Yep, everyone’s favorite shady Chinese tech company announced six new products at its latest event in London today. They include the new Mate 20, Mate 20 Pro, Mate 20 X and Porsche Design Mate 20 RS (breathe) phones, the Watch GT smartwatch and the Band 3 Pro fitness tracker. It’s a long list, and sadly, it’s unlikely that any of them will make it to shelves in the US. More on that later. Here’s what you need to know about the new devices in a nutshell.
Cost: €799 (about $925 / £705)Release date: “Soon”Operating system: EMUI 9 (based on Android 9)Screen size: 6.53”Resolution: FHD+, 2244×1080Processor: Kirin 980, the “most powerful and intelligent chipset in the world”Battery: 4,200mAhRear cameras: 1x 12Mp f/1.8, 1x 16Mp f/2.2 wide-angle, 1x 8Mp f/2.4 telephotoFront camera: 1x 24Mp f2.0Ports: USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jackStorage: 128GBRam: 6GB
Cost: €1,049 (about $1215 / £899)Release date: October 26Operating system: EMUI 9 (based on Android 9)Screen size: 6.39”Resolution: 3120×1440Processor: Kirin 980Battery: 4,200mAhRear cameras: 1x 40Mp f/1.8 wide angle, 1x 20Mp f/2.2 ultra-wide angle, 1x 8Mp f/2.4 telephotoFront camera: 1x 24Mp f/2.0Ports: USB-CStorage: 128GBRam: 6GB
Cost: €899 (about $1,040 / £790)Release date: October 26Operating system: EMUI 9 (based on Android 9)Screen size: 7.2”Resolution: 2244×1080Processor: Kirin 980Battery: 5,000mAhRear cameras: 1x 40Mp f/1.8 wide angle, 1x 20Mp f/2.2 ultra-wide angle, 1x 8Mp f/2.4 telephotoFront camera: 1x 24Mp f/2.0Ports: USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jackStorage: 128GBRam: 6GB
Cost: from €1,695 (about $1,961 / £1,492)Release date: “Soon”Operating system: EMUI 9 (based on Android 9)Screen size: 6.53”Resolution: FHD+, 2244×1080Processor: Kirin 980Battery: 4,200mAhRear cameras: 1x 12Mp f/1.8, 1x 16Mp f/2.2 wide-angle, 1x 8Mp f/2.4 telephotoFront camera: 1x 24Mp f2.0Ports: USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jackStorage: 128GBRam: 6GB
Cost: Sports €199 (about $230 / £175), Classic €249 (about $290 / £220)Release date: “Soon”Operating system: LiteOSScreen size: 1.39”Resolution: 454×454Battery: Two weeks regular use, 22 hours with GPS
Cost: €99 (about $115 / £90)Release date: “Soon”Screen size: 0.95”Resolution: 120×240Battery: 7 hours
There’s only one version of the Mate 20 Pro, though, and it costs €1,049 (about $1,215). However, the Mate 20 Pro has a sharper screen with a 3120×1440 resolution, compared to the 2244×1080 resolution for the Mate 20. The Mate 20 has a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner whereas, the Mate 20 Pro has a neat in-display fingerprint sensor. The Mate 20 also comes with a headphone jack and USB-C port, but Pro owners will have to make do with a solitary USB-C port. The cameras are different as well. While both have three rear-mounted snappers, the Mate 20’s have less megapixels, and lack the ultra-wide angle lens of the Pro. However, if you absolutely must have one of these phones, you can get your hands on one. But, it’ll be a lot of hassle, and you’ll likely have to pay well over the odds. It’ll set you back €899 (about $1,040) and should go on sale at the end of the month. Don’t worry about losing out on features though, as you’ll still have access to all your favorite apps via the Google Play Store. The Mate 20 has an 8Mp telephoto camera for detail shots and a 16Mp wide angle camera designed to let you fit more stuff in the shot without losing focus or experience that weird fish-eye effect you sometimes see. The 12Mp camera is a bit of a jack-of-all trades, working across all light conditions to bring detail to your shots. The Mate 20 Pro, however, comes with a 40Mp wide angle lens, a 20Mp ultra-wide angle lens and an 8 Mp telephoto lens. This means you should get great picture quality regardless of what image you’re trying to take. It also means you’ll be able to take proper landscape pictures. Huawei was also keen to show off its AI camera tech. With the new, and more powerful, Kirin 980 processor, you’ll be able to make areas of your photos black-and-white in real time, whilst leaving other areas in full colour , for example. The cameras will even be able to identify different people in your photos and videos and allow you to remove them – handy for removing your ex from your Tinder photos. The cameras seem to be top-notch and the impressive battery life and performance figures should certainly pique the interest of Android power users. The Mate 20, starting from €799, undercuts the Pixel 3 by €60 and should come in slightly cheaper than the Samsung Galaxy 10 when it launches next year. However, the Mate 20 Pro, priced at €1,049, seems to be a bit too rich for our blood. It even costs more than the newest iPhone – typically the barometer for pricey phones.
