Considering the sheer brand power that Apple and Samsung have accumulated in the smartphone market, trying to break through and bask in the limelight is a difficult task for anybody. Even a giant company like Sony had to trot out a phone you could use in the shower in order to get any attention. So if you're a Chinese company like Huawei, what are you supposed to do to make your product compete with Galaxies and iPhones?
Simple: Make it bigger (at least physically) than everyone in town.
It was never actually a secret, but at the 2013 International CES on Monday, Huawei finally uncovered its new "phablet," the Ascend Mate. With an enormous screen size of 6.1 inches, the phone easily outguns the Galaxy Note 2 as the largest smartphone in the world. The handset has a 73 percent screen-to-body ratio, meaning the bulk of its physical size is composed primarily of a nice HD display.
Unfortunately, rumors of a 1920 x 1080p full HD resolution proved false, as Huawei instead chose to go with last generation's 1280 x 720p specs. So it's not going to look quite as nice as it could, but I guess those are the breaks when you're purchasing a first-gen, 6-inch phone.
Huawei does kind of make up for it, though, with what's arguably the smartphone market's best battery yet. The set features a 4050 mAh battery and Huawei's internally developed Hi-Silicon 1.5 GHz quad-core processor, as well as QPC and ADRX power-saving technology. All of that is to say a single charge can potentially power the phablet for two days on ordinary usage. With a screen just over 6 inches, though, it's hard to imagine most people not using it all the time.
"The Huawei Ascend Mate breaks barriers to deliver a supercharged entertainment, communication and creative experience for all your personal and professional needs," said Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Consumer Business Group. "The Huawei Ascend Mate is an industry-leading smartphone and showcases our innovation as we continue to make great technology available to more people globally."
The Ascend Mate will ship running on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, although when exactly that'll happen is still unclear. Huawei mentioned February 2013 in China; other territories may have to wait longer while Huawei finds carriers. No price is currently set.
