Huawei P40 Pro: we’ve held the phone early, but we weren’t allowed to see it
The Huawei P40 Pro leaks and rumors have been going wild of late, but what’s better than hearsay? Information from the source, and better yet, getting our hands on a P40 Pro ourselves, with one caveat – no peeking.
After an under wraps session with a Huawei product expert revealed design and camera highlights of the upcoming flagship, we can confirm that Huawei’s upcoming P40-series is set to take on the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra and its 100x Space Zoom with gusto. There’s a new sensor, and an upgraded periscope camera.
Design: curves every which way
Since the Huawei P8, the company has been pushing the envelope with its design, colors, materials and finishes. The P40 Pro looks set to be no exception, with the Huawei product expert all but confirming that the phone would play with materials that have not been used on smartphones before. Exactly what those materials are is currently unclear.
Additionally, we were allowed to touch the unreleased phone. It was out of sight, in a mysterious box shrouded in cloth but we fondled it and it felt curvier than expected.
It was rounded on the sides, suggesting a curved display. Interestingly, it felt the same at the top and bottom of its screen meaning it was almost pebble-like.
Additionally we can confirm, the Huawei P40 Pro will not feature a headphone jack. There is no tactile speaker grille, and it does have a rectangular camera surround around the back, similar to that of the Galaxy S20. It also feels like glass or ceramic, but we can’t confirm that yet.
Upgrades to the camera
In the words of Huawei, the “P series is about photography”.
“Each time we have a new iteration of the P family, we’re taking a technology, and we’re advancing it. The Huawei P30… had a 1/1.7-inch sensor, so what about the P40 Pro? It looks set to have a “market leading sensor technology specifically designed to set new records”.
As for the zoom, the term ‘Super-Visual’ image system flashed on screen as the product expert dodged questions about optical zoom specifics, though we do know it’s going to come with a new periscope zoom.
Huawei seems to be going in the direction Samsung and Oppo have in recent weeks, not disclosing focal lengths on their 2020 flagship periscope cameras. Instead, they are focusing on results achieved by hybrid zooms – combining optical and digital zoom.
This may sound like marketing spiel, but the Huawei product expert’s anecdote whet our appetites: “an eagle can spot a rabbit at around 3KM away – its eye is designed around resolution and clarity… we’re going to break through into a new generation of zoom capabilities”.
This wasn’t confirmed in the briefing, but it seems like the P40 Pro would feature a next evolution Red Yellow Yellow Blue subpixel formation sensor. When quizzed on the subject, the specialist said “all that investment, we wouldn’t want it to go to waste”.
You won’t have to wait too long for the specifics, and information about the P40-series’ battery, screen and specs. The phone is set to launch on March 26, but it will be an online-only event as the company has cancelled its scheduled Paris launch due to coronavirus.