Huawei P30

amazon Huawei P30 reviews

Now let’s solve this problem. If you love taking the best photos with the latest smartphones, you’ll want to buy the Huawei P30 Pro. Huawei has promised to take the smartphone photography game forward for a few years, and baby steps have become a step forward with the P30 Pro.

Besides the P30 Pro, which is the standard P30, and unlike Samsung, Huawei has divided the smaller and larger phones more substantially, removing the Time-of-Flight (TOF) camera and optical zoom system 5 times and 10 times completely out of the P30, along with changes to the camera lens and other features, too. It is very similar to the P30 Pro.

A triple-camera array

Does this make the P30 a bad phone? No, it will make it cheaper, and let’s face it – a triple-lens camera with 3x optical zoom and 5x hybrid zoom is a must, especially when it’s designed with Leica.

The camera array is housed inside the camera bump in the rear upper left corner on the back. It includes a 40-megapixel SuperSpectrum lens, f/1.8 aperture, a 16-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens, and an 8-megapixel telephoto lens glasses with 3x optical zoom and f/2.4 aperture. Only the telephoto lens has optical image stabilization to avoid blurry photos.

A triple-lens camera with 3x optical zoom and 5x hybrid zoom is not to be missed.

Wondering what SuperSpectrum is? Huawei’s name for its RYYB color filter removes the blue elements from the RGGB filter and replaces them with yellow. Huawei claims this allows the camera to capture 40% more light than before, and more light means more detail and better results. In a short test, in dim indoor conditions only, the photos the P30 took were what I would expect from a Huawei P-Series phone. It’s outdoors and in varying lighting conditions where I’d expect to see SuperSpectrum make a difference.

The P30’s camera misses out on the TOF camera available in the P30 Pro. That will affect portrait mode, some extras – like an AI-powered measuring tool – and some special effects. It can also change low-light performance.

Although the 3x optical zoom still looks good, with lovely detail and no loss of quality. And the wide-angle lens is fun to play around with, too. The camera system isn’t as creative as the P30 Pro; it’s more than enough for most people.

Design, screen, and color

Hold the P30 in your hand, and its compact size is immediately felt. It’s not small, but if the 6.47-inch P30 Pro is big, the P30 can feel right at home.

How about design? The P30 and P30 Pro take design elements from the Mate 20 and P20, such as tapered edges and vertically stacked camera lenses. While this doesn’t make them unattractive, it doesn’t make them eye-catching. The P20 stands out thanks to its array of lenses, as does the Mate 20 Pro. The P30 has lost some of that uniqueness.

It is almost rescued by color. The white and black models will be forgotten, and even the color of the Huawei Aurora will be carried over for one of the new colors – a crazy orange and magenta hue called Amber Sunrise and a blue gradient and silver called Breathe Crystal. Amber sunrise is crazy, a gorgeous fiery red that cannot be ignored. Crystal breath is more delicate and more pearly. It’s hard to choose.

Both the P30 and P30 Pro take design elements from the Mate 20 and P20.

The 6.1-inch OLED display has the same resolution and 19.5:9 aspect ratio, and it’s very bright, with excellent color and definition. However, it did look a bit washed out when the brightness reached its maximum and wasn’t something we wanted to see for long. The model I tested may not have the final firmware, and there are various tweaks you can make to change the performance of your monitor.

The body has a few design highlights. The top and bottom sides are smooth and flat, a complete change from the rounded Mate 20 Pro and most other phones out there. It’s subtle enough that you won’t notice unless looking for it, and it can have interesting effects on in-hand comfort, especially when typing on a nearly bezel-less screen. There’s a small bezel at the bottom, the fingerprint sensor has been moved into the display, so it’s not as pronounced as the Mate 20.

Fingerprint sensor, speaker, and performance

The in-display fingerprint sensor was a disappointment, to the point where I turned off the system on the Mate 20 Pro recently and relied on face unlock to secure the phone. Our quick fingerprint registration on the P30 Pro shows that improvements appear to have been made. It’s reliable, that’s most important, and consistent speed too.

It has been moved closer to the bottom of the phone for ergonomics, but we’re unsure if this helps with one-handed unlocking. But if it works consistently, it will be a big step forward. Even so, this is not an ultrasonic sensor like the one equipped with the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus.

Another thing to note on display is that the speaker has been removed and placed below the screen. Oddly enough, Huawei calls this an “upgraded solenoid” unit, which is why it is magnetically suspended in the body. Sound is produced through screen vibrations, which are heard when your ear presses on it. We’ve seen systems like the one before – the original Xiaomi Mi Mix, for example – and while technically a lot can depend on the position of your ears, how effective is your ear.

Performance comes from Huawei’s Kirin 980 processor and EMUI 9.1 software, layered on Android 9.0 Pie, delivering a Mate 20 Pro-like experience during our brief time with the phone. Huawei didn’t highlight any significant changes to EMUI, and I didn’t spot anything significant – although the camera app does seem to be more responsive, especially swapping between lenses and levels zoom.

Conclusion

What else are you missing out on by buying the P30 instead of the P30 Pro? It has IP53 water and dust resistance rating, which is basic compared to the P30 Pro’s IP68 body. The battery is smaller with a capacity of 3,650mAh, compared to 4,200mAh in the P30 Pro. It also doesn’t have a 40W SuperCharge system or wireless charging. It does have a headphone jack on the bottom of the phone, though, which is something the P30 Pro doesn’t have.

The P20 turned out to be a solid, desirable phone, and I have no doubt the P30 will be the same.

There are also some strong competitors, from the Samsung Galaxy S10e to the Apple iPhone XR, plus another problem for the P30 will be the Huawei Mate 20 Pro. It’s been around long enough for the price to drop and remains likely to this day, with features the P30 didn’t have, including wireless charging. If you aim to save money on a new Huawei phone, that should be another consideration.

Looks like we’re harsh on the P30 here. The truth is, the Huawei Mate 20 turned out to be a solid, desirable phone, and I have no doubt the P30 will be like that. The point is, the P30 Pro is such a step up, and the competition is so strong, the P30 needs to impress the more I spend time on it.

where can you get a Huawei P30 online

Huawei P30 128GB+6GB RAM (ELE-L29) 6.1″ LTE Factory Unlocked GSM Smartphone (International Version) (Black): Buy it now

Huawei P30 ELE-L29 128GB Hybrid Dual Sim Unlocked GSM Phone w/Triple (40 MP + 16 MP + 8 MP) Camera – Aurora: Buy it now

Huawei P30 128GB+6GB RAM (ELE-L29) 6.1″ LTE Factory Unlocked GSM Smartphone (International Version) – Breathing Crystal:Buy it now