Bucket Tech: Huawei P20

So about 4 weeks ago, I dropped my phone and the screen cracked...yup, it happened to me but thankfully it still fell under the warranty period with Huawei HiCare so after filling up a quick online form, the couriers were here in no time to pick up my phone for its free screen replacement. Now, I live my life with my phone and it goes everywhere I go, what to do? Coincidentally I was due a review phone, from Huawei as well! It was a device from the P20 series, but wasn't sure which one it would be, I was hoping for the Pro but when it arrived, I saw it was the standard P20. A bit bummed, I figured it was better than nothing and I had a phone to use while mine is in for repairs so I used that as my primary phone for the past 3 weeks and as you'll find out, I was won over by the P20 in every way possible. 

DESIGN

Huawei in general make great looking devices, we've become used to their great build quality, unibody design and great feel in hand, with the P20 much is the same. Slightly bigger than the P10, finished off in a more square full metal unibody, the P20 really is a delight to hold and feel. The back had a nice chrome, mirror type paint finish in a metallic blue, with the dual lens Leica camera protruding ever so slightly, flip it over and a nice large 5.8" LCD greeted you. Now the P20 does come with full view display, meaning they make use of as much as the phones surface as possible, hence at top you will notice notch, quite like the iPhoneX.  But if this bothers you, on the device settings, you have options to black out that top section so your screen is a perfect rectangle but for me it was pretty cool. Huawei have retained the button at the bottom of the phone from the P10, which doubles as a finger print reader. The sides of the device has a sliver chrome finish and on the right side, you'll find the volume and power buttons as per the norm with their device. Below is where things are changed slightly, with the doing away of the ear phone jack and only the power USB port present. 

DURABILITY 

Now the device is IP65, dust and splash proof rated but it looks so good, I wouldn't want to put that to the test but in saying that I did pull the phone out in occasions I generally wouldn't. Like in heavy rain, while riding in a golf cart. In saying that, Huawei again offers their HiCare for this device and for them to be so confident in this regard, it shows their put their money where their mouth is when it comes to the build quality and their ratings on their devices. 

PROCESSING

The Huawei P20 comes with Android 8.1, otherwise known as Oreo and is run on a Hisilicon Kirin 970 chipset which has an Octa-core CPU, which basically translates to 8 mini CPU's, of which 4 run at 2.4GHz and the other 4 at 1.8GHz, this has an overall improved processing speed, and with an on-board capacity of 128GB plus the 4GB of RAM, there really was no issues at all with speed and performance. In fact, I even used to leave multiple applications open while using it, so things like Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp and Twitter, all of which are heavy data and battery intensive applications, along with Google Play and other background apps running and not one issue. I think the massive hard disk space plays a big part with this, and with everything being cloud base, I don't really think many will fill all 128GB so it's nice to know that it's there. 

CAMERA

Big talking point on the P20 Pro is the triple Leica Lens, on the P20, it still uses Dual Lens Leica technology but to a greater degree than the outgoing P10. The camera makes use of the AI capabilities and its able to learn in a split second what you're taking a picture off. Whether its food, a sunrise, sunset, text, beach, you name it, it has 100's of built in settings to take the perfect picture almost every time. The shutter speed has improved with the dual 12 MP camera, so that means taking quick moving pictures that won't be blurred. Video's on the camera records at 2160p@30fps and are crystal clear. The issue with the Huawei mic seems to have been sorted out as well, so when you're at a concert, you won't get heavy feedback in your videos. On front, you have a 24MP secondary camera, this makes selfies all that much more better, with is also using AI tech, to automatically detect the scene and adjust the exposure to suit. The front facing camera also doubles as a face reader to unlock the phone when you look at it, so no need for the security codes or finger print, simply look at your phone and it unlocks. 

VERDICT

As much as I was disappointed not to have received the P20 Pro, I was not disappointed at the performance of the P20. This phone is probably under rated because of the shadow cast upon it by the Pro much like the iPhone 8 is with the iPhone X but the point of the matter is, it's a really great device! And personally, I think you're scoring with this one as it is much more cheaper, as you'll be paying between R500 and R600 month on contract for the P20 versus R700+ for the P20 Pro. While the Pro might have its key features, for an everyday smart phone that does everything well with no hassle, there really is no reason to doubt the P20. 

Some pictures, taken with the Huawei P20, unedited and auto adjusted by the AI for the perfect picture. 

Bucket Tech: Huawei P20 Series SA launch

Last night saw the much anticipated local launch of Huawei's P Series smart devices, the launch focused on the P20 and the P20 Pro but another model which SA is also getting is the P20 Lite. All devices are available from today, countrywide at all mobile outlets. This is a significant feat from the Chinese mobile phone manufacturer as the devices were launched globally just last week in France. The affair was a glamorous one, with over 300 guests in attendance, all of which from different creative backgrounds and businesses, Huawei wanted to tell the nation what a great device it was bringing to our country. 

Huawei dubs this phone as the future of smartphone AI Photography, and if you look at the hardware the device has, along with it's AI capabilities, this is certainly a new benchmark for mobile cameras. As a test, Huawei gave the P20 Pro to a bunch of prolific Instagram users from all over the country, each with a particular feature to test on the device and the images that were capture were simply amazing. Many of them stated that with the P20 Pro in their pocket, they could not only capture the moment but with great detail as well. The camera on the P20 Pro is something to be admired, it is the first phone to use triple-lens technology, which was created with Leica, and is a 40MP camer that not only captures colours and details but also at a faster speed, thus minimizing the chances of blurred or shaky pictures.

"The P20 series is built on unprecedented AI advances, combining technology and art to bring to life a groundbreaking smartphone experience", says Akhram Mohamed, Marketing Director. "We are ushering in a new era of smartphone cameras that combine the very latest in smartphone technology with Leica Camera's legendary expertise, drive by artificial intelligence. Essentially, we give users the tools to achieve professional photography results with every single shot."

The P20 is not only a great device with great technology but it also looks stunning. The full view display, great unibody design that fits perfectly in the palm of your hand and the colours it's available in, just exude class and art. It also is very fashionable as Huawei went to prove by joining forces with one of SA's leading fashion designers, Gavin Rajah who showcase a range of garments which were made using inspiration from the device. Overall, the P20 Pro looks like the phone to get and if you're a photo fundi, whether it be taking selfies, pictures of your food or a professional photographer, this device is for you! 

Price on the devices which as mentioned before are available from today are as follows. 

• P20 Lite - R5,999
• P20        - R12,999
• P20 Pro - R15,499

Huawei is also offering a VIP service for their customers, giving them one free screen replacement as well as battery replacement within the first year of purchase, if done at one of their service centers, they also say that it would take just one hour. This also applies to their P10 and Mate 10 devices.  Huawei also announced its sponsorship of the new Survivor Philippines, which debuts on M-Net, on the 3rd of May at 7pm.  

Bucket Tech: Huawei P20 and P20 Pro

Paris, France yesterday played host to the international launch of Huawei's new flagship smartphones the P20 and P20 Pro. With the local launch just a week away, lets take a look at what we know about the phone from yesterday's press briefing. The much talked about aspect has to be triple lens technology which is available on the P20 Pro, again Huawei brought in the expertise from Leica to help develop this camera, giving users not only 100% true natural colour representation on the picture but with also less chance of of a blurred image thanks to the third lens. Huawei say with this new technology, when using the P20 Pro to take pics on the run, there is a minimal chance of you having to retaking due to a shaky hand or rushed capture, the camera features 3x optical zoom, 5x hybrid zoon and "best-in-class" 10x digital zoom. With the P20 still having dual-lens technology, the camera system has been updated to provide a crisper capture. Both phones can also record video in super slow motion, at 960fps. "With the Huawei P20 and P20 Pro, anyone can take professional pictures on their smartphone" - Richard Yu (Huawei Consumer CEO). Moving to the front, the device has a 24MP front facing camera, so you know selfies on this phone is going to be good. 

The overall design on the phone has changed with Huawei opting for a bezeless body, and full view screen. The P20 Pro has a 6.1 inch AMOLED display, with 6GB of RAM and a 4,000mAh battery. The chipset powering the device is the Kirin 970 processor with integrated AI features, which aids in the triple-lens camera system. The P20 boasts similar features with an extended bezel-less RGBW display and with the same chipset with AI functionality. Colour options for the device, Twilight, Pink Gold, Midnight Blue and Black is what you get to chose from. There will also be a P20 Lite version and Huawei took the opportunity yesterday to launch the Mate RS Porsche Design, both of which we will bring you more information of next week after the local launch.