Did someone say phablet? So far this CES we’ve heard meaningless soundbites like ‘from smartphone to superphone’ and much worse, but after holding the Huawei Ascend Mate it’s obvious this is a product that’s pushing boundaries.
We’re not even sure it’s a smartphone. It measures a whopping 6.1-inches diagonally, though it’s the width (of 3.4-inches) that’s immediately noticeable when holding this self-defined ‘world’s biggest smartphone.’
Searching for the same niche as Samsung’s Galaxy Note II – the light-travelling business person wanting to avoid duplicating gadget features – we took it to our ear to mimic a phone call. It feels ridiculous, but there’s something about the Ascend Mate we love very much.
Physically it’s not the brick you might expect, weighing a paltry 198g and at 0.4-inches in depth it’s almost slender enough for a pocket (depending on how big your trousers are).
Navigating the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean interface was a breeze, and we were able to fire-up multiple apps without delays. Earlier in the week Huawei showcased an augmented reality app, though there was no sign of it on our demo sample.
The screen’s resolution is ‘only’ 720p, though even stretched across a 6.5-inch device the quality of both zoomed-in web pages, photos and video is excellent.
It might be keen to avoid the awful ‘phablet’ moniker, but the Ascend Mate nevertheless feels the very definition. Surely a ‘phone’ this size can’t catch on, can it? At the very least those looking at the Galaxy Note II must take a look at this huge Huawei.
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