Huawei’s Wow Factor

[MathieuRoy]

As little as two years ago, barely anyone in Quebec had heard of Huawei. And yet, the telecommunications equipment manufacturer recently reached a major milestone by becoming the world’s second-largest seller of smartphones, sitting snugly between Samsung and Apple.

Here in Quebec, Huawei’s arrival was discreet, though you may have heard of the brand if you keep up with tech news, particularly since Google entrusted Huawei to make its Nexus 6p. But Huawei recently increased its visibility in Quebec by sponsoring shows and buying up billboard space and TV spots, and the brand is now firmly rooted in our province.

A phone/camera device that will make you say “Wow”

This summer, I had the opportunity to test one of their signature phones, the Huawei P20 Pro. In a word, the experience can only be described as “Wow!”

It’s impossible not to notice the three camera lenses on the back of the device. Yes, three!

• 20 MP mono lens
• 8 MP lens
• 40 MP lens

Jointly developed with Leica, a German camera manufacturer, this device is truly impressive. Sure, maybe I was a little biased because of the amazing times I had during our family vacation, but I genuinely believe that I took the best photos of my life with this phone. It’s like having a fantastic camera that also happens to place calls as an added bonus.

The P20 Pro delivers great results in various light conditions, with no adjustments required on your part. In full sun or dim environments, for portraits or landscapes, this device made it easy for me to come across as a semi-pro 😉 Even my coworkers and family asked me to snap their pics. 

A powerful photo editor

This incredible machine also comes with artificial intelligence that can identify more than 500 scene types when you frame a shot. Depending on what you’re capturing, you’ll see one of 19 category names appear at the bottom of the screen, including: cat, food, group, landscape, night shot, portrait, flowers, document, sunset, snow, etc.

Once you select a category, the “Master AI” will automatically adjust the image to make sure you get the best possible pic. While it’s not perfect, this system is generally very good. And if you want, you can easily choose to ignore these automatic settings.  

I quickly opted to deactivate “beauty” mode, which is automatically enabled when you take a selfie. It makes your skin super smooth and widens your eyes—to the point that you look like you belong in a Japanese manga! Since that’s not exactly my style, I chose to deactivate this option.

Wow with a capital W

It’s true that, at first glance, the Huawei P20 Pro may appear like your average phone: a rectangle with rounded corners, a slippery glass back and a little notch in the upper portion of the screen (that may not be to everyone’s taste).  Don't look for the headphone jack or the micro SD card slot. They aren't there. But the fact remains that I was charmed by this smartphone’s features.

The Huawei P20 Pro boasts an attractive 6.1-inch screen, water and dust resistance and powerful technology that more than covers my needs. And the cherry on top? The long-lasting battery that can easily get me to the end of the day with 25% to 30% of the battery remaining.** These are the things that make me happy!

Huawei wants to conquer the phone market and the brand’s got a serious offer behind that ambition with competitive prices and quality manufacturing. We’ll be keeping an eye on the company’s progress in North America over the coming months.

*Source: International Data Corporation (IDC)

** Varies depending on usage