[Review] Huawei P9 Plus – Power Phablet with Pluses Aplenty

Battery Life & Conclusion
In the field the P9 Plus yielded some pretty solid results with easily a day’s worth of battery life with heavy use. With a mobile hotspot on along with an activated GPS, modest gaming via Pokemon Go, several minutes worth of calls, liberal use of the rear camera and web browsing, it still managed to have just enough juice remaining to make it on the commute home without having to sup on a power bank. A ROG power saving mode dials the screen down to HD resolution to save on juice and you’re able to monitor and tweak to a granular app level what apps can drain juice while three broad power plans let you modify usage settings by dialling down functionality and CPU speed. If you’re out in the field, it can appreciably add a bit more longevity to your P9 Plus with the tradeoff of more modest performance.

Getting it charged was a doddle as it supports fast charging like other flagship class phones so you needn’t have to twiddle your thumbs for hours next to the mains waiting for enough of a decent charge.

Huawei’s P9 Plus phablet serves up a very compelling mix of a great camera, powerful hardware that renders buttery smooth performance and good battery life crammed into a beautifully wrought, svelte casing. The Press Touch tech, fingerprint reader and other novel physical shortcuts are interesting additions though your utility may vary depending on how much use you can get out of them. Still, it’s icing on what is already a very desirable cake that’s easily the definitive flagship phone from Huawei’s foundries this year and the best they’ve ever made. It holds up well against other flagships, more so for what you pay for and if you’re keen on a good looking, competently made premium phone at the sub-RM3,000 mark, the P9 Plus is an easy recommendation.

WHAT WE LIKE Superb display, excellent rear dual camera, great build quality, good battery life
WHAT WE DIDN’T Casing is a fingerprint magnet, slippery finish, Emotion UI occasionally counterintuitive
WE SAY The definitive version of Huawei’s triumvirate of flagships this year with a high performing camera, a fast fingerprint reader and a gorgeous screen that easily makes it Huawei’s best phone ever made

Specifications Huawei P9 Plus (VIE-L29)
Price RM2,599
Screen 5.5-inch Super Amoled, 1920 x 1080 pixels, 401ppi
Processor HiSilicon Kirin 955 (4 x 2.5GHz Cortex A72 & 4x.1.8GHz Cortex A53)
OS Android Marshmallow 6.0
Memory 4GB RAM/ 64GB storage + hybrid SIM
Camera Leica dual 12-MP w/ f/2.2, dual-LED flash (rear) + 8-MP w f/1.9 (front)
Battery 3,400mAh
Size/Weight 152.3 x 75.3 x 7 mm /162g
*Review unit courtesy of Huawei Malaysia