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Editorial, Mobile, Reviews

HUAWEI Nova 8 In-Depth Review – Just Shy of a SuperNova

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HUAWEI has now spent more than 3 years outside the Google ecosystem. Since 2019, HUAWEI has launched the HUAWEI Mate 30 series without Google’s Play Store installed. They have also launched the HUAWEI P40 series, Mate 40 series, and P50 series. 

Ever since HUAWEI stopped sporting Google’s Play Store too, they have been developing their own App Gallery to fill the gap left by Google’s app marketspace. The App Gallery is not exactly new for HUAWEI devices though, even before 2019. The HUAWEI App Gallery, while has been running alongside the Google Play Store for a while, was not a fully matured platform just yet. 

This was 3 years ago. HUAWEI’s App Gallery has grown quite a lot since then. HUAWEI has done everything it can to push and even attract new developers for their platform. They have collaborated with anyone willing to develop on their platform. This means that HUAWEI’s App Gallery is now the third-largest app marketplace in the world. 

Does that mean that HUAWEI devices are now worth a look? Should you consider running a HUAWEI secondary driver, or even a primary one? We attempt to answer all of that with the HUAWEI Nova 8. 

Design 

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The HUAWEI Nova 8 is built of similar materials you find on any modern smartphones. You have two pieces of glass that sandwiches an aluminium frame. The top and bottom of the device features a flat taper. The flat sections are flat enough for you to stand your Nova 8 on its own – we tried. 

The glass back is nothing special in terms of materials too. The device looks rather pretty though. The Blush Gold on this Nova 8 makes it feel a little more special than it is though.  

At the same time, the device is built to a premium standard. The way the metallic side of the device tappers seamlessly to the display helps the illusion of a single solid piece. Even the milled holes on the device looks precise albeit some alignment issues. The only indication that this is still a mid-range device would be its NOVA branding at the glass. 

The oval camera housing is a nod to the older HUAWEI devices like the P30 series. While the main camera takes up nearly half the module, it does not look imposing. They arranged the three other smaller lenses in a way that complements main camera.  

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Hardware 

As mentioned, the HUAWEI Nova 8 is a Kirin device. You have HUAWEI’s own Kirin 820E System on a Chip (SoC) powering the HUAWEI Nova 8. It is still a highly respectable ARM Cortex-A76 and Cortex-55 blend in today’s smartphone standard.  

Specifications 

ProcessorHUAWEI Kirin 820E
Hexa-Core 7nm
3x Cortex A76 @2.22GHz
3x Cortex A55 @1.84GHz
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)Mali-G57
RAM8GB
Memory (as tested)128GB
DisplayOLED 6.57-inch
2,340 x 1,080 pixels ~393ppi
90Hz (up to)
Operating SystemEMUI 12 based on Android 11
BatteryNon-Removable Li-Po 3,800mAh
HUAWEI SuperCharge 66W
ConnectivityDual SIM
Wi-Fi WLAN 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
GPS/A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS
A2DP
Bluetooth 5.0 LE
OTG Support
USB Type-C 2.0
Camera (s)REAR:
64-Megapixel (f/1.9)
8-Megapixel (f/2.4, Ultra-wide)
2-Megapixel (f/2.4, Depth sensor)
2-Megapixel (f/2.4, Macro sensor)
4K video recording (30fps)
LED flash
FRONT:
32-Megapixel (f/2.0, 26mm)
4K video recording (30fps)
SensorsAccelerometer
Proximity
Under-Display Ultrasonic Fingerprint
Ambient Light
Gyroscope
Face Unlock
Compass

User Interface – EMUI 12 

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The HUAWEI Nova 8 does not come with HUAWEI’s Harmony OS 2. Instead, it is the trusty EMUI 12 based on Android. This is also their third iteration of EMUI since losing Google Play Store.  

While the iterations of EMUI have not changed a lot in terms of look and feel between the HUAWEI devices, there are differences between 11 and 12. If you look closely, HUAWEI Nova 8’s EMUI 12 does not feature an “Android Version” category anymore in the About Phone submenu. That does not mean that the HUAWEI EMUI 12 is a completely different breed of Operating System (OS) though, they are still Android based, as far as we can tell anyway. 

HUAWEI App Gallery 

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You still do not have access to Google’s curated apps. HUAWEI’s App gallery has grown tremendously though. With HUAWEI’s Petal Search integration, the App Gallery now searches the web for alternatives or APK files of your searched app. Either that, or you access a web version of apps like Google Drive.  

You can use apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, and even Instagram. They are not natively supported by HUAWEI App Gallery though. The only good news from that is that because HUAWEI’s EMUI 12 is essentially still Android, APK files works. The bad news is that you cannot transfer WhatsApp data between devices via cloud. 

The HUAWEI Nova 8 does not have Google’s Mobile Services Framework, which also means it will not be able to unlock the use of Google’s suite of apps like Google Maps, for example. We tried installing Google Maps as an APK file, but it refuses to launch after.  

The good news is that Malaysia is a big supporter of HUAWEI’s App Gallery. That also means that plenty of the local banking and e-wallet apps are available from HUAWEI App Gallery. You even have the MySejahtera COVID tracking app on HUAWEI’s AppGallery. 

Always-On Display 

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Always-on display can find its roots in Samsung’s implementation of Android in TouchWiz. But because it is a function loved by users, Google made always-on display a feature on their own smartphones and eventually the function makes its way into other Android devices.  

On the HUAWEI Nova 8, the always-on display is a clever system that keeps your battery life optimised when not in use. That also means that the always-on display is not constantly on. It only turns on when you interact with the device by tapping its display once.  

Other than showing just time, we configured the always-on display to show date, battery percentage and other notifications. The time, date, and battery percentage show up nicely. Notifications will show up too, provided you have not seen any of it yet.  

The only customisation you get is choosing how your clock looks in the always-on display menu. The always-on also displays a snippet of your notifications, including snippets of your WhatsApp, Telegram, or messages, just before you unlock your device and access the apps. 

Separating Notifications and Quick Settings Access 

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HUAWEI EMUI 12 system, while still an Android overlay, feels a little different.  HUAWEI now divides the notification bar into two sections. On the left side is the notification center, where all the latest updates to your apps, missed calls, messages gets displayed. When you swipe down from the right side, you get all your quick settings toggles. You also access the settings menu from here now.  

It takes some getting used to, admittedly. Once you get used to it though, you start wondering why other Android devices do not implement similar features. It makes accessing the quick settings menu one gesture quicker. 

We do have to say though that the quick settings menu does feel and look very much like what you get on an iOS. While it may not be a carbon copy of one, it still feels very much like it especially with the media player, WiFi, and Bluetooth widgets being standalone toggles. 

No App Tray – Business as Usual 

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HUAWEI’s famous overlay of Android comes with no app tray like all of the EMUI that came before it. All its apps are organised on its home screen. You can hide apps you do not use very often, but you cannot find an app tray to access it later.  

You can still add widgets and folders to the homescreens though. With EMUI 12 you simply pinch on the display and a menu will pop out at the bottom for you to add widgets, homepages, and even a folder. You can also group apps together now in enlarged folders for quicker access to the apps you want and to keep things tidy.  

Performance 

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Modern mid-range devices like the HUAWEI Nova 8 are more than capable at running apps as smoothly and as fast as flagship device. Modern hardware has improved so much that performance differences between two classes of device are not quite apparent these days.  

Call Quality and Connectivity 

We solely relied on Yes 4G for the HUAWEI Nova 8 throughout our tests. On Yes 4G’s network the HUAWEI Nova 8 can make and receive VoLTE calls, which helps with call fidelity and quality of conversations. Of course, your call quality depends on the network strength as well. 

There have not been any major dropped calls with the device. Even when the network is a little on the weak side, calls have come through and gone without hiccups until you lose the network completely. Data speeds may vary though in these instances. On the subject of data speeds, that is more a network provider issue than anything else. 

Gaming 

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While the device has less power on paper than a flagship device, it does not necessarily mean it is that much worse. In fact, the HUAWEI Nova 8’s Kirin 820E is capable of running Mobile Legends: Bang Bang at its highest graphics settings without breaking too much of a sweat. The heat build up is never anywhere near uncomfortable in our time of use too.  

Of course, a fast display helps very much in terms of immersion and experience in games. The games load smoothly and quickly when on the HUAWEI Nova 8. They even look pretty good thanks to the vivid colours of the OLED panel.  

Multitasking and Productivity 

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Modern smartphones have been optimised to cope with multitasking instances on any given device. We had more than 20 tabs open in the HUAWEI Nova 8’s native browser and still keep do other things on the device without too much of an inconvenient lag. 

Opening apps never felt sluggish or slow as well in our tests. At some point we were installing multiple apps from HUAWEI’s App Gallery at the same time, and still scrolling through the App Gallery without any issues. We also left multiple apps running at the same time without having to close any of the apps when we need to jump to another app. 

Battery Life 

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HUAWEI’s legendary battery life status is down to their clever battery management system. The battery management system in the latest EMUI on the HUAWEI Nova 8 is cleverer and more sophisticated than the old system. It does not turn off selective apps anymore, but it still somehow ekes out as much life out of the 3,800 mAh battery as possible. 

The HUAWEI Nova 8 on standby can last up to four days on a single charge. On a typical usage, with the device jumping between relying on WiFi and 4G networks, the device still lasts up to two days. A typical use in our case consists of some light WhatsApp texting, watching videos on YouTube (web), playing quick games of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, taking and making a few calls, and taking a few photos as well. 

It also comes with a charger in the box. It charges up to 66W with the provided charger and USB Type-C cable. Most of the time, we charge the device when the battery hits 20%. In those cases, we get a full charge in just below two hours.  

Display 

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The HUAWEI Nova 8 features a Full HD+ 6.7-inch OLED panel with up to 90Hz refresh rate. They did not mention its response rate, but do you really care? We do not, in this case at least. 

OLED is known for its vivid colours that translates well on the HUAWEI Nova 8. The display is really bright, which also means you get to see some extra details when working with the device. The brightness also helps with visibility when you are outdoors. 

While it produces very vivid colours, it does not match the colour standards of the newer flagship devices like the HUAWEI P50 series and the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. Unless you use your smartphone to colour grade your videos, edit your photos, or any other work with accurate colour requirements, you hardly notice that much in difference.  

90Hz Smoothness 

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The HUAWEI Nova 8 shows that you do not need a display that refreshes at 120Hz. A display that refreshes at 90Hz is more than enough to make the smartphone feel snappy and smooth. While 90Hz is nothing to shout about, it is a reminder that high refresh rate displays could be overrated.  

If you are a casual mobile gamer, you really are not missing out on a lot between 90Hz to 120Hz. You see as much as the next gamer with 120Hz in games like Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, or even Garena’s Free Fire. The differences are so marginal that in most cases, you hardly notice it.  

Camera 

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The HUAWEI Nova 8 is a testament to how good the modern smartphone camera technology is. While it may not be representative and does not offer the best that the smartphone camera technology has to offer, it is not that far off.  

You get a 64-Megapixel shooter that is capable of shooting RAW photos in Pro mode. In Pro Mode you get more granular controls to your ISO, shutter speed, AutoFocus metering, exposure, and manual focus.  

In regular photo mode, the camera only takes 16-Megapixel photos instead of the full 64-Megapixel it is capable of. You only access all 64-Megapixel that your device can offer in Pro mode with RAW settings, or the high-res mode. You lose the AI function in either modes though.  

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You have more than enough for social media purposes though. At the same time, with AI on, the camera captures great looking photos with a lot of details and amazing looking colours.  

We find that the most stunning camera feature from the HUAWEI Nova 8 is the Night Mode. Photos that look dark and grainy in regular mode looks bright and properly detailed. Of course, you can see that the details are softer once you zoom in. 

Gallery 

The HUAWEI Nova 8 – Another Great HUAWEI Device, still a HUAWEI Though 

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The HUAWEI Nova 8 is a pretty device. As expected from a HUAWEI device, the build quality of the device is premium. At MYR 1,899, the HUAWEI Nova 8 is a compelling device too.  

There is not much wrong with EMUI 12. It feels smooth, intuitive, and still works like other Android devices with HUAWEI’s usual tweaks. It feels so smooth and snappy on the 6.7-inch 90Hz display it feels like a flagship device.  

It is not a 5G ready device. There are devices at lower price points that will sport 5G, which makes the HUAWEI Nova 8 a little of an anomaly in the sea of smartphones in the market. That is a relatively minor issue though.  

The big issue is that it does not come with Google’s Play Store. You will not be able to work with Google Apps at all. You can use WhatsApp but you cannot transfer your chats via cloud. You do not get access to Netflix app as well.  

At MYR 1,899, the HUAWEI Nova 8 is a worthy contender in the mid-range smartphone segment. Although, you must remember you cannot access and run Google’s suite of apps. Otherwise, you are getting a great mid-range smartphone that is more than capable as your daily driver, play any of your mobile games, and perform like any modern flagships.  

Mobile, News

The HUAWEI P50 Series Has Launched Quietly, here is What You Need to Know

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HUAWEI’s flagship smartphone for the year 2021 has just launched last week Friday. Oddly enough, it was not a global affair. To our surprise too, the news did not create the hype a flagship usually does. There is a good reason for that though. The HUAWEI P50 series is currently only launched for the Chinese market.

The device still appears in HUAWEI’s global site though. While that could mean that HUAWEI might plan a global release of the device later in the year, maybe closer to its availability date, the device launches in a rather quiet fashion. Well, quieter than the usual fanfare of a high-profiled smartphone launch. Does this mean HUAWEI is now not a high-profile smartphone maker?

We think it is contrary to that. We think they are in the midst of a restructure, a sort of regrouping. Before that though, we do have to talk about the HUAWEI P50 series, it is what we are here for after all.

As usual, the flagship brand from HUAWEI is now a series instead of a single device. There are two devices in the HUAWEI P50 series, a regular vanilla P50, and an extreme version P50 Pro. Of course, the bigger one must be the HUAWEI P50 Pro.

HUAWEI P50 Pro

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Source: HUAWEI

We start with the most powerful HUAWEI P series to date, the HUAWEI P50 Pro. It is the bigger one among the two devices introduced in the series. Its display measures 6.6-inch and pushes a tiny bit more resolution out of the display. It is an odd display though, because it is not exactly 1440p QHD, but it is not Full HD either at 2,700 x 1,228 pixels. You still get 450 ppi (pixels per inch) with 10-bit colour space though (1.07 billion colours).

It is an OLED panel too, which also means that you are getting highly vivid colours and brilliant contrasts. It also refreshes at 120Hz and features 300Hz in touch sampling rate, which also means you might get a kick out of it for gaming. While it is not exactly a 1440p display, it is still a brilliant one, by the looks of it.

Of course, a large and brilliant display needs powerful internals. Here is the strange part though, you can actually opt for a HUAWEI P50 Pro that does not come with HUAWEI’s own Kirin chipset. It can either come with HUAWEI’s Kirin 9000 System on a Chip (SoC), or Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 4G SoC (global site only outlines Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 4G SoC). HUAWEI’s adaptation to Qualcomm’s chips could have a larger implication for HUAWEI’s future. That is just speculations though, back to the device.

Alongside the powerful chips that you can choose from is either 8GB or 12GB of RAM and up to 512GB in storage (global site only outlines up to 8GB + 256GB). Apparently, there will be no expansion option on the latest HUAWEI P series flagships though. With a larger body too, it has a large 4,360 mAh that should last you a whole day and even more running HUAWEI’s proprietary HarmonyOS 2.0 introduced with the HUAWEI MatePad Pro earlier this year.

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Instead of a single camera bulge, the HUAWEI P50 Pro comes with two camera domes now. One houses three lenses (40-Megapixel MonoChrome, 13-Megapixel Ultra-Wide, 64-Megapixel Telephoto) and the other houses a single 50-Megapixel main shooter alongside an LED flash module. Out the front is a high-resolution 13-Megapixel shooter. Funnily enough, while Leica’s brand still graces the device, there are no mentions of the sensor size on the HUAWEI P50 Pro.

HUAWEI P50

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Source: HUAWEI

Then there is the regular HUAWEI P50. In size it is smaller, but not by that much. Instead of the 6.6-inch display, the HUAWEI P50 settles in at 6.5-inch. It is still an OLED display that boasts 2,700 x 1,224 pixels at up to 90Hz refresh rate.

While you get a choice of going for a HUAWEI Kirin 9000 chip, the HUAWEI P50 only gets a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 4G treatment, which is odd. Supporting the chipset though is still up to 8GB in RAM and up to 256GB in storage, which are not too bad considering.

The HUAWEI P50 also loses a 64-Megapixel telephoto lens and 40-Megapixel monochrome lens. Instead, you get 12-Megapixel in telephoto lens and a 13-Megapixel ultra-wide camera alongside the 50-Megapixel shooter. You still get two camera bulges though.

Because it is a smaller body, the HUAWEI P50 only packs a 4,100mAh battery. While the SuperCharge 66W fast charging capability remains, the HUAWEI P50 will not be getting wireless charging capabilities. You should still be able to last a whole day and more from the smaller battery though.

Pricing and Availability

The HUAWEI P50 Pro and P50 comes in Golden Black, Cocoa Gold, or Pearl White colour options. The HUAWEI P50 Pro gets an additional colour option in the Charm Pink though. There are no mentions of its availability the global market at this time. At this point too, you can expect the HUAWEI P50 with Harmony OS 2.0 to be shipping out without Google’s Play Store or Google’s basic mobile ecosystem installed.

The HUAWEI P50 and P50 Pro is already on pre-order in China and will start shipping and appearing in stores 8th August 2021 onward. The HUAWEI P50 starts at CN¥ 4,488 (MYR 2,935*) and tops out at CN¥ 4,988 (MYR 3,262*). The HUAWEI P50 Pro starts at CN¥ 5,988 (MYR 3,917*) for the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 variant with 8GB RAM and 129GB on-board storage. It tops out at CN¥ 7,988 (MYR 5,225*) for the Kirin 9000 variant with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of on-board storage.

* Approximately based on exchange rate of CN¥ 10 = MYR 6.54 on xe.com as of 02/08/2021

Computers, Editorial, Lifestyle, Reviews

The HUAWEI MateView In-Depth Review – Brilliant, With Some Caveats

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HUAWEI has been on a roll these few years. They may have been restricted in using Google’s ecosystem to its fullest joy, but they did not show any signs of slowing down. In fact, at least outside of China, Malaysia has been one of the strongest market for HUAWEI, at least according to them.

They have started embarking into building a product ecosystem though. They made audio peripherals, they made home appliances too. They made notebook PCs, and recently Smart TVs. Now, they make PC monitors.

Welcome to the world of 4K+ resolution that is the HUAWEI MateView. This is not the gaming monitor, that would be the MateView GT with only half the resolution of this unit. This is the monitor made for the working class. This is a monitor made and built for an executive.

There is a small fact that this will set you back MYR 2,988 in retail though. It is also a little oddly shaped for a PC monitor at 3:2 display ratio. You also cannot detach the built-in tiltable stand.

Is the HUAWEI MateView the world changing monitor that HUAWEI wants it to be? Should you even care about this product? Better yet, should you spend your hard-earned money for this piece of kit?

Design

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There are no colour options on this monitor, just silver. Nothing wrong with the colour though once you lift it out from the box to put it on your desk. To be fair, silver might not work all that well if you desk tip is black in colour. We do think that the matte, muted silver will look better when you pair it with brighter colours. That is just our personal opinions on that matter though, we are not professional interior designer, so you might want to take this comment with a pinch of salt.

The 28.2-inch 4K+ monitor looks impressive all around. The muted silver finish makes the whole package looks ultra-premium and professional at the same time. Its skinny profiled stand and base looks sleek and elegant.

You notice that there are perforated holes on the bottom of the front-facing place of the stand. That is the 5W dual speakers that is directly connected to the monitor. The base of the monitor is an NFC plate for HUAWEI Share, not a wireless charging pad.

The port placements are rather clean too. Since the stand is an integrated part of the monitor, which means that HUAWEI can easily keep the display portion clean and thin by moving plenty of the components to the stand. All the necessary ports are kept to the back and side of the stand. This also means you cannot mount the monitor on a VESA stand or desk mounts.

The tilting hinge is encased in chrome ball joint looking mechanism which actually looks very pretty. It looks at home at any desks that is meant for productivity and play in any home. While the large HUAWEI logo at the back is also chrome in colour, it is somehow done in good taste.

While we do appreciate the cleanliness in design language of the HUAWEI MateView, we would also like some VESA mount compatibility. The single piece design is clever, because it allows HUAWEI to integrate most of its components on its base stand. Thing is, there are modern 4K monitors that fits everything the HUAWEI MateView has on its base stand to the monitor housing itself without adding too much heft to it, and they are all VESA mount compatible. It could add a little bit in thickness for the HUAWEI MateView, sure, but its compatibility with VESA mount also means that users are given an extra layer of flexibility in their set-up.

Hardware

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The large silver slab is not just a looker though. As we mentioned, it is supposed to be a premium item to sit on your desk. At the kind of price it commands, it better be.

Specifications

HUAWEI MateViewAs Tested
Display Size28.2 inches
Resolution 3,840 x 2,560 4K+ UHD (3:2 aspect ratio)
Panel Type (Refresh Rate)IPS (60Hz)
Colour Accuracy ΔE<2
98% DCI-P3
100% sRGB
10-bit (1.07 billion) colours
1200:1 Contrast Ratio
500 nits
Speaker and Mic2x 5W speakers
2x DMIC (far field voice pick up)
Eye ProtectionTÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light
Flicker Free certification
MiscellaneousWiFi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth 5.1

Features

From the looks of it, the HUAWEI MateView is feature packed. To say that this is merely another PC monitor for your desk could be a little unfair. It is mainly made to be on a desk top and serve as a monitor for your PC, or tablet, or smartphone though.

Your Friendly USB Hub

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You get one HDMI 2.0 port, a MiniDP port, and one USB Type-C power input port capable of taking on 135W. The adapter for the monitor is a 135W unit as well, so you can technically use it to charge your smartphones or tablets or laptops if you want. There are two additional USB Type-A ports on the right side of the device alongside a USB Type-C port and a 3.5mm jack above the elliptical power button.

The HUAWEI MateView doubles as a USB hub for your PC. Thanks to its placement too, the ports are a lot easier to access compared to other modern monitors. The USB Type-C port on the side can also charge at up to 65W, which also means your thin and light notebooks and tablets can be kept charged while projecting to the HUAWEI MateView.

Dual 5W speakers with Built-in Dual Mic

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The dual 5W speakers is basically just that, regular speakers and sounds pretty much like any generic small form factor wireless speakers. Because there is no subwoofer, low end frequencies tend to be a little weak. There is little space to fit a subwoofer though, so the lack of lower-end frequencies is forgivable.

Where the combination of this speaker and mic shines though is when you use the MateView for the work and social stuff. Audio from the speakers is perfect in video chats or voice chats. At the same the mic performs great too, with users at the other end of the line reporting clear voice quality. The users at the other end of the line did report that my voice gets cut out from time to time though. We suspect internet speed and stability issues, or it could just be HUAWEI’s noise cancelling algorithm messing about.

Navigate with Smart Bar

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Instead of physical buttons, the HUAWEI MatePad has a touch sensitive bar to navigate through its settings. The Smart Bar, as they call it, does contribute a little bit to the clean, polished look of the premium HUAWEI MateView. The Smart Bar does allow for some quick and accurate navigation through the OSD unlike physical buttons you can barely see though.

If you leave the HUAWEI MateView unplugged and disconnected from any device at all, the display shows its own interface and home screen. That home screen allows you to go through the monitors settings and also allows you to choose the monitor’s primary input when you need to. You navigate through that with the Smart Bar, or you can plug in a mouse to the USB ports. You either slide it side to side to navigate the interface and tap once to confirm your selection, twice to back out of a settings menu when you need to. This monitor does WiFi and Bluetooth, though we are not fully able to take advantage of the two features at the time of testing because HUAWEI has not made the device available to connect with on the HUAWEI’s AI Life app at the time of testing.

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Once plugged in to a display source, the smart bar is still the way to navigate the On-Screen Display (OSD). The smart bar now doubles as a volume control slider though, which is clever. You tap once to get into the regular OSD to change your settings and input. To control the volume of the built-in speakers, you simply slide your finger along the smart bar.

HUAWEI Share

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HUAWEI Share is also integrated to the HUAWEI MateView monitor, as we have mentioned. It is placed on the base plate of the monitor. Still, integrating that HUAWEI OneHop Share functionality is clever, except, you need to have a modern HUAWEI device with EMUI 11 or later and NFC capabilities to take advantage of it. We do not have a HUAWEI EMUI 11 or Harmony OS 2 device that supports the OneHop NFC capability.

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While we do understand that this is a HUAWEI device, their implementation to exclusively support HUAWEI Share alienates it from other Android smartphone user. It does make a lot of sense if you do have a HUAWEI smartphone to work with. Except, not all HUAWEI smartphones are treated equally here too. All HUAWEI devices that are not updated to EMUI 11 or Harmony OS 2.0 will not get access to the HUAWEI Share feature. In that sense, HUAWEI is not just alienating other Android users, they are alienating their own users who held on to HUAWEI devices that are not even 3 years old.

On top of that, we genuinely think that the base plate would be much better off if HUAWEI decided to use it as a wireless charging plate. It is the most sensible place for a wireless charging station, after all. The HUAWEI Share sensor can be moved to either the side, or top, or even the bottom part of the monitor module, in our humble opinions.

Options

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We tested the HUAWEI MateView mostly with a USB Type-C connection. Meaning we took advantage of the Thunderbolt capabilities of the HUAWEI MateView too. We connected our thin and light Lenovo Yoga S730 via USB Type-C and later on an Acer Predator Triton 500, also via USB Type-C. Thankfully, the HUAWEI MateView charges the Lenovo Yoga S703 at 65W too, so that is always a bonus.

We used the HDMI 2.0 port of the HUAWEI MateView too with the Acer Predator Triton 500. The only issue is that the HDMI 2.0 connection only allows for the display to work with 50Hz in refresh rate due to the bandwidth limitation of the HDMI 2.0 itself. We could not get our PlayStation 4 Pro to work with the display though, oddly enough. To get the best experience of the 4K+ at 60Hz, you want to use a MiniDP to DisplayPort (provided) cable or USB Type-C to USB Type-C (provided) cable. Of course, make sure your PC can project via USB Type-C.

We would prefer a standard DisplayPort 1.4 on the monitor though. Finding a MiniDP-to-MiniDP Thunderbolt cable proves to be quite difficult. At the same time, there is space behind the stand to house a standard DisplayPort 1.4, which makes it even stranger for the HUAWEI MateView not to include one.

We did a wireless projection with a HUAWEI MatePad Pro (2020) in both regular and Desktop Mode and got quite odd results. The display was not rationed properly, the image looks a little stretched vertically. While that can be easily rectified by connecting the tablet to the display via USB Type-C, it is kind of annoying and defeats the purpose of having wireless projection on the display.

Performance – Satisfying 4K+, Beautiful Colours

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The biggest draw of the HUAWEI MateView is no doubt its 4K+ IPS panel that will be the main point of its interaction with its users. At 28.2-inch, the MateView is not exactly small, but is probably the smallest 4K display of its type. Then again, this is the only 4K display of its type at this time projecting 3,840 x 2,560 (3:2) pixels instead of the usual 3,840 x 2,160 (16:9).

The 4K+ resolution is displayed at ΔE<2, and at DCI-P3 coverage of 98%, or 100% sRGB coverage. These numbers basically mean that the HUAWEI MateView features one of the best colour reproductions on its 28.2-inch panel at this time. It also features HDR 400 with 1,200:1 contrast ratio, if you must know.

Bright, Vibrant Colours

We had to turn down the brightness of the display to 80% from full brightness. At full 500nits, the display is way too bright to be used in a room. If you are using this in a darker situation, you do want to turn it down even further because the HUAWEI MateView can get overly bright. Considering that you might be using the HUAWEI Mateview in a well-lit room or under natural lighting though, 500nits could be useful.

There are also a few presets for the display colour profile that you can choose from. We set ours to DCI-P3 colour profile, just because we think it looks best. Images look vibrant with highly saturated colours on this display. Because it is a 4K display too, pixels on lower resolution images get a little exaggerated when displayed fullscreen. High-resolution photographs look stunning on this though.

In these presets though, you cannot change your other colour and temperature settings. Settings like contrast and gamma is locked off. The only thing you have going for you is the brightness control.

Going to the Movies

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Movies and films from Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and even Disney+ Hotstar are easy to enjoy on the HUAWEI MateView. Even when you watch Full HD 1080p films on the HUAWEI MateView, while you do notice some graininess a little, it still looks great because colours are vivid. High framerate films like Formula 1: Drive to Survive also highlights the MateView’s brilliant contrasts. The bright colours that are projected on darker backdrops are clear as day and sharp. Even the colourful fast-moving cars look great on the MateView itself.

… Or Edit Your Films

Naturally, a 4K+ resolution display will, inevitably, used for creative work. While it may not be the best or top-of-the-line display in terms of creative work, it has all the right qualities for be one of the better displays for content creators. If you are not into 3D work and high-framerate visuals, this should be good enough. We used the 4K+ monitor as a secondary monitor to basically scrutinise our video work. We record most of our videos in 4K and publish them in 1080p Full HD resolution. The added detail you can see from a 4K resolution display also means that we get to be a little more detailed when it comes to our work too. Of course, colour grading is a breeze with highly accurate colours. But the matte finish of the display, which is not typical for colour accurate displays, helps with video and image editing in a brightly lit room.

… Or Game, Because Why Not?

While not something that the HUAWEI MateView is created for, you can game on it. Yes, the display aspect ratio is a little odd at 3:2. A wider vertical view does mean a little more environmental detail on your display on the top and bottom of the monitor. Thing is, you want more peripheral view instead of more to see from the top and bottom of the display, so it does not make that much of a difference in some sense. Still, you can set games to work on the 4K+ resolution at 60Hz, and that is important.

Games in 4K+ does look impressive with details you have never expected before. Colours still pop in games like GTA V and No Man’s Sky. Shadow of the Tomb Raider looks amazing on 4K+. Here is the thing though, to play your games at 4K+ resolution at 60fps requires you to have substantial power from your gaming rig. Not every game will be able to run at 60Hz or even smoothly on 4K+ resolution and you can see the limitations kicking in when you fire games like GTA V up and set everything to ultra. Strangely enough, No Man’s Sky runs great at Ultra settings with speeds hitting above 50fps at times. Keep in mind that this is on a 10th Generation Intel Core i7 paired with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Super platform.

The HUAWEI MateView – Impressive, But Maybe Not

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Before you get confused with the heading, we do really want to say that we are impressed with the HUAWEI MateView. We like it, even. But there are a few glaring issues we cannot seem to wrap our heads around.

The biggest problem is that it will set you back MYR 2,988. At the time of writing, Samsung’s similar UR55 28-inch 4K monitor technically offers a wider 4K experience (16:9) and an IPS panel as well for MYR 1,399 and it comes with AMD FreeSync. You can even find a 27-inch Dell 4K UHD monitor at MYR 1,589 at this time. A BenQ 27-inch 4K UHD display will also only set you back MYR 2,699, MYR 300 less than the HUAWEI with three built-in speakers and AMD FreeSync technology too. All of them comes with standard DisplayPort as well.

If you are buying for entertainment purposes, what is wrong with a 4K UHD smart TV? While it does have some wireless features, its experience on other devices that does not support its version of HUAWEI Share is not exactly great or seamless. You are still better off with cables in the case of using the display with your smartphone or tablet devices anyway.

We have to admit that we thoroughly enjoyed the HUAWEI MateView. It looks great and as a PC monitor, it works great. Add the mic functionality and speakers that sound better than average speakers from most displays, wireless connectivity capabilities, and its colour accuracy, it is a compelling display to work with. We may not completely understand its incompatibility with systems other than HUAWEI’s own (well, we do, but we think it is a little ridiculous).

In the end, would this be something we would recommend our friends to buy? In short, no. Unfortunately, there are plenty of other far more compelling products at the same price or even less. The HUAWEI MateView, while it isnot a bad product in any way, does not feel and work like a product that commands its price tag.

Mobile, News

The HUAWEI P50 Has a Launch Date – Stay Tuned on 29 July 2021

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Up to 2015, pundits were sure that the pocket friendly point-and-shoot camera segment will still thrive over the smartphone in the world of photography. This is until they see the Leica co-developed HUAWEI P9 smartphone. Since then, smartphone photography did not really grow. It exploded, and now every single manufacturer is pushing for more powerful camera sensors. Samsung has already gone ahead in terms of Megapixel count in a tiny camera sensor with their mind-boggling 108-Megapixel sensors. Sony pushes the threshold at 64-Megapixels at this time.

If you know photography though, Megapixel count is only half the story when it comes to image quality, clarity, and detail. You need bigger sensors too, and that is also the reason why enthusiast grade cameras and even modern point-and-shoot cameras still have their place in the world of photography today. Bigger sensors also mean more light, and therefore better low-light sensitivity; it is simple physics. The race for bigger sensors in smartphones is now on, and births the idea of the HUIAWEI P50.

Technically, we would not know if the HUAWEI P50 comes with a bigger sensor or not. So far, the rumours that the HUAWEI P50 will come with a 1-inch camera sensor is just that; rumours. HUAWEI’s Richard Yu confirms that the HUAWEI P50 will come with a “new mobile imaging technology” though.

Leaked renders show that the HUAWEI P50 might come with two rings of cameras for a quad camera set-up. One of the rings, in the renders and leaks at least, shows three lenses while the other shows a single larger lens accompanied by the LED flash module. Larger lens could mean larger sensors, or it could mean better glass material for the sensor.

We are pretty sure that HUAWEI’s RYYB (Red Yellow Yellow Blue) sensor will still find its way to the upcoming HUAWEI P50. The RYYB sensor, after all, is a HUAWEI technology and they have been boasting the sensor in their smartphones for years now. Whether or not they will be increasing the size of the RYYB sensor is yet to be seen. For all we know, HUAWEI could be using the same 1-inch sensor that the Sharp Aquos R6 launched in Japan packs. Keep in mind that the sensor is also co-developed with Leica, HUAWEI’s camera partner.

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For now, we can only speculate. It seems that we do not have to wait for long to find out if the rumours are true or we completely missed the mark. HUAWEI’s Richard Yu just confirmed in his Weibo page that the HUAWEI P50 series will launch on the 29th of July 2021, which is about 10 days away.

Richard did not confirm on whether or not this would be a global launch event though. There are no mentions on livestream links just yet too. While HUAWEI has been banned from using Google’s platform, their flagship launches has been a global affair. In that case, we do expect to hear more from HUAWEI soon.

Computers, Editorial, First Look, Lifestyle, Video

First Look at the HUAWEI MateView – 4K DCI-P3 Goodness in a Tight Package; Yes!

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The HUAWEI MateView is HUAWEI’s first attempt in capturing the premium desktop display market. At MYR 2,988, the HUAWEIMateView is nowhere near cheap. It does come with a few features that would make other displays look a little lacking though.

It comes with two 5W speakers that is embedded within the stand of the display. That also means that HUAWEI can keep the body of the display itself thin and svelte. Multiple I/O makes it simple to work with, and flexible enough that you can work with multiple devices with just a single display.

You are viewing all your contents at 4K+ UHD resolution. While the display factor is a little odd at 3:2, you are technically getting a little more for your buck. The IPS panel also projects colours at 98% DCI-P3 for the best-in-class colour reproduction. The HUAWEI MateView is really something else.

The HUAWEI MateView is now available for pre-order form HUAWEI’s Online Store and their retail partners including Shopee and Lazada. The pre-order period lasts until 21st July 2021. Every pre-order in this period is entitled to a free HUAWEI WIFI AX3 Dual Core router. More information on the HUAWEI MateView can be found on HUAWEI’s website.

Accessories, Mobile, News

HUAWEI Launches the FreeBuds 4, Available for Pre-Order Now for MYR 599

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Wireless earbuds are all the rage these days. The clean, cable-free feature of Truly Wireless (TWS) headphones really give a new meaning to the word “freedom” and redefined portability in the audio market. Of course, if you are a purist and audiophile, your response to all this will always be “but wired sound better”. We agree, but wireless audio products have come a long way since its introduction ages ago. Since Samsung introduced the world to their IconX TWS earphones too, TWS headphones have made huge strides and improvements especially in recent years.

With increased demands for TWS earphones too, more manufacturers are going to get involved to compete for market share. After all, it is not about who sells the best smartphones now, it is about who has the best and most seamless ecosystem. That also means that smartphone manufacturers like HUAWEI are sure to get into the game of creating accessories that accompanies the smartphones.

HUAWEI introduced their FreeBuds TWS headphones in 2018. They recently introduced the 4th generation of the FreeBuds in Malaysia. The new HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 comes with a slew of improvements that might make it one of the most compelling TWS headphones in the market.

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Source: HUAWEI

The HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 still features Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) 2.0 which is quite unique. That is because the HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 is an open-fit earphone. Open-fit earphones typically do not completely seal your ears obviously, and that adds a layer of complexity for the job that is noise cancelling. Still, with Adaptive Ear Matching technology, the HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 will manage. The technology will automatically detect the 3D shape of your ear and determine the optimal noise cancellation for individual users.

For the first time ever, the HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 boasts dual microphone. Dual mics of course is used for noise cancellation in phone calls. With 32KHz in frequency range in voice calls too, you get crisp and clear phone calls.

The FreeBuds 4 packs an unusually large driver too for its headphones of its type. It has 14.3mm, slightly larger than the one you get on the older HUAWEI FreeBuds 3. At 40kHz as well, it has double the frequency range compared to most earphones in its category. That also means that it should sound quite stellar especially with Hi-Fi quality audio formats. Of course, with larger drivers, you get better low-end frequencies projected too, which means great thumping bass lines.

