Huawei surely is making noise recently, both good and not really good. But, they managed to pull everything off and they are now back to normal with the US allowing them to do business with all their partners.
One thing you can’t deny with Huawei is on fire years before with their smash hit P series that focuses on photography. Proving their place in the top 3 smartphone brands and a force not to be underestimated as this company swoop a lot of brands in just half a decade. In their installment for the P30 series, they P30 Pro took the spotlight with its outrageous x50 zoom and x10 optical zoom.
While the smaller brother P30 is slightly disregarded, but this smartphone shouldn’t be ignored as the P30 packs all the features you need without the fuss. In our experience with this smartphone, we’re overall impressed why you shouldn’t be blinded by fancy features like having a curved screen, wireless charging, and even a bigger screen.
Design
The P30 is one smartphone to behold, with a smaller size of 6.1″ inches with a Full HD AMOLED Display is definitely more portable as compared to any flagship smartphone in the market today.
The P30 is light at 165g, solid with glass at the front and back with a metal frame around. Our color is very gorgeous aurora, more than a gradient color of blue and blue-green, it also has a reflective finish that mimics water that is simply mesmerizing.
At the front is a 6.1″ FHD display with a small dewdrop notch, quite acceptable despite the increasing notchless displays with rising camera mechanisms such as the Y9 Prime 2019. The display is AMOLED with an underneath fingerprint scanner for a minimalist look. Which overalls compliment the look clean and premium look for the P30 series.
Depending on the angle and light, the water-like pattern stands out among smartphone finishes today. Clearly that Huawei wants the P30 series to standout in color as compared to its bigger brother Mate series.
Huawei listened and clearly understands that the price point of the P30 isn’t for the all-Bluetooth connection users. The inclusion of the headphone jack is a great sight for users who don’t want to lose on this important feature. We think this is great for countries such as the Philippines where Bluetooth speakers at home isn’t really that widely available.
It’s portable to the hand, lightweight, and feels pretty solid. Just a slight concern of being too slippery when placed on the table. So we suggest you use the included jelly case to avoid accidental falls.
Camera
On the spotlight of the P30 is the camera, the triple camera setup is a new standard for the P30 series. It has a 40 MP (Wide Angle Lens, f/1.8 aperture) + 16 MP (Ultra Wide Angle Lens, f/2.2 aperture) + 8 MP (Telephoto, f/2.4 aperture,OIS) and supports autofocus (laser focus, phase focus, contrast focus) with support to AIS (HUAWEI AI Image Stabilization).
What we like about Huawei is the triple camera setup even way back to the Mate 20 series is its great hardware and software working together. Our complaint of the Master AI being too buggy changing themes is now also adjusted, and we like how Huawei listened and continues to pioneer AI photography.
The P30’s telephoto lens and 40MP main shooter can result in a total of 30x zoom in digital. Here you can see the wide angle in action, going x1 Zoom and x30 Zoom with the airplane visible and still recognizable.
Huawei P30 Camera Sample Zoom
While photos in x30 like the moon results to some challenge, we’re still impressed that it was able to take this moon shot with some details. Even as compared to other phones with zoom capabilities, the P30 and P30 Pro were able to shoot better. Just take note that the shot below is with no tripod and using only handheld photography, so the overall quality can still significantly improve.
Photos whether indoor, night, or well-lighted situations are great. We appreciate the high zoom feature in taking photos of pets so they won’t be scared or run away. Aside from this, the AI Master feature detects the subject such as puppies, dogs, cats, or even food to further enhance the photo in quality such as sharpness, saturation, and more.
Using the 16MP wide-angle camera is snappy but on the dark side in our favor, this is despite AI functions to enhance the images. But you can still edit the photos with any photo editing app at the end, which is no problem for advance users.
Video, on the other hand, can do 4K 30fps 16:9 or 1080p 60fps. Overall quality is decent, but we don’t recommend switching to the wide-angle camera while shooting videos as the focus will change and you won’t be able to adjust it. So, if you will do video shooting, just stick to the main camera to avoid any inconsistency in color as well.
Performance
Running at almost 291k at AnTuTu and in our personal experience with the P30, it doesn’t lag or even underperforms in anything we throw. The Kirin 980 chipset with the FHD resolution is just enough to run everything smoothly without hiccups, we preferably like this more than having a 2k screen resolution and can’t keep up with flagship performance.
Simply put, the Kirin 980 processor on a 7mm chipset is future proof in performance, it can manage well anything you can throw at the phone. Games are smooth, battery management is great and even multitasking is very manageable.
User Interface
The EMUI 9.1 interface is now cleaner and more intuitive similar to an iOS but with the flexibility of an Android interface. Everything is less color coded and less on the division lines making it lighter to the eyes.
What we like about the search function in the settings is that you don’t have to search for the exact keyword in the settings unlike with the Vivo FunTouch OS. The annoying part of typing for the exact words like backup vs back up is huge if the search engine is different.
We liked the navigation method provided that you have to swipe at the side of the screen instead of from the bottom, making it more ergonomic.
Battery Performance
Even with Bluetooth always activated with our Huawei GT Watch, the P30 can hold stamina of more than 18 hours in our experience. This is even with LTE connectivity during commutes, outside the home or office.
Our scenario is heavier into messaging, social media, and some casual gaming at the side. Notifications are more managed with the Bluetooth connection in the GT Watch, so our screen on-time is lessened. We leave at home at 9 am and goes home with 15% at 11 pm, quite impressive in our experience for only 3650mAh battery.
Charging is also faster with the Super Charge 22.5W adapter included, via the included type-C cable we can do a mostly full charge in 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Conclusion
Overall the Huawei P30 can deliver a flagship experience, from the processor, camera, body, and display. It may not have fancy features like wireless charging, curved screen, or even a rising camera, but this is enough to fulfill anyone who wants top-notch performance without the burning hole in the pocket.
At Php29,990 the P30 will make you think if other phones like the iPhone 7, iPhone 8, even Mate 20 series is still worth the money. It’s also a serious contender against the OPPO Reno with a better processor, faster charging, but lacking in the display department.
Furthermore, you desire the fancy features, the bigger brother P30 Pro is just another option for an additional 15 thousand pesos (Php45,990). This is considerably lower at Php6,000 for the P30 and Php5,000 for the P30 Pro with Huawei’s recent rainy season promotion.
Advantages
- Portable and light body
- Premium build
- The triple camera setup is more than enough
- Flagship performance for its price
- Headphone Jack included
Disadvantages
- Slippery Body
- Video capture still needs to improve
To summarize P30 is an underrated product in our watch, it has a lot of competitors being at the edge at 29,990. But the new price makes it competitive and the regained image a smartphone not to underestimate, making it a highly recommended smartphone.