To say that Huawei's current situation is difficult compared to five years ago is an understatement if we use English terms. But despite the technology restrictions imposed by the United States, many are still loyal to Huawei because of the amazing camera capabilities of their devices.
The poisonous combination of Huawei and Leica became the talk of the town and until now some of their devices that are quite old are still being used because the owners are satisfied with the camera's capabilities. This year again Huawei's fortunes changed because the cooperation with Leica did not continue. Instead the XMAGE camera system was announced. Is XMAGE still able to deliver the camera performance that makes the Huawei Mate 50 Pro a must-have device?
Specifications
Huawei Mate 50 Pro
6.74″ OLED screen, 1212 x 26160 pixels
120 Hz
Snapdragon 8+ 4G processor (4nm)
1 X 3.19 GHz Cortex X2 chip
3 X 2.75 GHz Cortex A710
4 X 2.00 GHz Cortex A510
Adreno 730 Graphics Chip
RAM 8 Gigabytes
Internal Storage 256GB UFS 3.1
NM card 256GB
Primary Camera 50 MP, f/1.4-f/4.0, OIS (Wide Angle)
13 MP, f/2.2 (Ultra wide)
64 MP, f/3.5, OIS (Telephoto)
4K 60p
Front Camera 13 Megapixel f/2.4,
4K 60p
4700 mAh battery
66W wired charging
50W wireless charging
Dual SIM Nano SIM/Telephony (Hybrid Tray)
NFC Yes
Infrared Yes
Waterproof IP68
Fingerprint Scan System built into the screen
Selling Price RM4404* (256GB)
RM5282* (512GB)
Screen
The 6.74″ OLED FHD+ screen comes with a higher adaptive 120Hz support compared to only 90Hz on the Mate 40 Pro. However the Mate 50 Pro's screen is slightly smaller and has a lower PPI.
It is also still curved on both sides because Huawei still feels that this design is relevant in 2022.We feel that a flat screen is more practical because the video content that is being watched for example does not overflow to the sides. The size of the bezel on all four sides is thin.
There is a large notch on the top for the 3D facial scanning system. Huawei is one of the few Android manufacturers that still offers facial scanning features like Face ID on their devices. Indeed, this notch is big, but the advantage is that the facial recognition system can be used even in the dark. It is also faster when compared to the under-screen fingerprint scanning system that is also included.
Officially the screen supports Vivid HDR. But on other streaming platforms like Netflix for example there is no HDR support since each device has to pass the Netflix test which Huawei cannot do due to technological restrictions.
The screen still has satisfactory clarity with it being clearly visible under bright sunlight. Colors are also alive with no color banding issues. When scrolling there is no ghosting issue and all touches can be detected accurately.
Design
Restrictions may be imposed on Huawei but in terms of design and quality of finish, they still maintain the quality that has been used over the years. The hard metal frame has rounded sides. In a market filled with devices with flat sides to follow the trend started by Apple, the Mate 50 Pro still believes in its own identity.
The construction is robust and when pressure is applied, it does not immediately flex. No need to worry about the Mate 50 Pro accidentally folding like the P50 Pocket because the frame is sturdy. The power button and audio adjustment are placed on the right side. Like the frame these two buttons are made of metal and they don't feel loose.
There is an infrared emitter at the top. A feature that is rarely given to smartphones of late. On the bottom there is a USB-C charging port, an audio grille and a SIM tray. This tray supports dual-SIM nano and one NM Card with a size of up to 256GB,
On the back there is a big round-shaped bump that houses three cameras – 50MP wide-angle with XMAGE system, 13MP ultra-wide-angle and 64MP telephoto that supports up to 100X digital zoom. There are indeed four lenses on the back but one of them is the laser that is used for focusing.
This giant bump has a Clous de Paris finish which is a pattern commonly used on luxury watches. Because of its large size, the usual issue of the device not being able to be placed flat on the table occurs. The silicone frame that comes with every purchase can solve this issue and at the same time reduce the risk of a dirty back panel.
The battery is 4700 mAh which is bigger compared to last year's 4400 mAh capacity. Supported charging systems are 66W wired, 50W wireless and 7.5W reverse. This charging system is not the fastest but better than the ones provided by Samsung and Apple.
