Huawei Nova

High-quality aluminium build ; Decent battery life

Quite expensive ; Poor low-light camera performance ; Emotion UI needs manual tweaks

A well-made mid-range phone, but one a little too expensive given the competition at the price. You can get a similarly impressive phone with a better camera and CPU for the same cash.

Large display ; Cool design

Slower loading times ; Price unknown

The larger handset in Huawei's new Nova range, the Nova+ offers a sharp camera and decent design – if it comes in at an accessible price it could be a winner.

Compact size, decent build quality, long-lasting battery life

EMUI continues to hamper Android, camera is lacklustre

The Huawei Nova is a decent small-scale Android phone. It sits in a place in the market where there's desperate need for quality without an overly hefty price tag.

So, what do we think of the Huawei Nova? While it’s good on paper, it’s slightly underwhelming in real life. The processor isn’t quite as quick as the competition, the graphical capabilities aren’t great and the quality of low-light photography is less...

Familiar design adds a touch of class ; Snappy performance and decent battery life

There’s no escaping EMUI ; Camera quality is only average for the money ; Can’t beat the OnePlus 3 for value

Another mid-range marvel from Huawei, but the Nova can’t quite dethrone the OnePlus 3

Fantastic battery life ; Compact, attractive unibody ; Strong display

Glitchy software ; Occasional stutters

The Nova is a slick bit of hardware which boasts particularly impressive battery life, as well as offering a solid media experience. However, the software issues and glitches can make it quite a frustrating experience at times and performance is...

Well made design; Feels premium in-hand; Solid array of specs; Great all-round camera

Benchmarks a bit low

Getting your hands on a Nova will cost R6 999, as recommended by Huawei. At that price it is a solid R1k to R2k less than most of the premium mid-range phones it's going up against. When it comes to a competitive market like that, it's a decided...

Solid performance; attractive design; good battery life

Lots of bloatware; Emotion UI still isn't as nice as stock Android; Undermined by the OnePlus 3

The Huawei Nova gets a lot of things right, but it's fighting a difficult battle - the OnePlus 3 is nigh-unbeatable in virtually every category.

Missing benchmarks notwithstanding, Huawei has presented us with a very likeable handset in the Nova. It’s attractive, seems zippy and responsive, has a bright, vibrant screen and solid battery life – and all for a not unreasonable £340.