Huawei Mate 30 Pro review

Competition

The Mate 30 Pro is Huawei's all-out high-end device for this fall (okay, short of an all-out-er 5G model, but still) and is not without unique selling points. A thunderous cloud looms over its future, however, and we're hoping the US-China conflict untangles, so the world can have some Mate goodness. Until then, we'll try to evaluate it on the merits, as if nothing's happened.

Huawei Mate 30 Pro • Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max • Samsung Galaxy S10+

Yup, those two phones on the shot above are the Mate 30 Pro's main competitors in our book. Very similar in principle, they each have a premium build, nice display, battery life to spare and cameras to put a grin on your face. Even so, each has something specific to set it apart.

The Mate 30 Pro has unmatched cameras - its ultra-wide has a massive sensor and autofocus and the telephoto offers a longer 3x zoom - it's looking like our top pick for photography out of the three. The Galaxy Note10+ has a magic wand... erm, an S Pen, that is, which you can't find anywhere else. And then iPhone 11 Pro Max is the latest top-end iPhone and as such needs little more to convince the right demographic.

Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max • Samsung Galaxy Note10+

A couple more less obvious alternatives are to be found in the OnePlus 7 Pro and the Sony Xperia 1. In fact, the OP7P is the closest match to the Mate 30 Pro in the camera department, offering a 3x telephoto and an autofocusing ultra-wide. And then the 7 Pro actually one-ups the 30 Pro in some areas giving you stereo speakers and a 90Hz display which is also sharper.

Speaking of sharp displays, none is more so than the Xperia 1's - the only 4K display on a current phone. That screen is in a rather unique form factor, which could be everything you've asked for (or not). The Xperia has a regular microSD expansion slot, and very advanced autofocus capabilities. Not that we'd pick its cameras over the Mate's just for that. Plus, the 30 Pro's battery life is in a different league.

OnePlus 7 Pro • Sony Xperia 1

Verdict

Huawei's created the best Mate yet, and we're really liking the 30 Pro. Too bad that's happened in a year when the company doesn't get to pre-install Google apps for its users, essentially making the phone unusable in the Western world out of the box.

Otherwise the Mate 30 Pro has it all - spectacular display, exemplary endurance, picture quality to make others jealous, class-leading performance. The pillars stand tall, dwarfing the inconveniences of missing a headphone jack, stereo speakers, or a regular memory card slot.

But there's no escaping the fact that with no Play Store on board and only partial Google app functionality, the Mate 30 Pro can't be recommended for anyone outside of China. In fact, actively avoiding it would be the only sensible advice. The moment Google gets the license to provide products and services to Huawei will be the moment this phone will become a true all-rounder. And you should run to the nearest store and get one - but only then. Until then, stick to the other options, there are plenty.

Pros

• Striking curved-screen design.
• Bright and reasonably accurate HDR-capable display.
• Excellent battery life, plenty fast charging.
• Powerful chipset for all kinds of loads.
• Superb still image quality, day and night; the best ultra wide angle camera on the market (though not the widest).
• Extra smooth video stabilization, all the way to 4K60.
• EMUI 10 is very clean, yet feature-rich, and is easier to like than previous iterations.

Cons

• Limited global availability - as in, only available in China, which somewhat goes together with the next point.
• No Google apps pre-loaded, no Play services support, the one method of getting them to work (itself more than a little shady) has now been disabled. Overall uncertain software future if you're outside of China.
• No audio jack.
• No stereo speakers.
• Proprietary memory slot.
• Lack of physical controls makes some operations awkward.
• Video recording leaves a little more to be desired.