-A53 @ 1.8GHz), Mali-T880 MP4 GPU
- 4GB of RAM, 64GB of built-in storage, microSD slot;
- Android 6.0 Marshmallow, Huawei EMUI v4.1 overlay;
- Dual 12MP Leica camera with hybrid AF, color and monochrome sensors, f/2.2 aperture; 1080@60fps video recording
- 8MP AF front camera, f/1.9 aperture; 1080p video recording; wide selfie
- Hybrid DualSIM/microSD card slot (up to 128GB) for the dual SIM model
- Cat. 6 LTE (300/50Mbps); dual-band Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi hotspot, Wi-Fi Direct; Bluetooth 4.2 LE; NFC; GPS/GLONASS/Beidou; USB Type-C
- 3,400mAh Li-Ion battery, Rapid charging
Cons
- No 4K 2160p video recording
- Non-removable battery
- Hybrid Dual SIM/microSD card slot limits options on the dual-SIM model
The Huawei P9 Plus specs list continues the long-standing omission of 4K video recording on Huawei phones. We were all but surprised to discover the lack of 4K video recording. People are already getting used to non-removable batteries, and the same goes for the hybrid SIM/microSD dual-SIM solution. So, the P9 Plus really doesn't have any glaring omissions.
The fuss around the Leica-branded cameras is beginning to subside, but in the meantime Huawei has worked to improve the P9 and P9 Plus cameras even further with firmware updates so the camera quality is guaranteed by all means. Checking out your photos on the gorgeous AMOLED screen is a treat on its own as well.
So, we've already reviewed the Huawei P9 in detail. It's time see how the P9 Plus does.
Unboxing the Huawei P9 Plus
The Huawei P9 Plus comes packed within a big and thoughtfully designed white box. Inside, you get to unpack the beautiful Huawei P9 Plus and its complimentary 18W wall plug for rapid charging, the USB Type-C cable, and a pair of in-ear headphones with a remote control.
The retail package
Huawei P9 Plus 360-degree view
Physically, the Huawei P9 Plus isn't that much bigger than its P9 sibling. The Plus model spreads at 152.3 x 75.3 x 7 mm, which means the extra .3" screen estate bumped the height with 7mm and the width by 4mm.
The incredibly 7mm-thin profile of the Huawei P9 is still present here, but the bigger screen and beefier battery has added extra 18g for a total of 162g.
Design and build quality
Huawei P9 Plus is a beauty you can fall in love with in a heartbeat. But we are somewhat biased, as we already met with the P9 and we knew what we were getting with its Plus flavor. Still, you can't deny Huawei did a great job designing and manufacturing the P9 series.
The Huawei P9 Plus is available in two different layouts - brushed metal and ceramic. We saw the ceramic white model back in April and it felt great to the touch even though it looked a bit like plastic from a distance but you can really tell you're holding a more premium material once you have it in your hand.
Huawei P9 Plus
The brushed metal unit we have here today for our review feels silky smooth due to its somewhat glossy polish, and it looks as gorgeous as any other modern flagship. The brushed pattern is subtle, but enough to boost its beauty, while the lightweight body and slim waistline help minimize the P9 Plus footprint.
The Huawei P9 Plus builds on top of the P9 with a bigger AMOLED screen, Press Touch sensors, and stereo speakers. The bigger body allowed for a beefier battery, too. Everything else is pretty much the same, starting off with the exterior and going deeper into every piece of electronics we can't see beneath the metal unibody.
We really appreciate the dual-camera glass accent - it highlights the premium Leica camera setup and doubles as the perfect hiding place for the top antenna. The other antenna sits behind another band on the back, but its paintjob matches the brushed metal quite nicely.
Huawei P9 Plus may be a 5.5" device, but it's far from what we'd specify as a phablet, hey, it's smaller than the 5.5" iPhone Plus model. The glossy polish on the P9 Plus doesn't help for a secure grip, but its square-ish shape provides more than enough grip when handled by one or two hands. The slim profile makes the P9 Plus barely noticeable in most pockets, which is much appreciated, too.
Handling the P9 Plus
The P9 Plus is a smartphone of a solid build quality and premium design using high-end materials and processes and you can really tell just by holding it in hand.
The 2.5D glass trend continues, but we'd have really appreciated an adequate glass protection to keep the scratches away from the display and the camera.
Controls
The control set on the Huawei P9 Plus is identical to the P9. There is the earpiece, which doubles as a speaker, above the AMOLED display. The selfie camera with auto focus, a bunch of hidden sensors, and a notification LED are also around.
A look at the front • the earpiece
There is nothing below the screen but the Huawei logo.
The SIM and microSD shared slot is on the left, while the right side of the P9 Plus houses the volume rocker and the Power/Lock key.
The left side • the SIM tray • the right side • the power key
The P9 Plus features an IR blaster on top, which paired with the appropriate app, could turn your phone into a universal remote. The secondary mic is also around.
The bottom of the P9 Plus is pretty crowded - here you can spot the audio jack, the primary mic, the USB Type-C port, and the primary loudspeaker's grille.
The top side • the IR blaster • the bottom • the loudspeaker
The P9 Plus does a neat trick with its earpiece and loudspeaker. When you hold the phone horizontally, the two drivers output stereo sound, but in portrait mode the top speaker switches to treble while the bottom one plays bass (essentially, forming a two-way speaker setup). You can check the loudspeaker results for more details but it's enough to say that we are not big fans of the overly enhanced stereo output when listening to music.
And finally, the dual 12MP snappers and the Leica branding are on the back, stealing the spotlight from the always-on fingerprint sensor. We've always considered Huawei's interpretation of the fingerprint security feature to be the best. We really like the instantaneous recognition and unlock and the ability to use the sensor as a camera shutter or as a touchpad.
The back with the Leica camera and the fingerprint sensor
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