Huawei P20 Pro. Smartphone Overview

Camera features

Huawei P20 Pro is an absolutely unusual smartphone, which, first of all, surprises with its appearance, especially if you consider the option in the Twilight colors, and further, at each stage of acquaintance, it affects more and more. This is a high-quality and well-tuned OLED display, which acts as a viewfinder or monitor for processing images, and excellent indicators of autonomy, and, of course, a triple camera unit. All this, except perhaps the colors, one way or another affects the work with a smartphone as a camera. Yes, and in fact it is difficult to say what is before us: a camera phone or a compact camera with great communication capabilities.

In the afternoon, in good light conditions, the smartphone demonstrates its best qualities: high detail, the right choice of white balance and natural color reproduction. It is important to note here that we took most of the photos at a resolution of 10 megapixels (3648 by 2736 pixels), only occasionally switching to a full resolution of 40 megapixels.

But we will talk about this a little later, the more we decided to check such a high resolution by comparing the Huawei P20 Pro with one legendary smartphone.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/4000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/3279 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/2155 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/1953 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Why 10 megapixels? The fact is that all additional functions, primarily optical and hybrid zooms, work in this resolution. Interestingly, Huawei doesn’t shoot in 12 MP resolution, which is not usual for many, but in 10. Most likely, this is due to both five-fold hybrid zoom and the Huawei AIS stabilization system, which includes both optical and electronic stabilization, working together and supported by artificial intelligence.

Normal shot

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 320, F1.8, 1/33 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 320, F2.4, 1/33 s, 83.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 320, F2.4, 1/25 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 400, F2.4, 1/33 s, 270.0 mm equiv.

It is worth saying that the most interesting potential of the P20 Pro is revealed when using a five-fold hybrid zoom. Three-time optical zoom works more or less clearly, its high quality is guaranteed using a separate zoom lens with its own sensor. Fivefold hybrid zoom works the same way as in the Mate line and last year's P10 and P10 Plus. But there was available only two-fold hybrid zoom, while here you can zoom in five times with virtually no loss of quality. At least you don’t expect this from a smartphone.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/124 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/560 s, 83.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/2336 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/2551 s, 83.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/1852 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

We fully appreciated the capabilities of three-time optical zoom (which, by the way, also works in portrait mode) and five-time hybrid zoom when visiting the zoo. The approximation works fine, and in some cases, you can substitute the smartphone’s camera directly to the hole in the grid or grille: this will definitely not work with the camera.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/305 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/564 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/930 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/569 s, 83.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/120 s, 83.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/224 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

Another feature of the Leica Triple Camera - tapes - is still here. You can choose normal, bright or faded: color correction on the fly. We liked sometimes switching to a bright film - the colors become more vibrant, and the image is much more contrast.

Ordinary film

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/2571 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Bright film

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/2110 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Faded film

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/2041 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

The HDR (wide dynamic range) function also remains: it saves when you shoot in bright backlight. But in this case it is more interesting to use the "Night" mode. We will talk more about him a little later. In the afternoon, photos in this mode look very impressive. On the one hand, high contrast and too high clarity, on the other hand, both light and dark places receive a more or less even exposure.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 100, F1.8, -1294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, -1294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Recall that the smartphone has a 20-megapixel camera with a monochrome sensor. Interestingly, in monochrome mode, the following sub-items appeared: Pros (shooting with manual settings), Aperture (for photos with blurring the background) and Portrait. The quality of the pictures is at a height, and if you add a filter with grain in the built-in editor, you can’t tell it at all from the monochrome Leica.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.6, 1/1267 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.6, 1/3175 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.6, 1/15152 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Portrait mode works fine. You can configure “Portrait Lighting” (various emulations of light). Unlike competitors, by the way, there is an opportunity, after the picture is taken, to change the position of the light source. Also, the smartphone has a decoration effect, which is configured on a 10-point scale, and on / off background blur.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/111 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 80, F1.8, 1/50 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 64, F1.8, 1/50 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 125, F1.8, 1/50 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

By the way, in the "Portrait" mode, you can shoot with a wide-angle camera, and with a triple optical zoom. Thus, portraits with an equivalent focal length of 27 mm and 81 or 83 mm can be obtained (automation selects a specific focal length in a strange way). The latter is extremely close to the favorite focal length of most portrait photographers - 85 mm.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/2105 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F2.4, 1/1290 s, 81.0 mm equiv.

In the “Aperture” mode, you can blur the background by emulating an aperture value from 0.95 to 16. Later in the gallery, you can select the focus point and adjust the effect.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F0.95, 1/576 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F0.95, 1/416 s, 81.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F0.95, 1/824 s, 81.0 mm equiv.