All these components are placed in a body that passes the IP68 standard so it can be immersed in water up to 6 meters. If there's one negative thing we can say about the design it's that there's no audio jack which has been common on the majority of flagship devices for the past five years.
Interface And User Experience
The device we received uses Harmony OS 3.0 which is the latest version of Huawei's standalone operating system. The Mate 50 and Mate 50 Pro are also the first two devices with Harmony OS 3.0. This is a ROM specific to the Chinese market at the moment with Huawei confirming that the global version of EMUI 13 will be used.
Both operating systems have the same interface and features but Harmony OS has deeper integration for various services in China only. Therefore EMUI 13 is used in the global market when it goes on sale later.
The usage experience is smooth without any issues. The use of a 120Hz screen makes the device feel very responsive when in use with no lag issues that we can see.
Among the new features supported is the ability to make emergency calls using Beidu satellites. When there is no cellular network or WiFi, the Mate 50 Pro will automatically connect to the satellite system. But at this time it has been confirmed that this feature can only be used in China.
SmartFolder allows applications to be placed in a folder whose size on the screen can be changed. Normally folders only show 9 application icons but in HarmonyOS 3, users can resize folders to their heart's content.
Meanwhile, the SuperStorage feature reduces the storage space required by installed applications. The system intelligently removes unnecessary files at the same time allowing space savings of up to 20GB on 256GB storage. For users of the Huawei ecosystem, the process of sharing various files between applications and devices is simplified with the SuperHub feature.
All of this is done by using Huawei Media Services which has been an alternative to GMS for the past few years. Among the biggest changes is that when an application search is performed in the Huawei App Gallery, applications that are not offered in the Huawei store will be displayed. Users can install applications directly from the App Gallery without having to go to Petak Search. This can be done through built-in third-party store integration.
Bench mark
The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 4G chip used by the Mate 50 Pro is unique in that it does not support 5G networks and is only used by Huawei. The benchmark scores recorded are as below.
We also benchmarked the iPhone 14 Pro Max (A16 Bionic), iPhone 13 Pro Max (A15 Bionic), Black Shark 5 Pro (Snapdragon 8 Gen 1) and Z Fold4 (Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1). It is quite strange to see that the score recorded by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 4G is lower than that of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1.
Geekbench 5
Huawei Mate 50 Pro – 893/3092
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max – 1875/5469
Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max – 1727/4713
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 – 1298/3963
Black Shark 5 Pro – 1202/3693
Antutu 3D
Huawei Mate 50 Pro – 816,503
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max – 974,941
Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max – 789,647
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4 – 980,346
Black Shark 5 Pro – 1,018,939
Camera
On the back there is a large round-shaped hump that houses three 50MP wide-angle XMAGE cameras with variable aperture f/1.4 to f/4.0 and OIS support, a 13MP ultra-wide-angle f/2.0 and a 64MP telephoto f/3.5 that supports optical zoom up to 3.5 X and digital zoom up to 100X The periscope mechanism is used in conjunction with the OIS stabilization system. At the front, a 13MP camera is used. Here are some sample photos that we took for preliminary testing before we publish a full review in the near future.
Conclusion
Among the reasons why there are still die-hard Huawei fans in Malaysia after all the technology is imposed is their smooth EMUI software and also good photography capabilities. But this will only attract die-hard fans who are willing to fully convert to the Huawei HMS ecosystem.
The design and software of the device is attractive with various additional features provided that cannot be seen on Android as well as iOS devices. The 3D facial scanning system on the Mate 50 Pro is so fast that it's rarely seen on other Android devices.
The XMAGE camera performance from our observation is comparable to what could be enjoyed when Huawei was still working with Leica. The name may have changed, but the photography capabilities of the Mate 50 Pro in initial tests are very satisfactory.
A full review is still in progress as the unit we tested uses HarmonyOS 3.0 instead of EMUI 13 which will be used on units that will be sold in Malaysia later. Look out for his review in the near future.
Pro
120Hz final screen.
Unique and attractive design.
HarmonyOS is getting more mature with various interesting features included.
The performance of the XMAGE camera is as good as the old Leica era.
Relatively fast charging.
Cons
No 5G.
The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 4G recorded relatively low benchmark scores.
For those who can live with HMS without the Google ecosystem only.