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Hauwei Ascend P2 vs iPhone 5: In-depth spec comparison

K. T. Bradford
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ascend_p2_white
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Mobile World Congress 2024
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The Huawei Ascend P2 has many of the features and specs we expect to see on an Android phone in 2013, but the company revealed in their Mobile World Congress press conference that it has sights set beyond the droidy competition. Huawei wants to take on Apple, which means trouncing the iPhone 5. Can the Ascend P2 accomplish this lofty goal? Specs aren’t everything, and it remains to be seen how the phone performs in the real world. Still, we can make some preliminary observations based on what we know about the phone from today’s announcements. Here’s a spec breakdown:

 

iPhone 5

iPhone 5 display
Image used with permission by copyright holder

 Huawei Ascend P2 

ascend_p2_white_small
Image used with permission by copyright holder

 
Size 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 (mm) 8.4 thick (mm)
Weight 112g  TK
Screen 4-inch LCD 4.7-inch LCD
Resolution 1136 × 640 pixels 1280 x 720 pixels
OS iOS 6.0.1 Android 4.1 with Emotion UI
Storage 16/32/64GB 16GB
SD Card Slot No  TK
Processor Dual-core A6X 1.5GHz quad-core
RAM 1GB 1GB
Connectivity Wi-Fi, 4G LTE, HSPA+ Wi-Fi, 4G LTE
Camera Front 1.2MP, Rear 8MP Front 1.3MP, Rear 13MP
Bluetooth Yes, version 4.0 Yes
Battery 1440mAh 2420mAh
Charger Lightning connector Micro USB
Marketplace Apple App Store Google Play Store
Price $200+ €399
Availability AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Orange (EU), unlocked (US)
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The biggest difference is the display size: 4.7 inches to 4.0. Both phones have a similar pixel density with the iPhone 5’s 326 ppi only slightly ahead of the P2’s 315 ppi. When compared side-by-side, most probably won’t be able to tell the difference. Plus, the P2’s display has some neat tricks, such as working with gloved fingers.

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On paper, it looks as though the P2 will be the speedier phone thanks to the quad-core processor. However, we’ve seen how phones with heavy interface skins like the Emotion UI can get bogged down if the hardware and software aren’t fine tuned enough.

Shutterbugs will be happy to see other companies taking the rear camera as seriously as Apple does. The higher megapixels on the Ascend P2 don’t necessarily mean better quality than the iPhone 5, though the promise of HDR video could put Huawei’s phone ahead among photo buffs.

As of right now, Huawei isn’t planning to sell the Ascend P2 through a carrier in the US, so the price tag will be higher than that of the iPhone on contract. Off-contract, if the price for US customers is the same for European ones, the P2 is actually less: $525 vs $650.

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K. T. Bradford
K. T. Bradford
Former Digital Trends Contributor
K. T Bradford is a lover of gadgets and all things geek. Prior to writing for Digital Trends she cut her teeth on tech…
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