HUAWEI Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro vs the competition

We’re right in the middle of a wave of major smartphone releases and the HUAWEI Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro are next on the bill. They join the new Google Pixel 3 and 3 XL, LG V40 ThinQ, and Samsung Galaxy Note 9 as big handsets with big price tags vying for your attention.

So which is the best that money can buy, and which, if any, of these phones is in contention for the best smartphone of the year?

Don’t miss: HUAWEI Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro hands-on: Cameras, cubed

The first 7nm Android phones

HUAWEI is laying down the performance gauntlet with the Mate 20 series as the first company to offer Android users the performance and energy benefits of a 7nm chipset. Inside the Kirin 980, we find a big-medium-little CPU combination, with four powerhouse Cortex-A76 and four efficient Cortex-A55 cores that should give the chip a single thread and sustained performance benefit over both the Snapdragon 845 and Exynos 9810. There’s also double the NPU compute capabilities this time around, giving HUAWEI a notable lead in the “AI” and image recognition departments.

The Kirin 980 gives HUAWEI’s chip a much-needed graphics performance boost too, featuring a new 10 core Mali-G76 arrangement. HUAWEI claims that the chip edges out the Snapdragon 845’s Adreno 630 when utilizing the company’s GPU Turbo technology. The Kirin 980 is clearly competitive in this regard and should handily beat Samsung’s Exynos here, but it isn’t breaking major ground in the graphics department.

The Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro differ slightly when it comes to RAM. 6GB is the only option with the Pro model, but you can get a smaller 4GB RAM configuration inside one of the regular Mate 20 variants. It’s not a deal breaker compared to the new Google Pixel 3, but those craving super fast multi-tasking will want the 6GB model. Both Mate 20 models come with 128GB of storage, which is what we’ve come to expect from flagship smartphones. There’s a nano memory card slot for extra space too, although the Samsung Galaxy Note 9’s 512MB storage option might be a big draw for heavy media users.

Onto the display and this is where we can clearly begin to see a wider gap between the two Mate 20 models and some other flagship phones. The standard Mate 20 opts for an RGBW LCD panel, similar to that inside the LG G7, which offers an eye-watering 820 nites of peak brightness. There’s a familiar FHD+ resolution here and a panel size that feels truly huge even stacked up next to the Galaxy Note 9 and LG V40. The display appears crisp enough, but the pixel density is definitely lower than other flagship phablets.

The HUAWEI Mate 20 Pro’s curved OLED display makes the phone feel much thinner and easier to hold. There’s also a jump up to a QHD+ 3,120 x 1,400 resolution and super-wide 19.5:9 aspect ratio — a match for the LG V40. Resolution wise, the Pro model is more typical of what we’ve come to expect from flagship smartphones. Although dropping the rendering resolution down to save on battery life is now so common that it’s not necessarily a major differentiator.

The battery ties these bleeding edge specs together and HUAWEI has crammed large 4,000 (Mate 20) and 4,200mAh (Mate 20 Pro) units into these handsets. That’s comparable to the Note 9’s 4,000mAh cell and makes the Pixel 3 XL’s and LG V40’s cells look puny by comparison. All day battery life shouldn’t be a problem for even the heaviest users. HUAWEI even expects that you’ll have enough juice spare to charge up other people’s phones via its reverse wireless charging technology.

The triple camera returns

The HUAWEI P20 Pro introduced the triple camera to the smartphone world and idea returns with the Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro, albeit with a few variations. The only other triple camera phone to launch so far is the LG V40, while Google remains adamant that a single camera is the way to go with its new Pixel 3.

Huawei’s combination consists of the main sensor, telephoto lens, and a wide angle lens, having dropped the monochrome sensor from previous designs. This is a very similar setup to the LG V40, offering consumers a wide range of shooting options to capture the perfect picture.

The Mate 20 Pro retains the impressive 40MP shooter from the P20 Pro, alongside a 3x telephoto lens that extends zoom capabilities further than its competitors. The regular Mate 20 loses the 40MP sensor and instead uses two 16MP and 12MP wide angle lenses. The 8MP telephoto lens is also dropped back to just a 2x zoom. You’ll also find a 2x telephoto lens inside the Galaxy Note 9 and LG V40, making it pretty par for the course these days.

We’ll render a verdict on quality after some more hands-on time with the phones. Even so, it’s clear that the Mate 20 series and the LG V40 are the most flexible shooters on the market right now.

Enough extras to justify the price tag

My biggest complaint about previous HUAWEI flagships, like the P20 Pro, has been that they lack the extras we’ve come to expect at these high price points. The Mate 20 Pro addresses this complaint and then some, although the standard Mate 20 still feels a little lackluster here.

The Mate 20 Pro boasts an IP67 rating, Qi wireless charging with a reverse charging option, 3D infrared facial recognition security, and a lightning-fast fast in-display fingerprint scanner. That’s more than a match for what you’ll find in the Pixel 3, LG V40, and even the Galaxy Note 9.

The regular Mate 20 has to make do with an IP57 rating for basic splash-proofing. It also misses out on the in-display fingerprint scanner, and wireless charging capabilities. That’s a bit of a let-down compared with what the competition is offering at a similar price point.

On the plus side, the HUAWEI Mate 20 series ships with Android 9.0 Pie out of the box. Something that can’t be said for the latest smartphones from Samsung and LG. EMUI 9 has also been improved for faster performance, reduced settings bloat, and some handy new health features.

The HUAWEI Mate 20 range looks pretty solid, but the Pro variant, with all of its bells and whistles, is by far and away the more appealing flagship model. Compared to its competitors, the Mate 20 Pro has a lot of unique selling points — including its 7nm processor, in-display fingerprint scanner, and that cool reverse wireless charging idea. Not forgetting that the camera package is bound to be one of the best around and Android Pie features without having to wait for an update.

Catch up on everything HUAWEI just announced:

• HUAWEI Mate 20 officially announced
• Top HUAWEI Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro features
• HUAWEI Watch GT hands-on: HUAWEI’s Galaxy Watch competitor
• HUAWEI Mate 20 and HUAWEI Mate 20 Pro price, availability, and release date
• The Mate 20 X is official: This is HUAWEI’s gaming-focused phablet