Huawei P20 Pro long-term review

19 July 2018
It was an exciting flagship season this spring, yes, but once the dust has settled, there was only a handful of devices that left lasting impressions. On top of that shortlist is the tri-eyed beast that is the Huawei P20 Pro and it was high time we do a long-term review of this one while using it as a daily driver.

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  • N
  • NickF
  • nw}
  • 20 Jul 2018

Iron Mike, 19 Jul 2018Hi GSMArena team. That is a great long-term review of th... moreHi Chris

Tldr; durability is mixed. The paint, on the black version, doesn't seem very thick or well applied. Might be a better story with the twighlight and blue versions.

I've had the P20 Pro for just over a month. Got it on a fantastic upgrade deal on Vodafone business.

Overall the phone is pretty great in all areas. A recent OTA update I installed (128 to 131) has really degraded the camera zoom quality which shouldn't happen so I need to revert the firmware if that's possible.

Durability is a bit hit and miss. I got the black version and immediately put it in the supplied gel case. However within a couple of days there was a small bit of paint chipped off near the sim tray which was annoying. In the second week of owning it I whipped the phone out of my jacket pocket but lost my grip when doing so causing it to fly through the air and go cartwheeling onto concrete. The case saved the phone and the friends I was with were amazed the screen wasn't smashed. The screen protector was chipped up and the edges of the case were slightly damaged. But inexplicably there was a huge gouge near the usb socket. So the paint job on the phone isn't that great which is a shame.

    • S
    • Shui8
    • KZ8
    • 20 Jul 2018

    Shanti Dope, 20 Jul 2018Great idea, poor execution. Waiting for Sony to do this id... moreHuawei execution the idea since Huawei P9 (its very good), where at that time Sony flagship camera are just mediacore....until XZ2 arrive. While i agree Sony upgrade their game from Huawei's idea, they took a very long time to execute it, when huawei already add another third sensor, for zooming capabilities. And theres a upcoming Huawei Mate 20 that definitely will upgrade their camera system more to next level.

      Shanti Dope, 20 Jul 2018Great idea, poor execution. Waiting for Sony to do this id... moreI don't think Sony can do any better than Huawei considering how they have been always behind others when it comes to camera... XZ2 Premium's dual cameras are plagued with limitations related to AUBE. P20 Pro's issues (Master AI going overboard, complicated camera UI) can be mostly resolved via future updates and it is very likely that Mate 20 will have a stabilisation in 4K/4K recording in 60fps, while XZ3 will be stuck with the same camera hardware and SoC which mean it might not bring any new features. Huawei has a lot more experience when it comes to handling monochrome sensor as well.

        Anonymous, 19 Jul 2018It's unbelievable how often websites praise the 5x zoom set... moreOf course there is no difference in details, it's fairly obvious that 5x zoom is basically a digital zoom from 3x zoom with different processing(the same trick Sony uses on their digital cameras, called Clear Image Zoom).

        "I have covered the monochrome camera at Iso 6400 and the difference is very small when you pixel peep"
        That's because P20 Pro, unlike Huawei's previous phones, doesn't use monochrome camera to enhance the image quality when you're shooting in 1x magnification and they never advertised that it would. The sensor is so massive and it doesn't need additional sensor to enhance the image quality whereas Mate 10/P10/Mate 9/P9 all had tiny 1/2.9 inch sensor. The only time monochrome sensor kicks in is when you're zooming in where extra resolution is needed.

          Great idea, poor execution.
          Waiting for Sony to do this idea in the future. They made the monochrome sensor to work much more effectively than Huawei ever did, and this one will be no exception.
          It is definitely possible, since that 1/1.7" sensor of the P20 Pro is a Sony IMX one, and there's no reason for them to sell better sensors to other OEMs than the ones that they use at least for their own flagships. Maybe an even better one.

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • mx{
            • 20 Jul 2018

            Best camera ever is p20 pro

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • mx{
              • 20 Jul 2018

              Anonymous, 19 Jul 2018I dont understand all hype about this phone. Except camera... moreThey sold 100,000,000 in like half a year lol, stop hating fanboy

                • S
                • Shui8
                • KZ8
                • 20 Jul 2018

                visconderoberto, 20 Jul 2018When the editor told that Huawei camera was better than the... moreEspecially when they said, 'far off better' than the X. Lol.

                  • D
                  • AnonD-122899
                  • QXP
                  • 20 Jul 2018

                  I read that the gaming performance on this phone is bad. It's GPU is lagging in games even in Pokemon Go. Perhaps any gamers having the phone can comment if this is true?

                    When the editor told that Huawei camera was better than the X, was a mix of astonishment, like someone broken the Holy Graal and burning the Bible at the same time...how can anyone dare to compare cheap Chinese crap to the only goddess allowed in the Acropolis? Poor iPhone lovers...

                      This is the most overrated phone of 2018.

                        • R
                        • Rolleyeball
                        • uQ5
                        • 20 Jul 2018

                        YalokIy, 19 Jul 2018"Apple was first to cut a notch into the display and most o... moreUgh..rolleyeball

                        We all know its not iphone but when other phone implement it, it doesnt change s***. Forgotten. Poof. Gone. Irrelevant

                        So yea, its iphone that revolutionise notch. Stop being in denial

                          • ?
                          • Anonymous
                          • Q6x
                          • 20 Jul 2018

                          Man, that camera is amazeballs.

                            Great phone that brought new standard for phone camera abilities. Still, I will choose quality over quantity. Well, depends on usage.

                              • D
                              • AnonD-594740
                              • 8{Y
                              • 19 Jul 2018

                              Iron Mike, 19 Jul 2018Hi GSMArena team. That is a great long-term review of th... moreMost certain that its gorilla glass like the front, so expect micro scratches even with a case.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • gBV
                                • 19 Jul 2018

                                It's also unexplainable why gsmarena doesn't criticize the ghosting artifacts of the night mode. Google shows that it can avoid ghosting despite using exactly the same technique as Huawei.

                                  Lol this phone is massively overrated.

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • gBV
                                    • 19 Jul 2018

                                    It's unbelievable how often websites praise the 5x zoom setting. I have compared multiple(!) 3x and 5x photos and there isn't a difference in details. If there is a difference, then it might be equivalent to the details of maybe ≈3.2x zoom. Of course the 5x setting is much better than the 5x setting from other phones because it needs to use less digital zoom for 5x. The 5x setting is actually ≈1.7x digital zoom with the tele camera!! Not 5x digital zoom!!
                                    I am also surprised that not a single reviewer examines the effect of the monochrome camera. I have covered the monochrome camera at Iso 6400 and the difference is very small when you pixel peep(!). I am also surprised that no reviewer compares the amount of details of the 2x zoom setting with the 40megapixel mode...

                                      "Apple was first to cut a notch into the display and most of the makers followed suit soon after. "

                                      Essential and sharp disagree.

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • JpF
                                        • 19 Jul 2018

                                        I dont understand all hype about this phone. Except camera, it is not better than Mate 10.

                                        Cheap screen.
                                        2017 cpu, not on pair with Qualcomm's , Samsung's nor Apple's.
                                        Weaker gpu
                                        Awful updates, I doubt it will see P before march.
                                        Video quality not better than midranges
                                        Selfie is a joke, strongest beautification ever also overexposed
                                        No headphone jack..

                                        No surprise why they dont sell even 15 million phones out of China