Huawei Mate 30 Pro review

Not one, but two 40MP cams

The Huawei Mate 30 Pro has a triple camera setup - a rather typical arrangement of a moderately wide 'primary' camera, an ultra wide-angle one, and a short telephoto. There's little typical about the separate modules, however.

Starting with the newest one, the Mate 30 Pro's ultra wide-angle camera has the biggest sensor we've seen since the Lumia 1020 - a 1/1.54" 40MP imager. We say 40MP, but it's a Quad Bayer type meant to output 10MP images. The peculiarities don't end there - it's in a classic 3:2 aspect ratio as opposed to the usual 4:3 found in phone cameras.

The lens on this camera isn't as wide as the majority of ultra wides on the market, with a focal length equivalent of 18mm. This one does, however, have autofocus unlike the fixed-focus ones found in the iPhone 11 or the Galaxy Note10, though the OnePlus 7 Pro's ultra-wide has autofocus too. And not only is the sensor the biggest around, but the lens is also very bright at f/1.8 in a world of f/2.2-f/2.4 ultra wides.

The regular camera isn't like what you'd find on any other brand of phone, but we have seen it on previous Huaweis. It uses another 40MP Quad Bayer sensor, slightly smaller but still bigger-than-most 1/1.7" one, with an RYYB filter as opposed to the RGGB of the ultra-wide and pretty much every other Quad Bayer. The lens has a 27mm equivalent focal length and an f/1.6 aperture and is stabilized.

Stabilized is the telephoto as well, and it's one of few 3x zoom modules around - both the iPhone and the Note have 2x tele cams. Once again though, the OnePlus 7 Pro alone matches the Mate in this respect offering a 3x zoom camera. Huawei does have a periscope 5x zoom unit which you can get on the P30 Pro, but we gather that either there simply wasn't enough room on the Mate or price would have shot too high up.

A ToF camera did make it to the Mate 30 Pro, allowing for quicker focus and improved bokeh effects.

Huawei's camera app is pretty functional though it does have a few oddities that get in the way. You have a mode selector on the bottom which you can swipe left or right to change modes, but you can't swipe on the viewfinder, just on the selector itself. Swiping up and down doesn't switch between front and rear camera either, you have a button for that (admittedly, it's at the bottom within easy reach). Basically, you're still wasting the viewfinder by not having gestures enabled on it, except for pinch to zoom.

Zooming is the other less-than-ideal bit about the Mate 30 Pro's camera UI. While the selector is reasonably accessible with the right thumb when holding the phone in portrait, operating it in landscape requires both hands. So, effectively, it's neither equally well suited to left-hand and right-hand use in portrait, nor is it usable single-handedly in the landscape. None of its competitors has these issues so Huawei can work more on improving the UI.

Camera app

The camera app is enhanced by Huawei's AI just as before. There is an improved Master AI, which recognizes and tunes settings for up to 1,500 different scenes. There's a toggle in the viewfinder for turning it off and on, so you don't have to go into settings for that. We tend to keep it off, although the recent implementations are nowhere as aggressive as the initial over-the-top Greenery and Blue Sky modes.

There's a Pro mode too where you can adjust parameters yourself - ISO (50 to 409,600), shutter speed (1/4000s to 30s), exposure compensation (-4 to +4EV in 1/3 stop increments), and white balance (presets and specific light temperature). You can also choose the metering mode (matrix, center-weighted, and spot), and the focus mode (single, continuous, and manual). If the phone thinks you messed up the exposure, an icon will pop up to warn you. Mind you, Pro mode is available on all three cameras, which isn't usually the case in a lot of competitors.

Camera app, Pro mode

The monochrome mode is still available as more of a throwback to the days when the Huaweis had actual black and white camera modules. It's in the 'More' section, where the extra modes are: Monochrome, Panorama, and HDR, among others. There's also a new Dual-view mode which shows the ultra-wide camera in half the screen and your choice of 2x/3x/5x zoom in the other half, but it only works for video.

