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Ben Sin

Huawei announced the launch of its new flagship P40 smartphone range on Thursday, consisting of three models: the P40, P40 Pro, and P40 Pro Plus.
The latter won’t be available until May, but I’ve been testing a pre-production unit of the P40 Pro for about 24 hours. These are my early impressions.
Cameras
The Huawei P20 Pro, launched in 2018, and Huawei P30 Pro, released last year, raised the bar for mobile photography. Many of the trends these models set, such as a triple camera lens set-up, Periscope zoom lens, and increasing sensor size, have been adopted by Apple and Samsung.

The P40 Pro has a new 50-megapixel main camera using Huawei’s custom-built RYYB colour sensor, with an image sensor measuring 1/1.28-inch.
This barely edges out the 1/1.3-inch sensor of the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, but because Huawei’s sensor only needs to feed light information to 50 million pixels compared to the S20 Ultra’s 108 million pixels, the light is much more evenly distributed.

It also means that, yes, for the third year running, a new Huawei P phone has the best extreme lowlight capabilities. Even in pitch black rooms, the P40 Pro can grab something clearly visible, without resorting to the computational “night mode” that other brands require.
Another camera feature that got an upgrade is the Periscope zoom lens; it too uses an RYYB sensor for better light absorption. During the day, the 10X and 30X zoom shots are about the same as those taken by the latest powerful zoom phones on Samsung and Oppo, but at night, once again, the P40 Pro’s zoom stands apart.
Rounding out the rear camera lenses are a 40-megapixel wide-angle lens and a TOF (time-of-flight) sensor. The wide-angle shooter remains unchanged from that of the Huawei Mate 30 Pro, so expect a narrower field of focus, but in return get wide-angle shots that are much more detailed than other phones can offer.

Around the front, there’s a wider-than-usual hole-punch cut-out in the screen, housing a 32-megapixel selfie camera with autofocus, and an infrared camera for real 3D face unlock.
The latter is an impressive tech hardware breakthrough because phone brands previously had to decide between secure, 3D face scanning that requires a large notch eating into the screen (like an iPhone, or Huawei’s Mate 30 Pro), or a less secure, basic 2D face scan using just a small selfie camera (like on Samsung’s recent phones).
The P40 Pro has found the middle ground.

Screen
The P40 Pro’s 6.6-inch OLED screen uses a new design Huawei calls the “overflow display”, because it not only curves on the left and right side, but also at the top and bottom. I think the top and bottom curves are so subtle that the visual appeal is barely noticeable, but the phone does feel really nice in the hand, as every side is rounded.
The screen is above average, even if resolution falls short of Quad HD and the refresh rate is “just” 90Hz compared to 120Hz phones on the latest flagship phones from Samsung and Oppo.
The slightly lower resolution is an absolute non-issue – I doubt anyone can really tell the difference between Quad HD and “just” 1,080p – but the slower refresh rate does show up time to time.
In general, the P40 Pro’s animations appear very fluid, and noticeably smoother than previous Huawei phones or older 60Hz phones. But it does feel a bit less fluid than the 120Hz panels of the Oppo Find X2 Pro or Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra.
This may not be bad news, because the 120Hz screens are very power hungry on both Samsung’s and Oppo’s handsets.
The P40 Pro’s 4,200 mAh battery, along with the usual Huawei battery optimisation, is almost certainly going to last several hours longer than the other two.

Hardware and software
The P40 Pro is powered by Huawei’s Kirin 990 5G-ready chip, and supports wireless charging up to 40W speeds (industry-best right now). Huawei is also launching its own digital assistant, named Celia, with the P40 series (though she will make her way to older Huawei phones via software updates). Right now, Celia can speak and understand English, Spanish, and French.
Of course, Celia’s existence is due to the fact the P40 series will not have access to Google Assistant, or some core Google services.
As far as differences between the three models go, all three P40s share the same main, wide-angle, and selfie cameras. But the standard P40 has an inferior zoom lens and loses the infrared face scanner. It also has a smaller, 3,800 mAh battery and 6.1-inch screen.
The Pro Plus is mostly identical to the Pro, except it has a ceramic back finish and an extra telephoto camera that Huawei says will work in tandem with the Periscope lens for even better zooming prowess.
Pricing has not been announced as of time of publication, but Huawei has historically priced itself in the Apple/Samsung premium range, so expect the Pro and Pro Plus to break the US$1,000 mark, with the latter close to the US$1,300 asking price of Samsung’s S20 Ultra. The standard Pro, I’m guessing, will be kept under US$800.

