Let’s talk about this new device that Huawei announced last night. What we have is the Huawei P40 Pro. This is just one of the latest products by Huawei along with the Huawei P40 and P40 Pro+.
Let’s first talk about everything inside the box. As usual, we will not bore with a lot of details so we can head to the meat of our discussion. We have the following things:
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 2
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 3
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 4
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 5
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 6
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 7
- Huawei P40 Pro
- Silicon Case
- SIM Ejector Tool
- There is no Manuals and Warranty card included in my unit because this device came straight from Huawei Mobile Philippines
- 40W Huawei Supercharge
- Type C Cable
- and an earphone with Type C plug
I’m going to focus on 3 important things in this first impressions: what’s new, what makes it better in the competition and why would you consider buying one!
What’s new on the Huawei P40 Pro?
- For starters, the new display is much bigger. P40 Pro sports a 6.58” Quad-Curve display. What’s special about this? Normally, curves on display are on two adjacent sides – left and right. What Huawei did is that the top and bottom panels of the display are also curved. This gives the display a more immersive and fluid look and feel. It isn’t something you would easily appreciate unless you see it in person.
- The new display can now go as high as 90hz. As far as I know, this makes the first smartphone from Huawei with a display that goes beyond 60hz. Even the Huawei Mate30 Pro does not match with this device’s display refresh rate.
- Whatever that powers the new Huawei Mate30 Pro 5G is now on the Huawei P40 Pro. We’ve seen how capable this chipset is and we just cannot wait to share you how fast and good this is in both gaming and AI.
- The Leica-powered camera technology on the Huawei P40 Pro is a huge step from both the Huawei P30 Pro and Mate30 Pro 5G. For a smartphone that’s positioned for both professional and amateur photographers, P40 Pro has an impressive share of camera features. Here are the rear and front camera specifications of the Huawei P40 Pro compared to Huawei P30 Pro and Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G:
|
Huawei P30 Pro |
Huawei P40 Pro | Huawei Mate30 Pro 5G | |
|
Front Camera |
32 MP | 32 MP | 32 MP |
| Rear Camera | 40 MP + 20 MP + 8 MP | 50 MP + 40 MP + 12 MP | 40 MP + 40 MP + 8 MP |
Let’s now talk about what makes it better in the competition?
When we talk about the P-series, we are talking about Huawei’s flagship smartphones that cater to the creator-market. They are the ones who love taking photos and even videos. These smartphones are packed with all the good specs of camera. Huawei P-series’ camera is powered by Leica’s imaging technology, and being one of the best camera brands, the expectation is always very high when it comes to camera quality.
Let us not talk about the Huawei P40 Pro+ yet. It’s a different and special device, which we will talk about very soon. Since Huawei P40 Pro will arrive first in the Philippines, it’s worth pitting it against the ones that are currently being sold in the market.
Based on specs and initial impressions, the Huawei P40 Pro is better, overall, when it comes to:
- Camera set versus Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus. The front camera has higher megapixel; and the rear cameras have better overall specs. It’s a just a matter of testing and see how this really looks like in real life situations
- What even makes this stand out are the smart AI implementations on the device. EMUI’s performance is tied to the AI technology that’s tucked in Kirin 990. It’s a very smart device, and I’ve experienced it with the Huawei Mate30 Pro 5G! EMUI 10.1 offers more to the table, and it might just be one, if not the smartest, UI on a smartphone right now.
- The camera features also have fair share of cool AI implementations that I am, of course, dying to try out fully once this enhanced community quarantine is over. Will it ever be over?
- The cameras still use RYYB rather than the typical RGGB. This filter makes it more sensitive to light, which makes it better when it comes to taking photos in the dark and portrait shots. GSMArena published a lengthy explanation on their website. You might want to check it out. Despite the community quarantine, I managed to take some sample photos for your reference. As usual, more photos will be uploaded accordingly.
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 1 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 2 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 3 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 4 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 5 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 6 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 7 1
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 8
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 9
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 10
- Huawei P40 Pro Unboxing 11
Based on the photos I took, my expectations are well met. The quality is just as I expected: color accurate, sharp and bright. The aperture mode still needs some refinement. I didn’t have autofocus issues both on photos and videos.
More photos: https://gadgetpilipinas.net/2020/03/first-look-sample-photos-using-the-huawei-p40-pro/
When it comes to taking videos, I think that the stabilization is better on the Mate30 Pro 5G and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. I need to test this further before I give my full verdict on quality of its video-taking features.
Now, why would you consider buying one?
Huawei P40 Pro packs all the good things on a camera smartphone. It is, by far, the best that Huawei can offer and at this point, I don’t see any reason why you’re not going to considering including it in your options?
The available applications in AppGallery is constantly growing and the ready-to-use apps by HMS provide the kind of convenience that I would expect on a full-fledged software ecosystem.
Huawei Y7P offers a unique app ecosystem that’s worth your second look!
Huawei P40 Pro is now up for pre-order in the Philippines for PhP50,990. It is available via Lazada, Shopee and MemoXpress. If you’re going to pre-order, you’re going to get us much as PhP12,285 worth of bonus. Flash sale buyers from March 27 to April 3 will also get a Gentle Monster Smart Glasses.
Giancarlo Viterbo is a Filipino Technology Journalist, blogger and Editor of gadgetpilipinas.net, He is also a Geek, Dad and a Husband. He knows a lot about washing the dishes, doing some errands and following instructions from his boss on his day job. Follow him on twitter: @gianviterbo and @gadgetpilipinas.