For years now, Huawei phones have had both a Portrait mode and an Aperture mode. In Aperture, you can choose the simulated aperture in the range from f/0.95 to f/16. Post shot, you can change the aperture and the desired focus point within the Gallery. In Portrait mode, you can enable and disable the background blur, but you can also choose the bokeh shapes - circles, hearts, swirl, or discs. You can also opt for simulated lighting, and you can add some beautification on a scale from 0 to 10.

Camera settings • More modes • Aperture • Portrait

Daylight image quality

The Mate 30 Pro's main camera capture nice daylight images with crisp, fine detail. Foliage rendition is particularly good with the Mate's grass looking significantly more natural than what you'd get from a Galaxy Note10, and slightly superior to the iPhone 11 too.

There's hardly any noise to speak of too, yet the Mate's images don't have the artificial smoothness of the Galaxies' noise suppression (which we don't hate, it just has a different look).

Daylight samples, main camera

As for colors, the Mate 30 Pro has a rather conservative approach, and while greens do pack plenty of punch, yellows can be a bit lifeless. We get that this is probably the more photographic approach to go with the Leica collaboration, but we do enjoy some more color in our images.

Dynamic range has become less of a sensor property and more of a matter of processing with the advancement of HDR algorithms, multi-frame stacking and Quad Bayer sensors that capture short and long exposures at the same time. What we'll say here is that the Mate 30 Pro's images have great dynamic range, easily among the best on any phone, with nice tonal gradations in both shadows and highlights.

Daylight samples, main camera

The telephoto camera has slightly different color reproduction, and this is one instance where we appreciate the inconsistency - its colors are more vivid than what we got out of the main one. On top of that, it's got more zooming power than the mainstream 2x competitors and captures finer detail in distant subjects than what an iPhone 11 Pro or a Galaxy Note10 will give you.

Daylight samples, telephoto camera

The ultra wide-angle camera is unlike any other on the market thanks to a combination of a large sensor and autofocusing capability. Indeed, that lets you... focus on nearby objects to bring the viewer's attention in a way the infinity-focused iPhones and Galaxies cannot. The Mate 30 Pro's ultra wide-angle camera can't focus all that close - forget about that 'macro mode' the P30 Pro had on its ultra-wide.

Daylight samples, ultra wide angle camera

What you do get is excellent detail, practically non-existent noise and great dynamic range. Also, more pleasing colors than the main camera. Makes one wonder which exactly 40MP camera is the Mate 30 Pro's main camera.

Daylight samples, ultra wide angle camera

40MP mode samples

With two 40MP cameras on board, you may be tempted to give them a go and see if there are any actual benefits to shooting in their sort of native (yet not intended to be used that way) resolution. The answer is maybe, under certain conditions with certain subjects and definitely only in good light.

Daylight samples, main camera: 10MP • 40MP

Daylight samples, ultra wide angle camera: 10MP • 40MP

Low-light image quality

In low light, the Mate 30 Pro's 27mm camera gathers more light than key rivals thanks to the big sensor (1/1.7" vs. 1/2.6" of the iPhone 11 Pro and Galaxy Note10). The Mate produces sharp and clean photos with a nicely wide dynamic range particularly evident in warm point light sources. The one issue we have with its low-light shots is the definite red color shift, particularly in such warm lighting.

Low-light samples, main camera, Photo mode

Being the Night mode pioneer, Huawei knows a thing or two about pseudo long exposures. The Mate 30 Pro's Night mode brings up a bit more detail from the shadows than the Photo mode and makes for livelier, more colorful images. The red color cast remains, however.

Low-light samples, main camera, Night mode

It's there in the ultra wide-angle camera's Photo mode photos as well, so it's a matter of processing more than it is strictly sensor dependent. Save for that, those are likely the best low-light ultra wide-angle shots you can get out of a smartphone - they have great detail and dynamic range. One thing you need to be aware of, is that the Mate 30 Pro's ultra wide-angle camera is prone to flaring under certain conditions - like if you're right underneath a street as is the case in the first sample below.

