Huawei P10 review: This 2017 flagship is now affordable

Huawei P10 review: Camera

Now to the best bit, the Huawei P10’s Leica-branded dual cameras. You’ll be pleased to hear they still hold up. In fact, the rear cameras haven’t seen a lick of change. Not that this is a bad thing as they’re capable of producing some wonderfully detail-rich shots. That is of course, so long as you have plenty of natural light.

Take a look below at the picture I took in Barcelona at MWC. Those dual 20- and 12- megapixel cameras did a phenomenal job, producing some seriously bright and punchy colours with lavish detail. Intricate brickwork, something many smartphone cameras typically tend to struggle with, is incredibly well-defined, while the clear blue sky is wonderfully well-balanced with the shadowed streets below.

In good light, the P10’s camera is a match for anything on the market. The trouble is that in low light the f/2.2 aperture on both rear cameras still holds them back. They simply don’t let enough light in, and the P10 struggled in our low-light indoor still-life test. Objects were ill-defined, with noticeable blur around the stuffed bear and the head of the wooden mannequin, while noise could clearly be spotted in darker areas.

Despite that, colour production was still on point: take a look at those vibrant pens and colour swatch and you’ll see what I mean. The rear dual-LED flash did help quell some of these issues, but not massively so.

The only change lies in that 8-megapixel front-facing snapper. It’s Leica branded this time around whereas with the P9 it wasn’t, with a brighter f/1.9 aperture – up from the P9’s f/2.2. There doesn’t seem to be much difference when it boils down to picture quality, but it did fare much better in low-light. Heck, it seemed to do a little better than the rear cameras in dim conditions.

Huawei P10 review: Verdict

With the P10, Huawei continues its tradition in offering one of the best smartphone cameras on the market. Those Leica branded dual-cameras are a real treat, and well worth the price of admission alone. Pair that with a serious bump in performance, slightly lengthier battery life, and a sleeker more hard-wearing design and you have a smartphone that’s almost a match for the very best around.

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The price hike is disappointing, and brings the P10 in closer contact with the Google Pixel (£599), iPhone 7 (£599) and Samsung Galaxy S7 (£523), and while it’s a decent phone with great performance and good looks, its camera and software aren’t quite as good as the opposition just yet.

Regardless, though, the differences are small, certainly on the negative side, and if you have your head turned by the physical design and slightly lower price of the P10 you will likely not be disappointed. The Huawei P10 rightly earns a Recommended award.