2018 was one heck of a year! We got a chance to see a lot of flagships from different OEM’s. We saw a butt load of notches, a few gaming phones, new sub-brands and much more. But among all the smartphones, one particular device set the bar higher than all its competition. Yes, folks, I am talking about, none other than, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro! The phone brought to us features that we thought we would never see on a Huawei smartphone. It also carried in many of the features we loved about the P20 Pro.
On the 5th of November, Huawei launched the Mate 20 Pro in the Nepali market. 10 days later I received my review unit from Huawei. And ever since then, I have been using the phone as my daily driver. So during the time span, I have come to love the Mate 20 Pro. I would go as far as to say that it is the best flagship in the market right now. But what makes the Mate 20 Pro so good? Well, in my opinion, it is a combination of a slew of features. Among the many, here are 5 of the said features that make the Huawei Mate 20 Pro the best flagship smartphone!
Edge AMOLED Display
The first thing that will jump at you when you glance at the Huawei Mate 20 Pro is its display! The 6.39-inch Quad-HD (1440 x 3120 pixels) panel, with a pixel density of 538PPI, is absolutely gorgeous. The curved edges centered by a notch makes up for quite a combo. Not only the looks but the actual display itself is no less than marvelous. Watching movies, playing some games, heck even hopelessly scrolling through Facebook has been a wonderful experience. There is just something so sensational about sliding your finger across the curved edges. You have to experience it to get a feel for it!
Since the display is the one thing we use, more like stare at, the most, it is good that Huawei decided to pack an excellent one. And did I mention that the panel is HDR 10 compatible? Yes, all that goodness in a pocket-sized device! I absolutely love the display on the Mate 20 Pro and think it is one of its strongest suits.
In-Display Fingerprint scanner
Although it has been a while, the whole in-display fingerprint scanner is still a new concept. Especially in a country like Nepal where the innovative type smartphones don’t get launched. Even though a tech head, the concept of the in-display biometrics seems magical to me. Place your fingerprint “on the screen” and zap the phone unlocks. But there are hundreds of ways in which this can go wrong. Thankfully, Huawei’s implementation of the scanner works like a charm. Although not as fast as the traditional scanners, the in-display variant on the Mate 20 Pro is almost there.
Not only is it fast but also accurate! I had no trouble whatsoever in unlocking the phone with the scanner. Have to say that I am pretty impressed with this feature.
Reverse Wireless Charging
The whole Wireless charging has been in the picture since 2015. And, nowadays, more and more OEM’s are including this feature on their smartphones. Off course, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro packs wireless charging. But unlike any other smartphone, the phone introduced/supports reverse wireless charging. Not only can you charge you Mate 20 Pro wirelessly but also share the charge. Imagine being the cool guy in the group to share their precious phone charge with the others. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Or if you are someone like me who uses multiple devices on the go, this feature can be a lifesaver.
Just turn on reverse wireless charging from the settings and place any compatible phone on top of the Mate 20 Pro. And just like that, the compatible phone starts charging. An amazing feature that sets the Mate 20 Pro apart from the competition.
Triple-camera set up
Huawei literally pioneered the triple-camera genre with its P20 Pro. And now they are looking to improve on that with the new Mate 20 Pro. Huawei has gotten rid of the monochrome sensor in favor of an ultra-wide lens. This, in my personal opinion, is a great move on Huawei’s part.
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro now packs a f/1.8 40MP wide lens, a f/2.2 20MP ultra-wide lens, and finally a f/2.4 8MP telephoto lens. These three sensors work in conjunction to provide us with some stunning images. In good lighting condition, the Mate 20 Pro produces some mind-boggling photos with high-dynamic range, eye-popping vibrancy, and bull’s eye sharpness. Talking about the low-light performance, the phone has improved a bit from the P20 Pro. It is no doubt the best low-light performing phone available in the market right now. More detail on the cameras in our long-term review which will be coming out real soon. Stay tuned!
UI customizability
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro runs the latest EMUI 9.0 based on Android 9.0 Pie. EMUI and I have had a love-hate kind of relationship over the years. I love some aspects of the UI while I am not so happy with the others. But now with the Mate 20 Pro, Huawei has solved the one major gripe I have had with the UI. And that is UI customizability!
EMUI has always been this feature-packed workhorse. It can bust some chops and flex some muscle! But I felt that something was still missing in it. Jump to the present and Huawei has added a new theming capability to the Mate 20 Pro. It also has a theme store now! You can customize the Mate 20 Pro to your heart’s content. From the icon packs to the color scheme, you can change it all!
Among the many themes available, my favorite probably is the Dynamic Nebula. It is the theme that I am rocking right now. And man, do I love it! It is just a perfect mix of color, icon pack, and wallpaper for me. If you do get the Mate 20 Pro, definitely check this theme out!
Also Read – Huawei Mate 20 Pro: 48 hours later
And there we have it, the 5 features that, I think, makes the Huawei Mate 20 Pro the best flagship smartphone in the market right now. Besides these, there are still many features/tweaks, worth talking about, that makes the Mate 20 Pro so great. We will explore them in detail in our Long-term review which will be coming out real soon. So, stay tuned for that!
Thank you for reading! For more on the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, like our Facebook page and subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you have any questions or confusions regarding the phone, please feel free to ask them in the comments section down below. We will answer them as soon as possible.
