HUAWEI Mate RS Porsche Design: Everything you want at triple the price

You might think that the HUAWEI P20 Pro is the nicest phone that HUAWEI announced, but you may change your mind after taking a look at the HUAWEI Mate RS. With its sleek looks, forward-thinking features, and massive price tag, the Porsche Design HUAWEI Mate RS version is certain to turn a lot of heads.

The big to-do of the P20 Pro is the fact that it has three cameras. Well, guess what? The Mate RS has three cameras, too; the exact same setup in fact. It also has an under-glass fingerprint sensor, the option for 512GB of storage (the first of its kind), and wireless charging — three features that the P20 Pro doesn’t have. In fact, the Mate RS is essentially a P20 Pro, but better.

That sleek Porsche Design feel

First, let’s talk about the Porsche Design moniker of the device. The Porsche branding is all over the phone, just like on the previous HUAWEI-Porsche collaboration, the Porsche Design HUAWEI Mate 10.

The Porsche Design logo adorns the back, and the words “Porsche Design” are printed not-too-subtly on the front. But hey, just like with fancy cars, you want everyone to know what brand your flaunting, right?

The phone comes in a pretty cherry red and also a more traditional black, both of which were chosen by Porsche’s fussy design team.

The Porsche Design HUAWEI Mate 10 got some scathing reviews (including here at Android Authority) mostly because it was simply a HUAWEI Mate 10 Pro with a little more storage, a new coat of paint, and a crazy-high price tag. HUAWEI must have taken those reviews to heart, because the Porsche Design HUAWEI Mate RS (which stands for “racing sport,” for whatever reason) is not just a fancy sibling to the HUAWEI P20 Plus. There are features in this phone that even that new flagship device doesn’t have.

That being said, the devices are incredibly similar. The specs are listed in a table below, but the display, processor, camera setup, and battery size are all the same. However, you will notice that the Mate RS doesn’t have the P20 Pro’s notch. And there are some other differences, too.

Is the HUAWEI Mate RS Porsche Design better than the P20 Pro?

First up is the under-glass fingerprint sensor, probably the most talked-about new feature appearing in modern smartphones. Up until this device, Vivo was the only company with an under-glass fingerprint sensor phone for sale. But now, this Mate RS joins the fold by giving you the option to use the hardware sensor on the back or the under-glass sensor on the front. You can navigate to the device’s settings to choose which you’d like to use. But keep in mind: a fingerprint that’s set up with the back sensor can’t be used on the front, and vice versa.

Next up, we have the option for a whopping 512GB of built-in storage. The Porsche Design HUAWEI Mate RS is now the first phone to hit the market with that much storage as an option. You’ll pay a hefty premium for that much storage (more on that in a minute), but the fact that that’s even an option is incredible.

Finally, the phone also features wireless charging. However, we haven’t had a chance to test it out yet, so we’re not sure how effective it is or what kind of charging docks are supported.

HUAWEI Mate RS Porsche Design specs

Price – Hopefully you’ve been saving up

Now, the bad news: this phone is really, really expensive. Sure, it may not be as much as a new Porsche, but it’s up there. The version with 256GB of storage (the lowest amount the device offers) will set you back €1,695 (~$2,103), and the version with 512GB of storage goes for a whopping €2,095 (~$2,599). That’s a lot of cash to have the most advanced smartphone available today.

If you are like us and can’t afford to blow two months’ rent on a new smartphone, you’re probably pretty sad right now. But hey, today’s superphone is tomorrow’s normal phone. The very fact that a phone exists on the market with three cameras, an under-glass fingerprint sensor, 512GB of storage, and wireless charging, all in one, means that those features are coming soon to a more affordable device.

Want to learn more about the not-so-expensive HUAWEI P20? Find out more below:

• HUAWEI P20 Pro hands on: Holding nothing back
• Exclusive: An afternoon with the HUAWEI P20 Pro camera
• HUAWEI P20 Pro: World’s first triple camera explained
• HUAWEI P20 and P20 Pro: Price, availability, and release date
• HUAWEI P20, P20 Pro, and Porsche Design Mate RS specs: Triple cameras and notched displays
• HUAWEI P20 color comparison: Buy the twilight one