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Huawei ships record 200 million phones in 2018 despite controversies
Huawei's 2018 was tumultuous, to put it mildly, but the company has at least a few reasons to brag. The Chinese mobile giant has revealed that it shipped over 200 million smartphones in the year, setting a new record (it 'only' moved 153 million phones in 2017). It won't surprise you as to why Huawei fared so well, though. Simply put, it had a string of hits throughout the year -- and flagships played only a partial role.
Huawei in 2018: Smartphone excellence and strained relations
Huawei has become one of the most recognizable consumer-tech brands in the world in a relatively short period of time. It's among several Chinese companies that reaped the rewards of an explosion in smartphone sales in its home nation, taking that momentum and branching out internationally. Still, Huawei's felt sort of like the New Balance of the smartphone world -- a tier-two brand that isn't quite as cool as Adidas (Samsung) or as desirable as Nike (Apple). But in 2018, something changed.
The iPhone Xs vs. the competition: It's all about the cameras
It's time for a new flagship iPhone, and while the "s" in its name usually means no drastic changes on the outside, there are quite a few souped-up features in the Xs worth noting, like the camera's adjustable depth of field and smart HDR. But the competition continues to be heated, with phones like the Galaxy S9 and the notched G7 ThinQ boasting their own enhanced shooters and Snapdragon 845 chips. We've lined up all these devices in the table below so you can get an idea of how their specs contend, and we even threw in Huawei's P20 Pro with its stellar tri-lens rig. It's one of our favorite phones from this year, even if you can't officially buy it here in the US. What we can't do is compare the iPhone XS to the upcoming Pixel 3 -- for that you'll have to wait until Google's event next month. So stay tuned for that as well as our full reviews of Apple's new handsets.
Huawei was caught cheating on phone benchmarks (updated)
You'd think smartphone manufacturers would have learned their lesson after being caught cheating multiple times, but that's apparently not the case. UL Benchmarks (aka the Futuremark team) has delisted Huawei's P20 Pro, P20, Nova 3 and Honor Play from 3DMark's charts after internal testing and an AnandTech exposé showed the devices ramping up performance whenever they detected the public versions of benchmarking apps. These were not subtle differences, either, with results up to 47 percent higher than they were with private test variants Huawei couldn't catch.
Huawei's new P20 Pro color options add some sophistication
The P20 Pro is arguably the best camera phone out there. However, the main color option you'll find in (non-US) stores and websites is the divisive purple-blue-pink oil-slick effect. Eye-catching? Yes. For everyone? Less so. Alongside all the news of high-end mobile chips and far too familiar-looking smart speakers, the company revealed a selection of new options. We think the leather-backed black and brown P20 Pro models are pretty darn slick, upgrading the phone from anonymous big smartphone to classy hardware.
The rise, fall and return of the smartphone megapixel race
Sony recently unveiled a smartphone camera sensor with the highest resolution yet, a jaw-dropping 48 megapixels. That's more than the resolution of its $3,000, 42.4-megapixel A7R III mirrorless camera, which has a sensor eight times larger. It sounds great, but you might have forgotten that Nokia's 808 PureView smartphone, with a 41-megapixel camera, was released way, way back in 2012. Why didn't modern smartphone cameras follow Nokia's lead? As Apple has demonstrated over the years, from the iPhone 4s and forward, you get more benefits with other features, like dual cameras and sensors with bigger, more light-sensitive pixels. Those deliver better low-light shooting, more bokeh, faster speeds, zoom capabilities and improved video. However, Sony now believes you can have all that and high resolutions, too. Its Quad Bayer tech, reportedly used in Huawei's P20 Pro camera, might help big-number megapixels make a comeback -- and this time, they'll be far more useful.
Two-tone smartphones are the new rose gold
It's been a relatively mundane first half of the year as far as smartphone launches go. If the infamous notch was the defining trend of 2017, then we haven't yet found what the 2018 equivalent might be. There's little separating recent flagships, as they all possess the latest components and comparable features. Those that do stand out are the ones that offer something different in the looks department. Translucent backs that show off internal hardware are back in fashion, and metallic multi-tone finishes (akin to flashy supercar paint jobs) are suddenly becoming de rigueur. So, is 2018 going to be a year where style is more distinguishing than substance?
