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Make friends with Huawei's Ascend Mate 2 (pictures)

At 6.1 inches, the Mate 2 may not be the most cuddly of smartphones, but with strong performance and a wallet-friendly price, you just might want to get to know it better.

Jessica Dolcourt
Jessica Dolcourt is a passionate content strategist and veteran leader of CNET coverage. As Senior Director of Commerce & Content Operations, she leads a number of teams, including Commerce, How-To and Performance Optimization. Her CNET career began in 2006, testing desktop and mobile software for Download.com and CNET, including the first iPhone and Android apps and operating systems. She continued to review, report on and write a wide range of commentary and analysis on all things phones, with an emphasis on iPhone and Samsung. Jessica was one of the first people in the world to test, review and report on foldable phones and 5G wireless speeds. Jessica began leading CNET's How-To section for tips and FAQs in 2019, guiding coverage of topics ranging from personal finance to phones and home. She holds an MA with Distinction from the University of Warwick (UK).
Jessica Dolcourt
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1 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Hey, Mate

The Huawei Ascend Mate 2 updates the original with amped-up specs and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera that slings some new selfie tricks.

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2 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Big screen

6.1 inches of screen gives you a large canvas for consuming culture. Brightness is turned all the way up in this shot, but the screen is fine on auto. One thing it's not is super-high resolution. This display comes in at 720p, not 1080p.

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3 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Get a grip

The phone is undeniably wide, which makes it harder for people with small hands to hold (ahem).

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4 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Side view

Although it's tall and wide, the Mate 2 is also slim. At over 7oz (200g), it's also fairly heavy.

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5 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Top down

A 3.5mm headset jack is the phone's only embellishment along its top edge.

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6 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Camera action

The 13-megapixel camera comes with flash, 1080p HD video recording, and autofocus, plus a few extra settings as well.

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7 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Feeling that Emotion?

Huawei's custom skin, Emotion UI, covers Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. You can also personalize it with a couple of extra themes.

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