This has been a good year for smartphones so far, and one of the most appealing handsets out of the bunch is the recently launched LG G5. However, a new competitor is about to go official, and it's the newly unveiled Huawei P9. The question is how does each one fare against the other?
Display
Right off the bat, the LG G5 sports a 5.3-inch display that pushes out a 1,440 x 2,560 resolution at 554 ppi, while the Huawei P9 comes with a 5.2-inch screen with a lower 1,080 x 1,920 resolution at 423 ppi. Both of the devices are topped off with a Corning Gorilla Glass 4, but only the LG G5 comes with an always-on display.
Clearly, the LG handset wins a point in this department.
Performance
The LG G5 is crammed with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, and it's definitely one powerful chip to behold, clocking in with a benchmark score north of 130,000. Along with it is the Adreno 530 to take care of the graphics side of things and 4 GB of RAM.
On the other hand, the Huawei P9 houses the Kirin 955 plus a Mali-T880 and 4 GB of RAM, and it did score a respectable 96,043 benchmark. Even though it's behind the competition, it's nevertheless a step up from the Kirin 950.
Once again, LG triumphs on this front.
Storage
For the internal storage of each device, the LG G5 is only available in 32 GB, but the Huawei P9 is available in both 32 GB and 64 GB variants. However, LG catches up on this factor with microSD card support of up to 200 GB in a dedicated slot. Huawei only loaded the P9 with 128 GB microSD card support that needs to be placed in the SIM card slot 2.
No need to repeat how the comparison turned out here.
Software
Both run on Android Marshmallow out of the box. Needless to say, the LG G5 software is layered with the LG Optimus UX 5.0 UI and the Huawei P9 with the Emotion UI 4.1. It's safe to say that it's a matter of preference at this point.
Battery
With a 3,000 mAh battery, the Huawei P9 bests the LG G5's 2,800 mAh pack – in terms of size, at least. As everyone knows, LG's contender features a removable battery that can be fitted with a slew of accessories called Friends – more on that later.
No clear winner here yet, as battery life is determined by a whole lot of other factors than just size.
Camera
Just when things are starting to look grim for the Huawei P9, it strides right back beside the LG G5 because of the camera it's packing. To go into the details, it's equipped with a dual 12 MP camera setup with Leica optics on the back, making it the mobile photographer's dream phone. On the front, it has an 8-megapixel snapper that supports 1,080p.
Well, the LG G5 isn't really far behind here, as it also offers a rear dual camera configuration with 16-megapixel and 8-megapixel sensors. On the other side, it also has an 8-megapixel shooter at 1,080p.
Ports
The two come with a Type-C 1.0 reversible connector, so that's good news for everyone.
Distinct Features
Now that the bare specifications are out of the way, here's where the deciding points really come into play.
As mentioned earlier, the LG G5 has a circle of Friends, and they consist of the Cam Plus that instantly turns it into a beefed-up camera phone, the Hi-Fi Plus that gives it the extra oomph to blast great sound, the 360 Cam that lets owners become a 360-degree photographer and view content on YouTube 360 or the LG 360 VR and the Rolling Bot that can be used to monitor homes and take pictures from different perspectives.
The Huawei P9's cards have already been laid out in the camera section, and long story short, the Leica lenses placed on it will more or less redefine the mobile photography game.
"Leica and Huawei share an uncompromising commitment to imaging excellence, and our partnership will put outstanding photography into the hands of more consumers around the world. We are deepening our collaboration to give users a more optimal smartphone photography experience," Oliver Kaltner, CEO of Leica Camera, says.
Pricing
Aside from the €599 starting price point of the Huawei P9, the Chinese smartphone maker has yet to reveal the pricing in other regions, but based on that figure, it will roll out at roughly $680. Meanwhile, the LG G5 can go as low as $576 at Sprint or $630 at T-Mobile.
As for availability, the LG G5 already hit the shelves, whereas the Huawei P9 is expected to go official sometime this April.
The Bottom Line
Unfortunately, the anticipated Huawei P9 could barely hold a candle to the LG G5, but for those who really want to take the Leica optics out for a spin, then it's a pretty good choice too.
With all the LG G5's Friends and higher horsepower under the hood, the smartphone that LG brought to the table is definitely the superior smartphone.
