If you're anything like us, then by far the most important feature you look for in a new smartphone is its camera. Much to the chagrin of 5G networks and wireless charging accessory makers, there's pretty much no contest here. Why? As good as cameraphones have gotten these days, if you pick up your phone right now and scroll through your photos there's probably plenty you'd change. Maybe that image of you and your mates is a little cramped. Or perhaps that nighttime landscape is lacking detail and sharpness. And what about video falling to pieces when your hands get shaky?
Enter the Huawei Mate 40 Pro. Despite being spoiled by superb smartphone cameras from the likes of the iPhone 12 and Pixel 5, we can categorically state that Huawei's latest superphone has the best camera we've seen this year, period. At £1,099 it's not cheap, but it's every inch the flagship you'd expect for the price, from its world-class camera and stunning build to incredibly fast charging and powerful innards.
As with other Huawei-made smartphones, there is a catch here: the lack of Google Play Services, thanks to a US trade ban. This means several of your favourite apps and Android features either won't work properly or won't be available to download at all. Despite this dramatic shortcoming, the Mate 40 Pro could prove worth the sacrifice. It’s just that good. Don't just take our word for it though – let's dive a little deeper.
Photographic excellence
Flip the Mate 40 Pro around and the triple camera array, complete with laser autofocus module, immediately jumps out at you. Centred in the rear in a circular layout, it clearly means business.
In terms of setup, the Mate 40 Pro’s main camera features a gigantic 1/1.28 sensor combined with a 50MP resolution. What do all these numbers mean? Basically, this phone has a larger-than-normal sensor, which makes a big difference to its overall image quality, mainly because it can capture a greater amount of detail in low light with added dynamic range (more on that in a sec).
Next up is a 12MP camera, which uses a clever, periscope-like system to offer 5x optical zoom, bolstered by optical image stabilisation. The upshot of this is the ability to zoom into shots without things turning into a blurry, pixellated mess, coming in handy for taking pictures of performances or wildlife from further away.
Last, but by no means least, we have the brand-new 20MP ultra-wide camera, which lands with a f/1.8 aperture. Not only is this wide-angle camera packing in more megapixels than others we’ve seen in the past, but its large aperture also means it sucks in more light too – something that all wide-angle smartphone lenses have struggled with.
Still with us? Good. Much like the iPhone 12 Pro, there's a lot going on with the Mate 40 Pro's triple-lens camera and it's worth taking the time to explain why these fundamentals matter – they really do make for some stunning photos.
The proof is in the picture
As we already mentioned, the Mate 40 Pro's main 50MP sensor is massive – and it shows. This phone's ability to turn night into day is borderline miraculous. It manages to pick up details and colours in extremely challenging tests, such as my ill-advised walk through a spooky park playground during the Halloween weekend.
Thanks to its second wide-angle lens, you can also capture wider scenes in low light without compromising on quality – a big deal for street and landscape photographers looking to squeeze more into their shots. I love architectural photography more than anything else, but, until now, my wide-angle shots have been limited to daytime use only. With the Mate 40 Pro’s light-sucking wide-angle lens though, a new world has just opened up for the way I take photos.
This lens also really comes into its own with video, letting you capture wide shots in up to 4K 60fps with great dynamic range. Recording a video of your dog sprinting around the park, for example, will keep everything clear, without over-cranking the sky’s brightness to the point where you can’t make out a single cloud.
Things are just as good on the zoom front, with anything at 10x magnification or lower coming out crisp and detailed in bright to low light, with even 20-30x zoom shots being usable, depending on how picky you are. As with other smartphones, zoomed shots lose too much detail in truly dark conditions to be of much use, but that’s physics for you.
Finally, selfie fans will also be glad to hear that the Mate 40 Pro offers three levels of shots – 1x, 0.8x and wide – letting you swap from solo to group selfie modes in an instant, without having to awkwardly cram everyone together. Selfies are crisp and clear, picking up plenty of detail with accurate tones.
Everything else
We’re not trying to rush you here. We’ve spent the bulk of this review looking at the camera, because that’s the only thing worth tempting you away from an easier Google-filled life here.
On that note, here’s the bad stuff. While Huawei’s app store is growing at an impressive rate, picking up new heavy hitters such as All 4, Sky, Amazon, Tinder and more, it's still not where we'd want it to be. This might be a totally different story six months or a year down the line, but for now there are several glaring issues.
Yes, you can copy over apps from your existing Android phone and, yes, Huawei’s built-in Petal search does a solid job of letting you easily find and install all other apps online from sources such as APKPure. Huawei is even taking on the seemingly invincible Google Maps with its own Maps app, which works well from our tests, but does not support satellite views, walking/cycling directions or have a Street View equivalent. But there are even more serious issues to contend with.
My Starling Bank app works, but my main NatWest app doesn’t. That’s a pretty big deal. I also read a lot of books on my phone via Google Books, where I’ve invested quite a lot into titles over the years. That doesn’t work either. Orna, an RPG-like monster slayer similar to Pokémon Go and one of my favourite games, refuses to load without Google Play Services as well.
One of these on their own would be a dealbreaker, but combined there’s just no way I could use the Mate 40 Pro every day and that's a crying shame.
Plenty more to appreciate
As much as the only reason you should buy the Huawei Mate 40 Pro is for its incredible camera, there's plenty more that's great about this phone. It's a gorgeous object to behold and one of the most unique handsets we’ve ever seen. Circular camera layout aside, the Mystic Silver glass finish is mesmerising, reflecting a pearlescent range of colours as it catches the light, demanding the attention of anyone it ensnares with its hypnotising hues. And then there’s the 6.76-inch OLED screen. It’s not the fastest around at “just” 90Hz, but it’s a truly edge-to-edge affair, wrapping around the sides of the phone, giving the impression that it’s almost floating as you’re holding it.
We could go on. An incredibly powerful processor with built-in 5G and 8GB RAM; front-facing 3-D face-scanning cameras for easy unlocking; a generous 4,400mAh battery that easily lasts a day and charges stupidly fast thanks to a 66W charger and 50W wireless charging capabilities. Each item on it is a painful reminder of why it’s difficult to let this phone go.
Huawei Mate 40 Pro verdict
Huawei reviews tend to follow the same pattern. Brilliant design, powerful performance, great camera – don’t buy it. In the case of the Mate 40 Pro, though, there’s one key difference. The camera is so good that we just might recommend it to a very niche group of people – those who value their smartphone photography above anything else.
You might find it impossible to resist walking past the clean lines of a modern building without snapping a few wide-angle shots. Maybe you spend your weekends walking through the city, capturing candid photos of urban landscapes. Or perhaps you spend hours shooting wildlife at your local park, never satisfied until you’ve captured the perfect snap. If so, then this is the phone for you.
For everyone else, the trade-off still isn’t worth it and it’s more sensible to wait for the competition to catch up. If Huawei continues to add more supported apps at the pace it’s currently acquiring them however, then there could be one hell of a comeback story in the not too distant future. Fingers crossed.
£1,099. huawei.com
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The Link LonkNovember 12, 2020 at 04:00AM
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The Huawei Mate 40 Pro has an amazing camera and a big apps problem - British GQ
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The Mate 40 Pro's camera is a standout, especially in low light. The lack of Google Play Services is a downside, but if you're into photography, it's worth a look. Thanks for sharing! top Best Gadgets for Men
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