Low-light samples, ultra wide angle camera, Photo mode

There's Night mode for the ultra wide-angle cam, but it comes with pros and cons. The Mate does something odd and goes for a 4:3 10MP shot out of a natively 3:2 camera, cropping the sides a little. Since it doesn't have the correct number of pixels on its 3:2 sensor, it has to do a different kind of demosaicking with some upscaling involved, and it's not looking awesome - the photos are significantly softer and now not even all that ultra-wide thanks to the crop. On a positive note, the redness is gone and the colors are much more accurate.

Low-light samples, ultra wide angle camera, Night mode

The telephoto camera doesn't fare too well in the dark, and the Mate 30 Pro outputs a digitally zoomed-in shot from the main unit in such cases, as most other phones do. It does on occasion use its actual 3x telephoto as is the case in the first sample below, but you can't count on it. Generally, you're better off not zooming in very low light.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera, Photo mode

Night mode doesn't necessarily help as it gets trickier to handhold the phone at this longer focal length with any amount of steadiness.

Low-light samples, telephoto camera, Night mode

Once you're done with the real world samples, head over to our Photo compare tool to see how the Huawei Mate 30 Pro stacks up against the competition.

Huawei Mate 30 Pro against the iPhone 11 Pro Max and the Galaxy Note10+ in our Photo compare tool

Portraits

Portrait mode on the Mate 30 Pro comes with a ton of variables. First off, you can take portraits at your choice of 1x/2x/3x magnification - 3x shots are taken with the telephoto camera, while the 1x and 2x use the 27mm one with digital zoom for 2x.

We've said it time and time again, but here it goes - with the longer telephoto lens you'll get a more natural perspective, and you'll stand a comfortable distance from your subject, while the main camera module is capable of gathering more light at the expense of forcing you too close to the person you're photographing. So actually having the choice is a good thing, if you know how to use it.

Other than the zoom level, there are about a dozen effects including the shape of the bokeh balls (charts, discs, whatnot) and simulated lighting (window blinds, stage lighting). Then there's the general beauty filter which you can set in a 0-10 range.

The portraits out of the Mate 30 Pro turn out with very good subject separation and nicely looking background blur. Image quality at 1x is pretty great in good light, and even if it drops in dimmer settings, it's still more than acceptable. At 3x, you'll get nice results outdoors in good light and usable ones indoors. The 2x setting is best avoided regardless of light.

Portrait samples: 3x • 2x • 1x • 1x • 2x

Portrait samples: 3x • 2x • 1x • 1x • 2x

Self-portraits with the rear cam are a challenge on the Mate, since it doesn't have a physical button to use as a shutter release, and you need to guess where the onscreen button is while stretching your arm out and trying not to drop the phone. On top of that, the 3x cam is simply too long to be used at such distances. With careful hand gymnastics and at 1x, you can get some decent shots.

Portrait samples

Aperture

Aperture mode is the simulated bokeh mode for non-people subjects, though you could use it on humans to avoid the hassle of all the options in the actual Portrait mode. You do still get the 1x/2x/3x magnification switch with much the same implications as in Portrait mode.

Aperture samples, f/1.4: 1x • 2x • 3x

For each different magnification, you can set the simulated aperture as well.

Aperture samples, 1x: f/1.4 • f/4.0 • f/16

Admittedly a proper torture test, the first shot below turned out impossible for the Mate 30 Pro, but it did much better with the red fire truck. The clock did confuse it too, however, and it's a simple shape.

Aperture samples, f/1.4, 1x

Selfies

The Mate 30 Pro's selfie cam is the same 32MP f/2.0 unit from the P30 Pro. That means it's fixed focus while some competitors have already adopted autofocusing front cams (Pixels and Galaxies, mostly).

The Mate does have a ToF setup on the front, unlike the P30 Pro, and that shows in its selfie portraits as much improved subject isolation - near flawless, even on this guy, almost.

Selfie portrait samples

Image quality is quite alright, though we'd argue that the 32MP resolution is overkill. 32MP sensors tend to be Quad Bayers these days, so we're wondering if that's the case and Huawei just chose not to have an 8MP mode and went for the more marketable always-on 32MP. In any case, detail is great, colors are spot on, and dynamic range is nicely wide.

Selfie samples