Huawei puts giant ravens around the UK because that's not creepy at all
If an eight-foot tall raven suddenly appeared nearby, you'd probably be left wondering just how many minutes you have left until the end times arrive. But Huawei is hoping UK residents have a slightly more positive reaction. To promote its P20 Pro smartphone, the company has manufactured a number of giant ravens that it will place in cities throughout the UK this weekend and Huawei says it's doing this because its research shows Brits want to get closer to wildlife.
Huawei P20 Pro review: The best phone you'll never buy
For the past few months, Huawei has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons — the US government warned against buying the company's phones, which led to the breakdown of near-final deals with AT&T and Verizon. Then Best Buy, one of its few US retail partners, backed away too. We're not sure if the concerns hold any weight, but one thing is clear: It sucks to be Huawei right now. And in the midst of that turmoil, Huawei revealed its new P20 Pro, a remarkably well-built device with a triple camera system and loads of style. I doubt that would ever win over a Sinophobic bureaucrat though, so there's a strong chance no one in the US will ever be able to walk into a store and buy one. That's a shame because after using it as my daily driver for a while, I'm convinced it's one of Huawei's all-time best, and one of the year's great Android phones.
Huawei P20 Pro teardown sheds light on its three cameras
Take a look at the P20 Pro and there's a good chance you'll wonder how Huawei managed to stuff three rear cameras into a phone roughly the same size as its two-cam rivals. Thankfully, it's no longer much of a mystery. The DIY repair crew at iFixit has torn down the P20 Pro to explain how Huawei pulled off the design. The primary, monochrome and telephoto cameras are all stuffed into a compact module that's closely connected to a similarly space-efficient mainboard -- in fact, it looks like there was plenty of room for the 4,000mAh battery and speakers (though there's no headphone jack, alas).
Huawei's P20 Pro rivals the best smartphone cameras out there
We're a skeptical bunch at Engadget, and when Huawei briefed us on its P20 Pro smartphone, listing an endless torrent of specifications and dubbing its Leica Triple Camera system "the most advanced camera on a phone yet," we collectively rolled our eyes. Forty-megapixel camera sensor? I've heard that one before, Huawei. It was only once I was able to test the P20 Pro away from briefing rooms and technical demos (spending a day shooting around a rain-soaked Paris) that the phone started to win me over -- and others. If you like the idea of an accomplished 5x zoom function, and the potential for gorgeous nighttime photography, you have to consider Huawei's latest phones.
Huawei P20 Pro hands-on: Camera tricks and a supercar finish
Huawei may be best known for US retailers not stocking its wares, but regardless, the company continues to ramp up its flagship smartphones. In the past few years, phones like the P9 made a lot of us stand up and take notice, thanks to classy design touches and Huawei's own imaging tricks. Its next phones, the P20 and P20 Pro, take that latter part even further as the company tries to spar with Samsung and the rest with a tapestry of AI skills and so very many camera sensors. There's so much going on when it comes to imaging (both in terms of hardware and software) that, at least during my short time with both phones, I couldn't test out all the modes and use cases. I'll say this, though: Huawei is taking its smartphone cameras very seriously.
Watch the Huawei P20 reveal right here!
Want to watch the notch-screened Huawei P20 debut as it happens? We've got you covered. The smartphone maker will unveil its new handset with an iPhone-X-like divot in the top of its display tomorrow at 10 AM Eastern, live on YouTube and you can catch all the action right here. This should be especially useful if you've got an office pool dedicated to how big the smartphone's camera sensor is. Rumors have the P20 Pro pegged for a 40-megapixel rear shooter, potentially with three lenses. Regardless, there's less than 24 hours until the truth leaks out.
Huawei's P20 Pro reportedly packs a 40MP camera
Do you still have a hole in your heart where Nokia's camera-centric Lumia 1020 used to be? It might be filled very shortly. WinFuture sources have claimed that Huawei's upcoming P20 Pro will include an ultra-high resolution 40-megapixel rear camera in addition to an 8MP telephoto shooter and a 20MP black-and-white sensor. It's not certain just what this extreme sensor will do (besides providing extremely detailed images), but the Lumia 1020 used its 41MP sensor to offer zoomed-in photos and videos without sacrificing too much detail.
Huawei's notch-infused P20 phone lineup leaks out
If there was any doubt that Huawei was about to embrace iPhone X-style notches in a big way, Evan Blass just removed it. The veteran leaker has posted press images of the entire P20 lineup (Lite, regular and Pro), and all three have that distinctive cutout for the front camera. The pictures also illustrate some of the differences between models, most notably the Pro (above) -- it'll undoubtedly be the stand-out model.
