I don’t think I’m surprising anyone if I say that, nowadays, the smartphone market is no longer as passionate as it used to be: the models on the market are all a bit alike, and in everyday use there is no longer a huge difference between an average model. and a top of the range. Among the few features that can still make the difference are the photographic sector and the software offered to users, and it is in fact precisely on these characteristics that Huawei has focused on its HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro .
HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is a top-of-the-range camera phone that can count on many interesting hardware features combined with the ecosystem of Huawei apps and services (HMS), which is growing more and more and now stands as a very valid alternative to the most famous ecosystems of the mobile market. Just to give you an overview of the product I’m about to tell you about, the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is the world’s first smartphone with a 10-stop variable aperture camera and depth of field with mechanical diaphragm.. It also has many functions that allow “pro” users to precisely adjust each shooting parameter and less experienced users to take excellent photos (and videos) in “point and shoot” mode: do you approach the camera to a small object? Super Macro mode is activated automatically; frame a plate of food or fruit? Food mode is activated automatically; do you frame a person in the foreground? Shoot Portrait mode with super-natural bokeh effect… and the list could go on and on.
It also has an excellent OLED display with very high refresh rate and natural colors, unlocking by fingerprint (with sensor under the screen), secure and precise 3D face recognition , maximum connectivity (with support for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth standards more recent), a battery with excellent autonomy with super fast charging (from 0 to 100 in more or less 35 minutes) and, of course, top-of-the-range smartphone performance. On the software side, the latest version of EMUI and the apps and services of the Huawei ecosystem – to be expanded thanks to the increasingly rich application store HUAWEI AppGallery– make the user experience satisfying, enjoyable and often surprising for all users… even for those who, like me, have tried tons of phones in their life! To learn more, however, keep reading: below is my complete review of the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro .
Index
- Unboxing and first impressions
- Top cameras, for professionals and newbies
- Software and performance: HMS and AppGallery at the top!
- Connectivity, autonomy and charging
- Final evaluations
- Availability and prices
Unboxing and first impressions
Before moving on to the gist of this review, let me briefly talk about unboxing and my first impressions of the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro once it’s unpacked.
The smartphone arrives in a very elegant cardboard box with everything you need inside, including the 66W HUAWEI SuperCharge charger (rare commodity these days!), A USB-C cable , a transparent silicone cover and the paper clip for open the SIM slot (it is dual SIM and uses Nano SIMs).
On the packaging, the logo of HUAWEI AppGallery , the Huawei application store, which is growing steadily and together with the entire HMS ecosystem (HUAWEI Mobile Services) is now able to meet the needs of most users. (but I’ll have a chance to talk to you about this later).
Once the device is held – I had the opportunity to test the Black version – you can immediately appreciate its very elegant symmetrical design and the high quality of the construction materials , with aluminum frame and glass back pleasant to the touch.
On the back stands the large circular module with the three cameras (which I will talk about in detail in a dedicated chapter), while on the front we find a beautiful OLED panel from 6.74 “at 120Hz (therefore with absolute blacks and super-fluid animations ) with 91.3% screen-to-body ratio, rounded 3D edges, 1,212 x 2,616 pixels of resolution and 428 ppi density. This time Huawei has decided to abandon holes or capsules for the front chamber in favor of a notch that at its inside it houses a 3D face recognition sensor (to unlock the smartphone with your face safely, quickly and effectively even in the dark).
The weight of the device is well balanced and the grip is excellent even without a cover: we are talking about a terminal that measures 162.1 x 75.5 x 8.5 mm for 205 grams of weight . The resistance to water and dust, confirmed by the IP68 certification , should also be emphasized .
Top cameras, for professionals and newbies
The time has now come to put aside the delays and talk about the “highlight” of this HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro: I am obviously referring to the photographic sector , which sees the presence of a triple rear camera, one with ultra-focal aperture . wide based on the new XMAGE technology designed by Huawei to give a professional photography experience on smartphones.
Going into more detail, on the back of the device we find a large sensor from 50 MP and 24 mm with opening f / 1.4 f / 4.0, PDAF , automatic laser focus and optical image stabilizer . The latter guarantees very sharp shots even in low light conditions, a very effective night mode, natural portraits and an excellent bokeh effect.
Then we have a 64 MP and 90 mm periscopic RYYB sensor with f / 3.5 aperture , PDAF , OIS and 3.5x optical zoom , and a 13 MP and 18 mm ultrawide 120 ° sensor with f / 2.2 aperture and PDAF ideal for creation of macro photos , with also support for super macros for photos and videos.
To underline, then, the depth of field with mechanical diaphragm . We are in fact talking about the first smartphone in the world with a 10-stop variable physical opening ; which gives more experienced users the ability to have minute control over depth (but there is also a four-level automatic adjustment for less experienced users, fear not!).
There is also a large zoom up to 200x (13-2.700 mm) , the proximity sensor , the 10-channel multispectral sensor , the LED flash , the panorama function , the HDR support and the possibility of making videos up to 4K resolution at 60 fps .
On the front side we find a 13 MP ultra-wide-angle selfie camera with f / 2.4 aperture and 3D TOF for 3D face recognition (safer than 2D and much more effective in the dark): the latter allows you to take excellent photos (even panoramic ones) ) and video up to 4K resolution at 60 fps with HDR support.
I know, this endless list of super advanced specs can be a bit “scary” at first glance and maybe make you think of a hard to use Camera app: nothing could be more wrong!
The Camera app included in the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is packed with advanced features for Pro users , who can therefore enjoy fine-tuning each shooting parameter, but offers an excellent point-and-shoot system for novice users. that can simply frame a subject and automatically get the best results for the type of scene immortalized (as they intelligently identify the subject and enable the best shooting modes based on light, proximity and other parameters).
Opening the Camera app, at the bottom, you will find the menu with all the available modes: Photo , Video , Pro (which allows manual adjustment of all shooting parameters, including the opening of the mechanical diaphragm), Aperture (to have a meticulous control over the aperture, being able to choose between f / 0.95 and f / 16 as a virtual aperture and between f / 1.4 and f / 4 as a physical aperture), Night (to create particularly vivid shots in the evening), Portrait (with the possibility zoom up to 3 ×, beauty filters and effects to be applied to the shots), and finally Other (a menu from which you can activate various modes, including Slow motion ,Panorama , Monochrome , AR Lenses , Time-Lapse , Documents , Super-Macro , Double View , Story Creator etc.).
For each selected mode, at the top, all the available options are shown. For example in the standard shooting mode (Photo) there are buttons to use AI Lens (app to automatically recognize objects, make translations and search for products to buy simply by framing them with the camera), activate or deactivate Master AI (to automatically improve shots thanks to artificial intelligence), adjust the flash , select XMAGE modes (between original, vivid and bright), apply color filters and access general camera settings .
In the general settings you can adjust the aspect ratio of the photos, audio shutter control , automatic shutter function upon smile detection , resolution and fps of the videos , enable or disable saving in efficient format of the videos , the HDR Vivid , the grid , the ‘ level indicator , timer , adding watermarks , location tag and more. Then there is the button to activate or deactivate moving photos, through which it is possible to capture sequences of a few seconds before and after a shot and see them by holding down on the photo (like the Live Photos of the iPhone, so to speak).
For videos you can find the same settings in the top menu, with the addition of buttons for static shooting and tracking shooting , while in Pro mode there are also buttons to choose the format for saving photos (JPG, JPG-L or RAW) and activate or deactivate the AF auxiliary light … but we’ll get back to what you can do in “Pro” shooting mode. Now let me tell you my impressions of point-and-shoot , which is probably what most users care about the most.
After trying the device a few days and having taken several photos and videos for it, I can say that the point and shoot ensures excellent results in almost all scenarios and that the results obtained do not disfigure in the presence of noble top of the range of the competition , which also cost moreover. Then there is no comparison with the previous generation Huawei models that I had the opportunity to try, which still ensure excellent shots and excellent videos, but not at the levels of this Mate 50 Pro.
But let’s get to one of the real flagships of the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro: the 10-stop variable aperture which is managed automatically (with adjustments on f / 1.4, f / 2.0, f / 2.8 or f / 4.0) based on to lighting conditions, type of scene to be framed and other parameters, but which can be precisely controlled via the Pro mode of the Camera app.
In Pro mode, in fact, by pressing the A button displayed below it is possible to manually choose between 10 aperture levels ranging from f / 1.4 to f / 4.0 and therefore also have a meticulous control over the depth of field (the higher the f, therefore the smaller the aperture, the greater the depth of field).
Also from the menu at the bottom of the Pro mode it is possible to adjust ISO , focus and much more: photography enthusiasts will surely have bread for their teeth by being able to super-precisely adjust every shooting parameter!
( Click here to see the original photo )
From my tests, in which I mainly used the “point and shoot”, I can confirm that the automatic management of the aperture on 10 levels works very well : during the day the photos are almost always taken with an aperture of about f / 2 and they are vivid and detailed in the right way; at night and in portraits, a wider aperture (f / 1.4) is used, which allows you to obtain clear shots in poorly lit areas and, in portraits, to create a nice blur effect in the background.
The f / 4 aperture seems to be often used when photographing objects at close range, for example a plate with food: in this regard, the Food shooting mode should be noted, which is activated automatically when a dish is framed. Really comfortable, as well as effective!
( Click here to see the original photo )
Excellent autofocus speed and recognition of framed subjects . To be clear, by framing a person in the foreground, Portrait mode is automatically enabled which gives a very convincing bokeh effect to the background (even in the evening, even if in well-lit scenes the results obviously seemed better) and allows you to choose between various XMAGE color styles (original; vivid, for greater contrast between light and dark areas; and bright, for greater brightness and lightened contrasts), while framing a very small object (e.g. a coin) closely activates the mode Super Macrowhich supports a zoom up to 15x, allows manual adjustment of focus and also allows you to make excellent videos up to 4k resolution at 30 fps (with live preview of the framed scene). Again, the blur effect you get in the background is excellent.
( Click here to see the original photo )
The colors of photos and videos , thanks to the 50 MP RYYB sensor with large f / 1.4 aperture that the smartphone is equipped with, seemed much more natural to me than those taken by previous models.
Likewise, the promise of sharp low-light shots in point and shoot is very well kept ; activating the Night mode , then, you have the opportunity to obtain even better results, with the possibility, moreover, to manually adjust the ISO (from 100 to 1,600) and the shutter speed (from 1/4 to 32). Here, too, the 50 MP sensor, combined with the XD Fusion Pro engine, does its duty at its best.
( Click here to see the original photo )
( Click here to see the original photo )
As for the videos , the results are also very good here . Even with less than exceptional lighting conditions, the quality seemed very good to me, although perhaps not at the level of that of the photos. Stabilization is good, although perhaps it could be better in particularly busy situations. Good zoom, although clearly when the light is poor you start to notice the pixels .
( Click here to see the original video example )
The front camera is also really good , even if in this case the precision and usefulness of the 3D face recognition sensor should be emphasized more than the real photographic potential (in my opinion good but not better than those of other devices in the category).
( Click here to see the original photo )
Software and performance: HMS and AppGallery at the top!
Now I would like to talk to you about my user experience related to the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro software , which comes with the EMUI 13 operating system and with the entire ecosystem of Huawei services and apps, or with the Huawei Mobile Services (often abbreviated to HMS ), and its app and game store, HUAWEI AppGallery , constantly expanding with the addition of new apps.
The software has an extremely accurate and pleasant interface ; it also supports a wide range of gestures that make navigating the device menus very comfortable. The initial configuration takes a few minutes and guides the user step-by-step in securing the device by creating an unlock PIN and configuring the fingerprint and / or face recognition (the fingerprint sensor is located under the screen, at the bottom, and is both comfortable to reach and precise in unlocking; the 3D face recognition even better, I never seemed to miss a beat), therefore it requires the addition or creation of a HUAWEI ID account(which allows you to identify yourself in Huawei services and access, among other things, data backups on the HUAWEI Mobile Cloud , the synchronization of information between various devices and the Find device function); finally some of the main EMUI gestures and functions are illustrated and you are invited to download some of the most popular apps on the AppGallery . The procedure also gives you the option to move data from another device or restore backups from the cloud .
The power of the Qualcomm SM8475 Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 4G Octa-Core chip , combined with the 8GB of RAM and the high refresh rate of the screen (120 Hz) , make navigation in the menus super-smooth and almost instant the start of any app. No problem even in multitasking : the passage from one application to another occurs very quickly and refreshes are quite rare (then clearly it depends on what type of app you use simultaneously and their “weight” on the memory); excellent then the Smart Multi-Window function that allows you to keep an app superimposed on the screen and move it to a corner simply by pressing the appropriate button in the multitasking menu.
The storage is 256GB of UFS 3.1 type , therefore enough to install several apps and shoot a good number of quality photos and videos, perhaps relying on cloud storage services; there is microSD support. To underline, then, the functions related to the search for duplicate files and to the compression of the apps , available in the HUAWEI Optimizer app installed “as standard” on the device, which allow you to recover a lot of space in a few taps. In the same app there are also functions to filter malicious calls , optimize the battery , remove malware , delete useless filesfrom memory and more.
That said, it seems right to me to focus on what really distinguishes this device from many others on the market: the Huawei ecosystem . As I said before, the HMS ecosystem was introduced with the launch of the Huawei Mate 30 line products and includes many apps, services and interaction functions between various devices designed to simplify and improve users’ lives. Just think of the Multi-Screen Collaboration , based on the concept of HUAWEI Super Device , which allows you to view the smartphone screen on a Huawei tablet or laptop (eg HUAWEI MatePad 10.4 or HUAWEI MateBook 16s ) and control it via the latter.
The Huawei ecosystem also includes numerous apps such as HUAWEI Phone Clone , with which it is possible to transfer data (including photos, videos, contacts and messages) wirelessly from one phone to another in a few seconds; HUAWEI Assistant , which allows you to view news and other useful information based on your interests by swiping from left to right on the home screen; HUAWEI Browser , which allows you to browse online quickly and with maximum privacy; HUAWEI Video and HUAWEI Music , which provide access to high quality movies, TV series, documentaries and music; HUAWEI Themes, which allows you to customize the appearance of your device in an original way with many ready-to-use packages; HUAWEI SuperHub , which allows you to share images, texts and files between multiple apps by dragging them into a sort of virtual “drawer” to always have at hand, and much more.
HUAWEI AppGallery deserves a separate chapter , the app and game store that replaces the Google Play Store on the most recent Huawei devices and which, in addition to hosting an increasing number of applications, offers exclusive content, sweepstakes, prizes and rewards of various kinds.
As already pointed out before, the number of apps on the AppGallery is very rich and constantly expanding. To give you some practical examples, in the context of finance apps we find names such as Revolut , Intesa Sanpaolo , HUAWEI Wallet and the HUAWEI Pay payment service . With Huawei’s wallet and contactless payment system, it is possible to save payment cards and loyalty cards on the smartphone and use them in all businesses that support contactless payments in an extremely convenient and, above all, secure way. More info here .
Furthermore, users with an Intesa Sanpaolo account who will activate their PagoBANCOMAT card for the HUAWEI Pay service by 30 November 2022 will receive an Amazon voucher worth 5 euros .
As for personal entertainment, we find travel booking apps like Booking.com and SkyScanner , entertainment apps like Mediaset Infinity , RaiPlay and NOW , and games like Might & Magic: Era of Chaos and Dragon Trail . The catalog of fitness and health apps is also rich with Adidas Running , Buddyfit , Melarossa and the Komoot integration on Huawei Health. Petal Maps , Huawei’s navigation app, also fully functional in Italy, should also be underlined .
What about apps that aren’t on the AppGallery yet? This is where Petal Search comes into play : the HUAWEI home search engine that allows you to find apps from the AppGallery and other secure stores (indicating the source precisely), thus allowing them to be downloaded and installed in just a few taps. I told you more about it in my dedicated tutorial . For further information you can consult my tutorials on HMS and on HUAWEI AppGallery .
