Huawei Mate 20 and 20 Pro: A Review of Features and Specs

If you’ve been stuck in the Samsung/Apple universe of smartphones, you might not know about phone manufacturers from other parts of the world. If you’re not familiar, Huawei is the second largest smartphone manufacturer behind Samsung. They’re a huge corporation, too, with over $92 Billion in revenue in 2017.

If you’re in the US, there’s a good reason why you might not have heard about them. Huawei and the US government haven’t always been on the best terms. So, don’t sell through the major carriers, only unlocked phones. 

Huawei just announced the newest additions to their lineup of amazing smartphones, the Mate 20 and the Mate 20 Pro. Both of these phones are great additions to Huawei’s stable of phones.

Battery Life

Why would a review start with battery? We all know that most smartphones make it about a day without charging, less if you use it heavily. It’s just annoying when you have to plug in the phone at 4:30pm to keep it from dying on you. But that’s the way it works, right?

Nope. The Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro have incredible battery life. Users report that they can get several days worth of phone usage before they have to recharge. Unless you’re going backpacking, you don’t need to bring a battery pack with you anymore. The battery charges fast, too. The Mate 20 Pro can charge up to 70 percent in 30 minutes.

The Huawei Mate 20 Pro also supports fast wireless charging (no wireless charging on the Mate 20). You can also use the phone to charge other phones wirelessly by placing the phone on top of your Mate 20 Pro. It’s not a very practical feature, but it’s a great way to show off how much cooler your phone is than the latest iPhone.

Display and Design

The Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro are gorgeous phones. Both models come in a series of fun colors. The Mate 20 comes in Midnight Blue, Black, and Twilight, while the Mate 20 Pro adds Emerald Green. The textured glass backs of the phones make it easy told hold and fingerprint resistant, so your phone will stay beautiful all day.

Huawei Mate 20 Pro Notch

The Mate 20 has a 6.53” screen and the Pro has a 6.39” in screen. The images pop with fill HD and amazing colors. The Mate 20 has just a little bit more screen at the top. The notch on the Mate 20 Pro is wider than the Mate 20’s teardrop. The Mate 20 Pro’s notch houses some sensors to help facial recognition function better.

Facial recognition is a big bonus, and it’s supposed to work better than many competitors that won’t recognize you with a new hairdo. The fingerprint sensor also has a unique design. Instead of a separate sensor on the back of the phone or in the front button, Huawei incorporates the sensor right into the screen. Every time you need to unlock a feature with a fingerprint, a small fingerprint icon shows up on your screen. Press it, and you’re ready to go.

Leica Triple Camera

It seems like every phone manufacturer is trying to outdo the others with their camera set-up. While Samsung ups the ante with 4 cameras, the Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro work with three and focus on software and AI improvements.

Both the Mate 20 and the Mate 20 Pro have three cameras, a main camera, an ultra-wide camera, and a telephoto camera. The Mate 20 Pro sports a stunning 40MP main camera with a 1.8 aperture, while the Mate 20 tops out at 16 MP in the ultra-wide lense. Both models excel at low light photos.

Huawei’s camera placement also makes the Mate 20 series stand out. Rather than line up the lenses like Samsung, Huawei places them in a 2 x 2 box with the flash being the fourth spot. This design feature shakes up the standard smartphone, giving these phones a unique look.

Performance

The Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro both have insanely fast chips, running on the top end of the smartphone spectrum. You can expect both models of phones to have snappy performance and not just for daily tasks, either. The high-speed chips should perform well if you like to load up on the games.

The chip’s design also helps make the improved battery life possible. The chip is split up into eight different cores that are designed to spin up as the phone needs more processing. That design helps manage power more effectively, providing longer battery life.

Huawei also expects the Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro to slow down less over time. Their simulations suggest that it will only slow by 5 percent after 18 months rather than the 28 percent for a Note 9. Of course, we have to wait to see whether those simulations pan out.

Mate 20 or Mate 20 Pro

As you’d expect, the Mate 20 is the slightly less flashy version of its big brother, the Mate 20 Pro. Here are the features that make the Pro stand out:

  • Faster charging and wireless charging
  • Better screen resolution
  • More RAM and Internal Storage
  • Much better cameras
  • Facial recognition
  • Water and dust resistant

That performance, however, comes with an increased price tag. The Mate 20 Pro starts at 1,049 Euros (approx $1,200), but the Mate 20 is only 799 Euros (approx $900). If you want the coolest tech and the best performance (not to mention wireless charging) then go for the Pro. If the price tag for those features is too much, the Mate 20 will still be a great phone with great performance.

Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro Specs

Mate 20

Dimensions 158.2 mm x 77.2 mm x 8.3 mm, Approx. 188 g
Screen 6.53” AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16.7 M colors
Screen Resolution FHD+ 2244 x 1080, 381 PPI
Processor HUAWEI Kirin 980, 2 x Cortex A76 2.6 GHz + 2 x Cortex A76 1.92 GHz + 4 x Cortex A55 1.8 GHz
RAM 4 GB or 6 GB
Internal Storage 128 GB
External Storage Up to 256 GB NM card
Connections 3.5mm audio jack, Type C earjack, and USB-C port
Battery 4,000 mAh (typical), rapid charge
Rear Cameras 12 MP (Wide Angle Lens, f/1.8 aperture)

16 MP (Ultra Wide Angle Lens, f/2.2 aperture)

8 MP (Telephoto, f/2.4 aperture)

Front Camera 24 MP, f/2.0 aperture
OS Android 9.0 (Pie)

 

Mate 20 Pro

Dimensions 72.3 mm x 157.8 mm x 8.6 mm, Approx. 189 g
Screen 6.39” AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16.7M colors
Screen Resolution 2K+ 3120 x 1440, 538 PPI
Processor HUAWEI Kirin 980

2 x Cortex A76 2.6 GHz + 2 x Cortex A76 1.92 GHz + 4 x Cortex A55 1.8 GHz

RAM 6 GB or 8 GB
Internal Storage 128 GB or 256 BG
External Storage Up to 256 GB NM Card
Connections Type-C earjack
Battery 4200 mAh (typical value), rapid charge, wireless charging
Rear Cameras 40 MP (Wide Angle Lens, f/1.8 aperture)

20 MP (Ultra Wide Angle Lens, f/2.2 aperture)

8 MP (Telephoto, f/2.4 aperture)

Front Camera 24 MP, f/2.0 aperture
OS Android 9.0 (Pie)

 

You May Also Like

About the Author: James H.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *