Huawei Mate 70 and Mate 70 Pro announced with large batteries
Huawei presented its new Mate 70 series with the top models Mate 70 Pro+ and Mate 70 RS at a major event in Beijing. First of all, the smallest model, the Huawei Mate 70, which is the only one with a flat frame and is the thinnest model in the bunch at 7.8 mm. Just like the 70 Pro, it has an IP69 protection rating, which offers protection against water ingress up to 1.5 meters and 30 minutes, but also protects against pressurized water jets.
Huawei Mate 70
The Mate 70 has a 6.7-inch LTPO OLED display with FHD+ resolution and a variable refresh rate of 1 – 120 Hz. The Mate 70 Pro extends the screen diagonal to 6.9 inches, but retains the FHD+ resolution and the variable refresh rate. Both Huawei smartphones feature a peak brightness of 2,500 nits and second-generation Kunlun Glass, which features tempered basalt glass for additional drop protection.
The Mate 70 brings a single 13MP ultra-wide-angle selfie camera, while the Pro adds a 3D depth camera for secure face unlocking. However, unlike their predecessors, the new Mate 70 models revert to side-mounted fingerprint scanners integrated into the power button. This button also integrates smart controls such as toggling the flash, the AI assistant, or muting the device with a double and long press.
Huawei Mate 70 Pro
Huawei brings its variable f/1.4-f/4.0 aperture for the 50MP main camera, which also offers OIS. In addition, both phones have a 40MP ultra-wide-angle lens. But the Mate 70 only has a 12MP periscope with 5.5x optical zoom, while the Mate 70 Pro got a 48MP sensor with 4x optical zoom.
The more interesting thing is the new dedicated spectral imaging sensor that sits in the middle of the camera island on the Huawei Mate 70 phones. Unlike traditional red-green-green-blue (RGGB) or red-yellow-yellow-blue (RYYB) color sensors on previous Huawei phones, spectral imaging modules can capture more color data, resulting in improved color accuracy, natural skin tones, and better shadow preservation. Huawei’s new sensors cover 1.5 million multispectral channels. This sensor works in tandem with the other sensors to offer natural color reproduction, even in complex lighting scenes.
If you’ve been following Huawei since the US ban, you’ll know that the company keeps details about its chipsets secret. This time it’s no different, and we can only speculate that all new Huawei Mate 70 models will be equipped with the Kirin 9100 chipset. Speculation suggests that it’s a 6nm SoC, reportedly manufactured using the SMIC N+3 process, and has a 2.67GHz Cortex-X1 Prime core. The first teardowns should soon provide more detailed technical data on the processors. Huawei’s HarmonyOS 4.3 is still used as the operating system. The update to the latest HarmonyOS Next should not be long in coming, however.
The Huawei Mate 70 has a 5,300mAh battery with 66W wired and 50W wireless charging, while the Mate 70 Pro uses a 5,500mAh cell with faster 100W wired and 80W wireless charging.
Huawei Mate 70 prices
Both smartphones are available in spruce green, hyacinth purple, snow white and obsidian black. Prices for the Huawei Mate 70 start at 5,499 CNY (€724/$757), while the Mate 70 Pro starts at 6,499 CNY (€855/$895). The top models with 12 GB/1 TB storage are 6,999 CNY (€921/$964) and 7,999 CNY (€1,053/$1,102). Both phones can already be pre-ordered in China, with deliveries set to begin on December 4. Huawei has not yet announced any plans for a global launch of the Mate 70 series.
