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The best photophone of the moment but also one of the best smartphone in the Android market, the Huawei P30 Pro is an exceptional flagship launched just under the 1k usd mark.
With its new Huawei P30 and P30 Pro, the manufacturer hits hard and asserts a little more its number 2 position in the smartphone market. He pushes innovation a little further and hopes soon to titillate champion Samsung. A month after the formalization of the latest Korean Galaxy S10, Huawei meets the end of March 2019 with a conference in Paris by unveiling 2 new smartphones. Here’s our review of Huawei’s P30 and P30 Pro, as well as a comprehensive guide to phone performance.
https://youtu.be/2xMa3UZbRUU
Every year, Huawei has the habit of unveiling at the end of the year a new range of Mate smartphones, and at the beginning of the following year a P range. This time, there are 2 new flagships called P30 and P30 Pro who come to position themselves as the major references of the group (and the market?) for the months to come. Below you will find our opinion about the P30 and P30 Pro in detail, as well as their prices and detailed technical characteristics.
As you can see in our review on the P30 and P30 Pro below, the two phones are quite different in terms of features, and it’s not enough to just hope to see a difference in size (like this one). is the case of the Pixel vs the Pixel 3 XL, or the iPhone XS vs the iPhone XS Max). Such a difference was already observed on the previous range composed of Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro.
Let’s start our test and review on the P30 and P30 Pro with the design of each of them.
Huawei P30 and P30 Pro design
Design, size and performance of the screen
For this new generation of smartphones, Huawei has decided to standardize the quality of its screens: it is for the P30 and P30 Pro an AMOLED screen whose size varies depending on the model: for the P30, it is about a large screen of 6.1 inches of 2340 x 1080 pixels, against a screen of 6.47 inches (and still 2340 x 1080 pixels) for the Huawei P30 Pro.
The latter, however, seems larger since it is curved at the edges on the same principle as the Mate 20 Pro. The Huawei P30 is satisfied with a flat screen without being curved, but still very good. In the video below from our Huawei P30 review, you will discover all the shapes of the two new smartphones.
As for the size of the case, the Huawei P30 is 149.1 x 71.4 x 7.5 mm, the P30 pro when it is 75.4 mm in width. Both phones are taken in hand without any problem, although we find as in many smartphones visible fingerprints on the back. It is related to the glass that composes both the front and the back of the Huawei P30 and P30 Pro.
As for the Mate 20 Pro, Huawei decided to integrate the fingerprint sensor placed under the screen (optical sensor). The back of the phone is thus lightened the footprint sensor found for example on the back of the Pixel 3, the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3, or the Honor View 20. The Huawei P30 and P30 Pro are thus distinguished from previous models in the P range that still had a button down the front of the phone that served as a fingerprint sensor.
The P30 and P30 Pro are different from the Mate 20 Pro at the notch. The Mate 20 Pro has a 3D face recognition sensor that is ultra secure, and it is not present on the P range. This does not prevent the P30 and P30 Pro from having a conventional facial recognition system thanks to the Photo sensor located in a small bubble at the front of the phone. The same technology is found on the more classic Mate 20.
Last little detail at the bottom of the phone: the presence of a 3.5mm jack on the P30, which is however not present on the P30 Pro. In contrast, both Huawei models have a Type-C USB port on their case. For comparison, the Mate 20 also had a 3.5mm jack, and the Mate 20 Pro had already been deadlocked. Let’s continue our test and this notice P30 and P30 Pro with the colors available in France.
Color of phones
For its two new P30 and P30 Pro, Huawei has decided once again to harmonize the colors.Both smartphones will be available on the French market in three different colors: black, blue and crystal. The first 2 colors are fairly standardized and are reminiscent of the previous Mate range. Note that two other colors (Aurora and Amer Sunrise) will be available in other markets, but not in France at first.
In terms of colors and the glass finish on the front and rear of the P30 and P30 Pro, Huawei is largely within the industry standard. Again, Huawei and Samsung are in front of the competitors on the finish of their products – beyond having very convincing technical characteristics. They are a step ahead of other Android smartphones, although Xiaomi with its Mi range (and Mi 9) are very seriously back on their steps.