And of course, one can not say again about artificial intelligence. This function is included in the main menu and recognizes more than 500 scenarios in 19 categories, including Sky, Greens, Flowers, Food, Cats and Dogs and others. Everything works very simply: you point the smartphone at the subject, the category name appears in the bottom interface, and the camera settings instantly change to the best according to the version of artificial intelligence. If the script is not recognized correctly, then you can cancel it by clicking on the cross. Interestingly, when AI is turned on, if you point it at a person, the smartphone will switch to portrait mode.

Category "Sky"

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/4405 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Category "Cats"

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 400, F1.8, 1/50 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

Category "Cats"

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 1000, F4, 1/33 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

And of course, there is a panoramic mode. It works very well: gluing is invisible, problems with light are confidently resolved, high detail and almost complete absence of geometric distortions.

CLT-L29 Installation:

Let's move on to photographs taken in rooms with artificial lighting. Huawei P20 Pro easily copes with this scenario: the correct color reproduction, excellent autofocus and the highest detail images. No complaints!

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 200, F1.8, 1/900 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 500, F1.8, 1/25 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 400, F1.8, 1/33 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 100, F1.8, 1/100 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 100, F4, 1/50 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 200, F1.8, -1294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 160, F1.8, 1/50 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

And finally, the most difficult scenario for a smartphone is the twilight zone and shooting in the dark. Here, Huawei does an excellent job, because, in addition to a camera with a large sensor by the standards of modern devices and a fast lens, it has excellent processing algorithms, a record ISO (up to 102400) and a special “Night” mode, which we mentioned earlier.

Look at the ISO value. The photo was taken automatically in a special demo zone of Huawei

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 65535, F1.8, 1/4 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

In automatic mode, the smartphone’s camera is able to increase the ISO value to 102400 to reduce noise. It can also increase shutter speed. In the dark, image stabilization comes first, which works fine in photo mode. Of course, it becomes more difficult to shoot with a zoom in the dark: the lack of light affects the quality of pictures as well. However, it is possible to get a decent shot with zoom, both with three times and with five times.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 500, F1.8, 1/20 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/30 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 400, F1.8, 1/25 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 200, F1.8, 1/33 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 250, F2.4, 1/33 s, 83.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 160, F2.4, 1/33 s, 135.0 mm equiv.

But a real symphony of technology can be felt when you shoot in the "Night" mode. This story program is not the first year present in Huawei smartphones, but for the first time it strikes so much. This is because it is absolutely realistic to get a sharp and high-quality shot when shooting handheld at a shutter speed of 4-5 seconds. The “brains” of the smartphone are doing some unimaginable amount of work, but the result is simply amazing. Of course, you need to keep the smartphone more or less even, but jitter, gusts of wind or other external factors are unlikely to affect the quality of the pictures.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 200, F1.8, -1294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 1000, F1.8, -294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 640, F1.8, -294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 1250, F1.8, -294967296/1000000000 s, 27.0 mm equiv.

There Huawei P20 Pro and manual mode, and the ability to shoot in RAW format. It is worth noting that in RAW you get “raw” files in a resolution of 40 megapixels (7296 by 5472 pixels), but the size and resolution of JPEG will be the same as those selected in the menu. That is, you can get 10-megapixel JPEG and 40-megapixel RAW. The weight of the latter is about 80 MB. An important detail: when shooting in RAW, triple and fivex zoom are not available. As soon as the RAW tick is removed and the resolution of 10 megapixels is selected, you can again zoom in and out. The settings are standard: Metering, ISO (with an upper threshold of 3200), shutter speed, exposure compensation, focus and white balance. Local RAW files last pretty well. You can count on one and even, if you really need, two steps of exposure in both directions. Interestingly, there is a slight vignetting, which is easily eliminated when developing in the editor.

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 73, F1.8, 1/100 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/1800 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/1400 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/2500 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Settings: ISO 100, F1.8, 1/50 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 151, F1.8, 1/35 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 293, F1.8, 1/35 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 199, F1.8, 1/50 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

CLT-L29 Installations: ISO 50, F1.8, 1/5300 s, 4.0 mm equiv.Download RAW

If you think that Huawei P20 Pro stopped at this, then we are in a hurry to dissuade. Another new feature is super slow motion video recording at 960 frames per second. This is a new mode for Huawei, but the market is already familiar with this feature thanks to the flagship Sony Xperia and Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 +. The scenario here is the same: in HD-quality, 0.194 seconds are recorded, which turn into 6 seconds. The only difference is that here you can’t enable video recording and periodically record super slow motion chunks. In the case of Huawei P20 Pro, you need to click on one button and you will get a 10-second file: 2 seconds at the beginning and the end - normal video and 6 seconds inside - slow motion. The recommendation, as always, is simple - to remove the looped action; then there is no risk to

Kristi Hale

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Huawei P20 Pro. Smartphone Overview

Camera features

Kristi Hale

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