a strong competitor of the iPhone XS?

Equipped with a large 6.4-inch screen, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro is distinguished by the integration of three cameras in the back, and the most powerful processor of the firm. Like its rivals Samsung or Apple, it is equipped with an OLED display, the technology that offers the best display quality of the moment. It is sold 999 euros, with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.

The strengths of Huawei Mate 20 Pro

A beautiful design

Huawei's habit is to quickly evolve the design of its smartphones. This Huawei Mate 20 Pro is no exception. The smartphone is still covered with a layer of glbad, although the model tested is equipped with a thin coating supposed to prevent fingerprints – which is partly effective. Despite its huge 6.4-inch screen, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro is comfortable to take in hand. It is narrower than the iPhone XS Max (equipped with a 6.5 inch screen), but also a little lighter.

But it is on the side of Samsung that we must turn to identify the inspiration of Huawei, whose new mobile takes the form curved, front and back. Difficult to complain, at least for the grip that is even better. However, the mobile is particularly slippery and it is likely that a screen change due to breakage is charged at the high price (about 300 euros at Samsung). At the back, Huawei innovates by grouping the three cameras and the flash in a black frame. A clever way to integrate this heavy paraphernalia while keeping the necessary sobriety.

An unprecedented offer in photo

The Huawei P20 Pro was the first smartphone equipped with a triple camera module in the back, the Mate 20 Pro track, at least at first glance. For the new model, the Chinese manufacturer retains the main photo sensor 40 Mpix, very good in low light. It is complemented by a second lens with a tighter focal length, which acts as an optical zoom x3. It is this second camera module which is used for the portrait, as on the iPhone.

In both cases, the result oscillates between the good and the excellent. In good light conditions, the pictures are clear, with perfectly managed exposure differences (for example between a subject less well lit than the background). In low light, the night mode impresses with its efficiency, making the Mate 20 Pro one of the best mobile in the field of night photography. The main complaint we can make is a tendency to smooth the details, for a seductive result on social networks but less natural than Google's Pixel 3.

The novelty of this Huawei Mate 20 Pro is the addition of a third camera module, with very wide angle lens. It is used to take larger shots than with the main camera module, which is very useful for immortalizing a landscape. This is the first time a mobile has three camera modules badociated with three different focal lengths – the Samsung Galaxy A9 is not yet available in France.

For photo enthusiasts, the Mate 20 Pro can be seen as the culmination of a progress started in 2016, with the arrival of the LG G5, a smartphone with second wide-angle lens and the iPhone 7 Plus, the first smartphone to offer a true optical zoom. Combining the best of both worlds, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro becomes the smartphone that offers the most opportunities in photography. The addition of this third wide-angle camera module implies the disappearance of the black and white camera module, which fans of Leica's monochrome shots – who works with Huawei on the photo part – will regret.

Excellent autonomy

Due to its large size, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro houses one of the largest batteries on the market. This allows him to hold until the end of the day, and more. Several times, we connected a device that still enjoyed 40% of its autonomy, or more than 50%. Taking into account Huawei's fast charging option, which is very efficient, we can say that the Mate 20 Pro is an ally that can be counted on over time.

A very good bill

By opting for a 6.4 inch slab, Huawei had to integrate a screen of very good quality. This is the case, in every respect. The 2K definition can display many details, which will be appreciated in video. The use of an OLED panel is beneficial, since the latter implies a contrast ratio close to infinity. All with a very satisfactory level of brightness, even in direct sunlight. However, we recommend that you take a look at the display settings in order to enjoy more faithful and warmer colors than those proposed by default.

The weaknesses of the Huawei Mate 20 Pro

A wayfarer fingerprint reader

Among its technical innovations, the Mate 20 Pro has a major element: a fingerprint sensor placed under the glbad layer of the screen. This technology was long awaited, with the gradual disappearance of physical buttons on the front. On paper, this solution is attractive: it is sufficient for the user to put his finger a few inches from the bottom of the screen to unlock the mobile.

In fact, the result is perfectible. The operation is often laborious, with many failures. In use, we preferred to use the facial recognition system, more efficient. Huawei is one of the first to popularize this technology, which still needs to be fine-tuned. We can hope that a software update will improve the user experience.

Rising prices

The time when Huawei presented himself as an outsider is over. A few months ago, the company dislodged Apple in the second place of the largest sellers of smartphones – in units sold – in the world. With this legitimacy, Huawei aligns its prices with those of the competition. Last year, the Huawei Mate 10 Pro was launched at 799 euros. His successor costs 200 euros more, to flirt with the symbolic bar of 1000 euros. The faithful of the first hour will regret this new stage, nevertheless indispensable: after having seduced by the prices, Huawei has the weapons to compete with the biggest ones.

But the firm is not limited to a price increase. It forgets to integrate a microSD port, replaced by a NanoMemory port, which hosts smaller memory cards. This technology is not familiar to you? It's normal, it's a proprietary format, just created by Huawei. With a single version of the Mate 20 Pro, equipped with 128 GB of storage, many people will choose this accessory to expand the memory of their mobile. It will be necessary to go to the cash register: while a microSD card of 128 GB costs about 25 euros, a NanoMemory card – only sold by Huawei – costs more than 60.

Conclusion

Huawei had conquered us with the P20 Pro, the Chinese manufacturer does not disappoint with the Mate 20 Pro. The remarkable finishes of the mobile phone make it a direct competitor of an iPhone XS Max or a Samsung Galaxy S9. The great wealth of the photo offer allows it to stand out from its rivals, despite an often less natural image. As a bonus, the Mate 20 Pro is distinguished by a remarkable autonomy. However, it will be necessary to pay 1000 euros or more if you want to expand the storage capacity of the device.