Weight of P30 and P30 Pro
The weight characteristics between the two models are quite similar with 165 grams for the P30 and 192 grams for the P30 Pro. For comparison, the iPhone XS weighs 177 grams, and the pixel 3,148 grams. However, it remains at the level of other smartphones manufacturer Huawei since the Mate 20 Pro is 189 grams, and the Mate 20 about 188 grams.
The Huawei P30 and P30 Pro have a slightly higher weight than their competitors, but their hands-on grip makes it not really feel. Let’s move on now in our opinion on the P30 and P30 Pro to the technical characteristics of these devices.
Huawei P30 and P30 Pro Specifications
SoC Kirin 980 performance
It was on the occasion of the launch of the Mate 20 that we discovered the new chip developed by Huawei, the Kirin 980. It took the continuation of the 970 version with an inflated performance: a CPU that is 75 % faster, and a GPU that is 46% faster. Today it is one of the fastest processors on Android, far ahead of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 chip. It should be close to the new Snapdragon 855, without being able to compare them for the moment.
Obviously, the Huawei P30 and P30 Pro range also benefits from this Kirin 980 chip engraved in 7 nm. According to the manufacturer, this chip would be even better than the A12 Bionic chip that was unveiled in the latest smartphones of the Apple brand. To get into the technical characteristics of the chip of the P30 and P30 Pro, we have two high-performance Cortex-A76 cores, two medium-performance Cortex-A76 cores and four low-performance Cortex-A55 cores.
Let’s move on to one of the central points of this P30 and P30 Pro review: the photo.
Photo sensors and image processing
While the camera is becoming more important in the technical features of a smartphone, Huawei obviously did not neglect this point. Already for its previous models, the Chinese high-end brand had strived to offer one of the best solutions on the market. Thanks to a regular collaboration with the German photography specialist Leica, his latest Mate 20 Pro has become a benchmark in the field according to the DXOMark ranking. For these two new models, the Huawei P30 and the P30 Pro, Leica is once again involved.
Whether it’s the new Huawei P30 or the P30 Pro, these two phones have an even more convincing camera. Huawei’s European leader, Walter Ji, explained late last year: “Next year we will see more innovations for cameras. Currently, we have three devices on the back.Imagine four devices next year. “ Promised thing, thing due. The main sensor also changes completely with 40% more captured lights, and the P30 is able to climb to 409 600 ISO, the P30 to 204 800 ISO, it is really exceptional.
The triple rear-facing photo sensor has become almost a standard among high-end Android smartphones, and it’s back on the Huawei P30: 40MP, 16MP Ultra Wide Angle and 8MP Hybrid Telephoto Sensor with x3 optical zoom, 5x hybrid and 30x software. As a reminder, the previous Mate 20 Pro also had a zoom x5, which shows a further progress on the part of Chinese on this point. The quality of the 4K videos of the P30 and P30 Pro will be significantly improved as well.
On the Huawei P30 Pro, there is – in addition to this triple photo sensor vertically aligned on the upper left of the back of the phone – a fourth photo sensor aligned vertically under the flash: it is a ToF (Time of Flight), which is able to model objects in 3D and will be very useful for augmented / virtual reality experiments. Note that the wide-angle sensor increases to 20 Mpx on the Huawei P30 Pro, against 16 Mpx for the P30.
At the front, you will have guessed that the small drop placed on the upper part of the screen also corresponds to a photo sensor, ideal for selfies. It is equipped with a 32 megapixel (f / 2.0) lens, a significant improvement over the previous Mate 20 Pro (24 megapixels). Again, Huawei wanted to improve his camera at all levels, and it’s largely successful. Our opinion on the Huawei P30 Pro is largely positive.
Waterproofness of Huawei P30 and P30 Pro
It has now become the standard at Huawei (and other premium manufacturers), IP68 certification is affixed to the latest P30 and P30 Pro. It was already the case for the previous range Mate, so it is logical to see that this standard is once again available on the new generation of Chinese. That means that the Huawei P30 and P30 Pro are dust-proof, and they are waterproof.
