November 2021 handset round-up - iPhone 12 mini, Huawei Mate 40 Pro, Oppo Reno4 Pro, OnePlus N10

At the end of each month we like to take stock of some of the most interesting smartphones we've used over the preceding 30 days. What follows is four of the more interesting handsets, covering a variety of price points, and with a particular focus on gaming performance.

As we near the end of this crazy year, most smartphone manufacturers have already played their hands. The last big-hitting flagship phones for 2020 have made their way into people's pockets, leaving a bunch of niche handsets to make a late play for your money.

It's this interesting mixture of smartphone releases that leads to our November selection. Here's a selection of four phones that we've enjoyed using in the last big month for smartphone releases before the shutdown that is December.

Without any further ado, then, let's run through our experience with the iPhone 12 mini, the Huawei Mate 40 Pro, the Oppo Reno4 Pro, and the OnePlus N10.

iPhone 12 mini

We've been using the iPhone 12 mini a lot this month, and it's a quite remarkable piece of work. Here is a truly small phone (smaller even than the iPhone SE) with more or less the same power as the hulking iPhone 12 Pro Max.

It's been rather bizarre enjoying graphically rich games like Space Marshalls 3 and The Pathless at full whack on a phone that fits into the palm of a single hand. Suffice to say, if you're still rocking that spray-on jeans look, this is the phone for you.

Besides its compact dimensions and top notch power, the iPhone 12 Mini has an absolutely awesome camera, a tidy design that harks back to the iPhone 5, and 5G connectivity. We're big fans of this little powerhouse.

Huawei Mate 40 Pro

Using Huawei's latest flagship phone has reminded us that the Chinese mega-manufacturer makes some of the finest smartphone hardware in the business. Still.

With a gorgeous shimmery design, a stunning 6.76-inch 90Hz AMOLED display, and one of the finest and most flexible camera systems in any phone, the Huawei Mate 40 Pro is the complete package.

A lack of access to the Google Play Store undoubtedly hampers the phone's otherwise impeccable gaming credentials. But Huawei's Petal Search function connects you with a surprising number of those games through alternative avenues, and playing them on that screen is an absolute treat.

Oppo Reno4 Pro

The Oppo Reno4 Pro is a classy, skinny mid-ranger with a punchy 90Hz AMOLED display.

It's another phone to use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 765G CPU, like the OnePlus Nord and the Pixel 5 before it. This is a fast, efficient chip that will handle even high-end 3D games on decent settings - especially with 12GB of RAM backing it up.

The Reno4 Pro also comes with Oppo's legendary 65W fast charging technology, so it recovers really fast from an extended gaming sessions.

OnePlus Nord N10

The OnePlus Nord N10 was a bit of a surprise release, following so soon after last month's OnePlus 8T. It takes some of the design tweaks of the latter, but with a more budget-conscious focus akin to the OnePlus Nord.

The result is a very tidy and competent phone that will set you back just a little over £300. In gaming terms, the straight Nord is the more capable device. But if you can't quite stretch to the £400 mark, then the N10 provides solid performance from its Snapdragon 690 CPU.

It also sports stereo speakers, which is great for games, and a rare inclusion at this price.