For the rest, I would also like to point out the excellent features implemented by Huawei on the privacy front : by going to the Privacy section of the settings it is in fact possible to access a control center dedicated to privacy from which to manage access permissions , hide private information in the images , access a private space to store sensitive data, adjust ad preferences and much more.
Connectivity, autonomy and charging
HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is a top-of-the-range smartphone also in terms of connectivity , autonomy and charging .
We are talking about a device compatible with the latest generation 4G networks, Wi-Fi 6 , Bluetooth 5.2 (for a faster and more stable connection with headphones, speakers, controllers and other accessories), NFC and GPS . 5G is missing, which is a pity, but obviously for many it might not be a big gap given the coverage, not yet very extensive, of this network in Italy, as well as the related costs (both in economic and energy terms).
To animate the phone there is a 4,700 mAh battery that ensures a very good degree of autonomy (I arrived without problems in the evening with even 20-30% of residual charge and a fairly important use of social networks, emails and use of videos and music) and supports fast charging . Charging takes place via the USB-C 3.1 port and, with the 66W HUAWEI SuperCharge charger supplied in the sales package, it charges from 1 to 50% in about 15 minutes ; full charging takes about 40 minutes. Also of note is the support for wireless charging , also very fast, from 50W.
On the software side, there is a convenient emergency mode that allows you to extend the “life” of the phone when it is at 1% charge by increasing the standby time by about 3 hours or allowing you to make up to 12 minutes of phone calls. emergency or send 12 messages.
Net of this, by going to the Settings> Battery menu you can find detailed information and graphs on consumption (with the list of apps that consume the most energy), options to activate the energy saving mode or, vice versa, that of maximum performance , adjust auto – start apps and much more.
Final evaluations
At this point of the review, I just have to take stock of what I have had the opportunity to experience in these past days in the company of HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro and tell you my final evaluations on this smartphone.
Well, as a photography enthusiast (I do not consider myself a professional at all, but I love taking beautiful photos and videos and having control over the shooting parameters) I can only promote this phone and its excellent photographic sector . Nothing to say also regarding the general performance of the device and those of the battery, which ensures a really excellent degree of autonomy (then fast charging is really super fast!). The display is very good , which can be seen well even in direct sunlight and allows you to perfectly appreciate the excellent shots and videos made; top fluidity!
5G is missing , which on a device of this range is a great pity, although it does not consider it fundamental at the present time, and then – needless to hide it – the absence of Google services still involves some small limitations on the software side. However, I must admit that the work done by Huawei on AppGallery and HMS is excellent : I have followed this new ecosystem of apps and services since its inception, and I can say that today it has grown a lot and manages to cover the needs of the vast majority of companies without problems. users . For everything else, then, there is Petal Search !
Some might also complain about the lack of a headphone jack , but smartphones that integrate it are now increasingly rare, then with support for the latest Bluetooth standards and the availability of excellent wireless earphones such as those produced by Huawei itself , the problem according to me does not exist. Staying on the audio theme , I highlight the excellent stereo speaker system of the smartphone and the very good quality of the sound during calls (signal reception is also good, but clearly that also depends on the operator and the area in which you are located).
As for the price , HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is offered at figures absolutely in line with the market and its real value and, indeed, considering its excellent photographic qualities it does not look bad in the presence of much more expensive competing terminals.
Therefore, I would like to recommend it to those who are looking for a top-level camera phone but who do not want to exceed certain spending thresholds, even more so if they already have other Huawei devices, for example a tablet such as HUAWEI MatePad Pro 11 or a notebook . such as HUAWEI MateBook 16s , to make the most of the Huawei ecosystem and the many synchronization, sharing and interoperability functions offered by the latter.
Availability and prices
HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is available on the Huawei Store at a price of € 1,199.90 in Black (already available) and Silver (pending marketing updates). There you will also find all the specifications of the device and other useful information.
From November 9th to 17th, 2022 you will be able to get HUAWEI FreeBuds Pro 2, 6 months of warranty of screen protection and 200GB of Cloud space.
Delivery is free within 1-2 business days and there is also the option of paying in three installments without interest with the Klarna function. In case you are not satisfied with the purchase, you can manage the return of the product free of charge within 14 days of purchase.