Note however that the Huawei P30 and P30 Pro are improving compared to the previous generation of the P range unveiled a year ago since it was only equipped with an IP67 certification. The latter was still resistant, but a little less (30 minutes on 1 meter of water, against 30 minutes under 1.5 meter of water for the IP68).
In any case, our opinion on the P30 and P30 Pro is that we must be very careful and avoid as much as possible contact with water. With a smartphone that approaches (see above – see price of the P30 Pro below) the symbolic bar of € 1,000, we must remain very vigilant – even to bring a series of accessories to prevent damage. Here is now the part dedicated to the autonomy on this notice P30 Huawei.
Autonomy and recharging of P30 and P30 Pro
As always, Huawei distinguishes the autonomy in each range between the classic versions and the Pro versions. This is still the case for the generation of P30 and P30 Pro. In this case, the Huawei P30 Pro is equipped with a battery of 4,200 mAh, the equivalent of what we saw on the Mate 20 Pro. Huawei’s P30 model has a 3,650 mAh battery. For comparison, the Galaxy S10 is equipped with a battery of 3400 mAH, and the S10e version of a battery of 3100 mAh.
Huawei hit a big blow late last year by unveiling on its smartphone Mate 20 Pro reverse charging . The phone can be used as a support for charging other wireless devices. As you can imagine, the Huawei P30 Pro is once again equipped with this advanced technology that Samsung has been quick to adopt.
The Huawei P30 and P30 Pro are also compatible with SuperCharge 2.0 Super Fast Charge.Let’s move on to the last point on our P30 Huawei review: the price. This is one of the key elements where the Chinese giant differs from the competition in France.
Huawei P30 and P30 Pro Prices
Huawei is now the top of the range of Android smartphones, and it is clear that prices are slowly approaching what can be seen in his great rival Samsung. This new generation of P30 and P30 Pro is close to, or exceeds on a model, the symbolic threshold of € 1,000. In this case, the Huawei P30 version has a single price of 749 € for a model with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.
As for the Huawei P30 Pro, there are two versions available on the French market: a version with 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage available at a price of € 999 for the version with 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB storage – the same price as the original Mate 20 Pro (6GB RAM, 128GB storage). A version with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage takes a step since it is displayed at € 1,099.
On the model Huawei P30, it is possible to add up to 256 GB additional thanks to a micro SD player. On Pro models, it is possible to use nano-SD cards, a proprietary format at Huawei, to increase the storage capacity by 256 GB.
Note in this notice Huawei P30 and P30 Pro that the “Pro” version is 250 € more expensive than the classic version. This difference was already observed on the latest smartphones in the Mate range, and it seems once again perfectly justified. It is likely that this new generation of Chinese phones gives pride of place to the P30 Pro which will be logically lasting in the face of his little brother.
Our opinion on the Huawei P30 and P30 Pro
We are now at the last part our opinion on the Huawei P30. As you would expect, the focus on the picture is on this P30 and especially on the P30 Pro. On paper the pictures look excellent and we move to four sensors on the Pro, but especially a main sensor capable of capturing 40% more light. In terms of technical characteristics, we find the strengths of the Mate 20 Pro. The design is very successful with a low part that looks like the Galaxy S10 + and a notch similar to the classic Mate 20. The difference is great with the P20 Pro, which embarked a fingerprint sensor at the front, and whether it is at the screen or body / screen ratio, the evolution is important, and welcome. This convinced us in our positive opinion on the huawei P30.
Huawei also tackles the iPhone XR (for the P30) and the iPhone XS Max head-on, while offering a lower price than its direct competitors. The P30 is an excellent compromise between price and features, when the Huawei P30 Pro is a decidedly high-end smartphone.We will see all this in our test and opinion of the P30 Pro video that will be published on our YouTube channel.
What is your opinion on the Huawei P30 (as well as the P30 Pro)?
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