Huawei launched its new flagships - the P9 and P9 Plus - at an event in London in April. The P9 was the subject of rumours for several months, as well as plenty of image leaks so if you followed the speculation, its design probably didn't come as a huge shock, even if a larger version of it did.

A big focus was placed on the P9's camera in the run up to the event, with Huawei confirming dual lenses before the official unveiling but what else do the Huawei P9 and P9 Plus bring to the flagship smartphone arena?

We have put the Huawei P9 and P9 Plus up against the Samsung Galaxy S7 and the LG G5 to see what the differences are and how the four devices compare.

Huawei P9 vs P9 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S7 vs LG G5: Design

The Huawei P9 and P9 Plus offer slim metal builds crafted from one piece of metal. The P9 measures 145 x 70.9 x 6.95mm and weighs 144g, while the P9 Plus measures 152.3 x 75.3 x 6.98mm and weighs 162g. The rear of both devices features a fingerprint sensor towards the top in the middle, while dual camera lenses and Leica branding sit within the wide antenna strip at the top.

The P9 comes in four colours comprising Rose Gold, Prestige Gold, Titanium Grey and Mystic Silver, while a P9 Deluxe model comes in Haze Gold and Ceramic White. The P9 Plus comes in four colours comprising Rose Gold, Haze Gold, Quartz Grey and Ceramic White. 

The Samsung Galaxy S7 has a metal and glass body that measures 142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9mm and weighs 152g. This makes it smaller but slightly thicker and heavier than the P9, although lighter than the P9 Plus. It too has a fingerprint sensor but you'll find it on the front of the device instead. It is available in white, gold, black and silver colour options and offers a waterproof rating of IP68. 

The LG G5 features a painted metal build with a modular element that allows for a removable battery - something that is not found on other metal devices. The G5 measures 149.4 x 73.9 x 7.7mm and weighs 159g so a little bigger and heavier than the Galaxy S7 and the P9, but slightly smaller and lighter than the P9 Plus. It has a fingerprint sensor on the rear like the Huawei devices and it comes in silver, gold, titan and pink colour options.

Huawei P9 vs P9 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S7 vs LG G5: Display

The Huawei P9 comes with a 5.2-inch Full HD display, while its bigger brother, the P9 Plus has a 5.5-inch Full HD display. A 1920 x 1080 LCD screen for the P9 results in a pixel density of 424ppi, while the P9 Plus has an AMOLED display that offers a pixel density of 401ppi. The P9 Plus also offers a pressure sensitive display, allowing for different actions based on the force at which you press.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 also features an AMOLED display, but it is smaller than the P9 Plus, and the P9. It also offers a  Quad HD resolution for a pixel density of 577ppi, which in theory means sharper and crisper images than the P9 and the P9 Plus. AMOLED tends to offer more vibrant colours than LCD but they can also be a little more unrealistic.

The LG G5 also has a Quad HD resolution on board like the SGS7, although its display is LCD like the P9. It is bigger than the P9 and Samsung, but smaller than the P9 Plus at 5.3-inches. The larger display means a pixel density a little lower than the Samsung at 554ppi, but it will still be sharper than the P9 and P9 Plus.

Huawei P9 vs P9 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S7 vs LG G5: Camera

Huawei has placed a big focus on the P9 and P9 Plus cameras. The new flagships arrive with dual rear cameras and a partnership with Leica. There are two 12-megapixel sensors on board, one RGB and one monochrome, offering laser-assisted AF for short range and precise depth focusing for long range.

A dedicated depth image signal processor is also on board both devices and users will have full manual control, along with Leica shutter sound and standard, vivid and smooth film modes. The front camera resolution is 8-megapixels and there is autofocus for selfies on the P9 Plus.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 features a 12-megapixel rear camera with larger pixels than its predecessor and an aperture of f/1.7 for better performance in low light. It also features dual pixel technology for quicker auto-focusing, while the front facing camera is 5-megapixels, which also has an f/1.7 aperture.

The LG G5 has a 16-megapixel main rear camera, along with a secondary 8-megapixel 135-degree wide-angle sensor for when you want a wider field of view that is closer to the human eye than a regular smartphone camera. There is also an 8-megapixel front-facing camera on board like the P9 and P9 Plus.

Huawei P9 vs P9 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S7 vs LG G5: Hardware

The Huawei P9 and P9 Plus feature the Kirin 955 processor under their hoods, which is an octa-core chip that Huawei claims is 100 per cent faster than the P8, along with 3D graphic improvements of 125 per cent.

There are two models for the P9 comprising a 32GB version with 3GB of supporting RAM and a 64GB model with 4GB of RAM. MicroSD expansion is also on board the P9, as is a 3000mAh battery and USB Type-C for faster charging and data transfer. The P9 Plus is available in one model that has 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM, along with microSD, USB Type-C and a larger 3400mAh battery.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 also comes in two models - one has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chip, while the other has the Exynos 8 Octa processor. Both have 4GB of RAM though and 32GB and 64GB storage options are available with microSD support for further storage expansion. The Galaxy S7 is charged via Micro-USB and it has a 3000mAh battery.

The LG G5 has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chip, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage with microSD support. It has a smaller 2800mAh battery than the Galaxy S7 and P9, but as we mentioned previously, it is removable. There is also USB Type-C on board the G5 for fast charging and data transfer like the P9.

Huawei P9 vs P9 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S7 vs LG G5: Software

The Huawei P9 and P9 Plus will arrive with Android 6.0 Marshmallow from launch. It's not stock Android though as Huawei changes almost every aspect of Android with its EMUI skin that is placed over the top. For the P9 and P9 Plus, that software overlay goes by the name of EMUI 4.1 and the company claims to have made hundreds of tweaks and improvements compared to the previous version.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 also comes with Android Marshmallow, as does the LG G5, but again, both have their individual software. The Galaxy S7 has Samsung's TouchWiz skin placed on top, while the G5 has LG's Optimus UX on top.

All four of these devices might be based on Android but they all offer different user experiences, even if the P9 and P9 Plus will be similar aside from the display features.

Huawei P9 vs P9 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S7 vs LG G5: Conclusion

The Huawei P9 and P9 Plus certainly look the part with their metal builds, and based on their specs, especially the P9 Plus, it looks like they will act the part too. Whether they will be able to compete with Samsung's excellent design or LG's great camera in the real world rather than just on paper remains to be seen as yet though.

The specs look good for the P9 and P9 Plus and they stand a good chance of competing, even if the display resolution is a little lower than their rivals. The P9 Plus is the stronger of the two Huawei models in terms of the numbers and it does well against the SGS& and the LG G5, winning with a pressure sensitive display and the biggest battery capacity.

It's all about the experience at the end of the day though, which is something we will judge in our full review. For now, if you want to read more about the P9 and P9 Plus, you can read our everything you need to know feature here, which details pricing information and where to get one.