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Huawei

Huawei P40 Pro first look: 40W wireless charging and the best lowlight camera

The Huawei P40 Pro has a 6.6-inch OLED screen that curves on all four sides. Huawei calls this the overflow display. Photo: Ben Sin

The combination of the RYYB sensor plus large image sensor allows the main camera of the Huawei P40 Pro to virtually see in the dark. This set of photos were taken in a room with lights off and curtains closed, that appeared pitch black to my eyes. The P40 Pro’s image is heads and shoulders brighter than the what the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra and iPhone 11 Pro captured.

The P40 Pro (left) next to the iPhone 11 Pro Max

The hole-punch cut-out on the Huawei P40 Pro houses a 32-megapixel selfie camera and an infrared camera that is used for 3D face scanning

A wide-angle image captured by the Huawei P40 Pro at night. Because Huawei’s cameras all use a custom-built RYYB sensor, it is more sensitive to light than traditional RGB sensors, this helps the wide-angle camera appear less noisy and dim even in low light situation.

The quad camera setup on the Huawei P40 Pro includes (from top), a 40-megapixel wide-angle camera; a 50-megapixel main sensor with the largest image sensor in smartphones right now (1/1.28-inch); a 12-megapixel Periscope zoom lens, and (right) a time-of-flight sensor for depth detection

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra full review: 108-megapixel camera and a stunning screen to compete with Chinese brands

The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra’s large 6.9-inch OLED screen refreshes at a 120Hz rate, making for smoother and faster animations. Photo: Ben Sin

While the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra can do 100X zoom, the results are usually blurry and noisy. Reviewer Ben Sin finds 30X is about the max zoom level that still keeps image integrity. Here, two photos captured from the exact same spot, at 1X and 30X.

The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra is a giant phone with a bulky camera module housing four cameras, including a 108-megapixel sensor and a Periscope zoom lens that can achieve 100X digital zoom.

A portrait image captured with the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra’s wide-angle lens.

The camera module on the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra protrudes from the body significantly. Overall, the flagship handset loses the sleek and curvy elegance of previous Galaxy phones.

The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra houses a 108-megapixel camera, the largest image sensor ever seen in a smartphone and a market-best screen – but focusing problems, a less-than-elegant design and a high price tag may put some buyers off. Photo: Bloomberg

With no Google Play Store, here’s how the Huawei Mate Xs phone plans to attract buyers outside China

A Huawei Mate Xs folding smartphone. Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

This illustration picture shows the US multinational technology and Internet-related services company Google logo behind a European flag on February 14, 2020 in Brussels. (Photo by Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD / AFP)

An employee holds a Mate Xs folding smartphone, manufactured by Huawei Technologies Co., at a launch event in London, U.K., on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2020. The Chinese company on Monday announced a second-generation version of its Mate X folding phone, which up to now has been sold mostly in its home country. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

FILE - In a Sept. 24, 2019 file photo, sign is shown on a Google building at their campus in Mountain View, Calif. Google is attempting to make sure people know exactly what they're signing up for when they use its online services, though it will still mean reading a lengthy document. The company updated its Terms of Service on Thursday,  â it's largest update to the general use contract since 2012 â in response to a pair of court orders in Europe. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Lifestyle

Gadgets


Chinese smartphone maker’s new flagship phone the Huawei P40 Pro again sets a benchmark for phone cameras, and boasts other innovations too
Its display is more fluid than previous Huawei phones, and it introduces a new voice assistant, Celia



Huawei’s P40 Pro phone, one of three in its new flagship range, has a world-beating lowlight camera, an infrared face scanner and 40W wireless charging. With all four edges of the display rounded, the phone feels nice in the hand.


Smartphones

Technology

China technology

Huawei P40 Pro first look: 40W wireless charging and the best lowlight camera

Chinese smartphone maker’s new flagship phone the Huawei P40 Pro again sets a benchmark for phone cameras, and boasts other innovations too Its display is more fluid than previous Huawei phones, and it introduces a new voice assistant, Celia

Chinese smartphone maker’s new flagship phone the Huawei P40 Pro again sets a benchmark for phone cameras, and boasts other innovations too

Its display is more fluid than previous Huawei phones, and it introduces a new voice assistant, Celia