Review | Huawei Mate 40 Pro review: great hardware, no Google software in what could be Huawei’s last Android phone
- Huawei has come up with an amazing phone despite problems caused by US sanctions. If this is its last Android model, the Chinese firm is going out on top
- Its camera outshines that of the iPhone 12, and its 5nm chip has plenty of power, but it misses Google services
Huawei’s latest flagship smartphone, the Mate 40 Pro, could mark the end of an era. With US sanctions shutting off its access to high-end chips and the Chinese company’s recent announcement that we will see at least one smartphone in 2021 running on its in-house HarmonyOS operating system, this could be the last Android-powered Huawei smartphone with a cutting-edge chip.
Until then, the Mate 40 Pro is yet another hardware powerhouse.
Design and hardware
The Mate 40 Pro continues the design aesthetic established by the Mate 20 Pro: a drastically curved OLED screen, a 3D face unlock system (a rarity in Android), and a centrally located, circular camera module.
The Mate 40 Pro’s main camera system comprises a 50-megapixel main lens with the largest image sensor size in the industry (for better light intake); a 20-megapixel ultrawide-angle camera; and a 12-megapixel Periscope zoom lens that offers 5X lossless optical zoom.