Of course, the HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 is not just for listening and making short work of phone calls. The TWS earbuds has a mic that can record at up to 48kHz audio, which also means you can technically use it to record vlogs or use it to record audio from the surroundings for an immersive video from your HUAWEI smartphone.

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    Source: HUAWEI
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All of these sounds like you would need a larger package of an earbud to work with. Strangely though, it is no larger than a regular Apple Airpods earbud. The pair of earbuds comes packed in a portable case that can gives the HUAWEI FreePods 4 extra full charges for up to 22 hours of music playback (without ANC). All the great stuff is shoehorned in earbuds that weighs only 4.1g on each end.

The HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 is now available for pre-order from HUAWEI Online Store, and partner stores such as Shopee, Lazada and Sen Heng until 21st July 2021. It is available in Ceramic White and Silver Frost colour options too. It will set you back MYR 599, which is a lot less than a lot of higher-end ANC enabled TWS headphones. More information on the HUAWEI FreeBuds 4 can be found on HUAWEI’s website.

Accessories, Computers, Gaming, Lifestyle, News

HUAWEI MateView and MateView GT Launched in Malaysia – The Beauty and The Beast

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HUAWEI has grown from a little-known smartphone maker from China to become one of the tech giants of the world. Of course, the fact that they make great smartphones helped their rise to become one of the most recognisable electronics brands in the world. In the recent years, HUAWEI has also expanded its product range to just more than mobile devices. This is including smartphone peripherals like headsets and wireless speakers. They branched out into home appliances. They also branched out into making Windows laptops, which worked great if you own a HUAWEI device already. They even made smart TVs in the past two years.

It only makes sense then, when HUAWEI started making PCs and even smart TVs, that they start making PC displays. They started with the brand new MateView and MateView GT. As per the title, it really is like Beauty and the Beast. We are not really referring to how the monitors look though; we are referring to what they are made for.

HUAWEI MateView – The Beauty … of 4K+ resolution

HUAWEI MateView
Source: HUAWEI

The HUAWEI MateView is made for creators in mind and it shows in the colour accuracy rating of the display. It boasts ΔE<2 with 98% coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut. On the sRGB scale, it covers 100% of the colour gamut. That also means unparalleled colour accuracy, very important when you are colour correcting photos or even videos. At HDR 400 also, contents shine when displayed on the HUAWEI MateView. We have not even gone to its resolution.

The HUAWEI MateView displays all these colours at an extremely high resolution 4K+. You get 3,840 x 2,560 pixels from the 28.2-inch IPS panel. While that means that you get a very odd 3:2 display ratio, it also means you get more display real estate to work with, important when you only have one monitor to rely on when you work with videos. At 1.07 billion colours as well, colour gradients look natural even when you push the brightness to the maximum 500 nits the HUAWEI MateView is capable of.

It even boasts two 5W speakers on its integrated stand. While it may not be the most powerful speakers you can find in the market, the speakers should produce an acceptable audio, if you do not have an external speaker to work with. At the same time, with wireless projection, you can hook your HUAWEI devices up wirelessly and play your favourite music through the MateView’s speakers instead. For video conferencing, the HUAWEI MateView even packs four built in mics. You can even fire up Cortana on Windows 10 with the mics.

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The HUAWEI MateView is also your friendly USB Hub. While it packs HDMI 2.0 (capable of 3,840 x 2,560 @50Hz) and a MiniDP port, you can hook your PC to the display via USB Type-C cable too. If you hook your PC up to the Display via the HDMI or the MiniDP port, you have an extra USB Type-C port to go alongside two more UBS Type-A ports on the integrated stand. The USB Type-C port also charges at 65W too, which also means your thin and light PC might not need to be plugged into a power source of its own.

HUAWEI MateView GT – The Beast … For Your Gaming Fix

HUAWEI MateView GT
Source: HUAWEI

To be fair, we could never have imagined a world where HUAWEI champions PC gaming five years ago. 2021 is a vastly different time compared to the world of 2015/2016 though. The world is in massive lockdown, and everyone is forced to work from home most of their days. One of the ways people spend their remaining time after work then is to game with friends, or publicly in competitive esports titles. Gaming peripherals has a newfound popularity in 2021, through 2020.

The HUAWEI MateView GT is a product of inevitability, at least in our humble opinions. If you can make an excellent 4K display, why not make a gaming display? That is how the HUAWEI MateView GT came about, we think.

It boasts 1440p (3,440 x 1,440) in resolution and the ultra-wide 21:9 display ratio is preferred here. Of course, all that is an influence of the most popular set-up a gaming PC has today. It refreshes at 165Hz as well, which is on par with some of the most advanced gaming displays of the modern world.  At 34-inch, the ultra-wide display will also pretty much take up your whole desk space. It is a curved display though, so you do not need to strain to see from edge to edge.

At a glance, you know it is made for gaming with a light strip along the base of the monitor. The slick and slim bars that holds the entire weight of the monitor is painted black too, just so you are not distracted from gaming. But there is more than meets the eyes with this monitor though.

Firstly, to make it fully immersive, HUAWEI ensures that it does not just pack a lot of pixels. The pixels has to display accurate colour information and must look great as well. The display covers 90% of DCI-P3 colour gamut. Its 1 billion colours is also displayed in HDR10 glory at 4000:1 contrast ratio for the best visual experience you can get in a display.

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OIn top of all of that, the light bar that stretches the width of the base of the monitor is not just for show. It is a touch sensitive volume control bar for the sound bar that is the base of the monitor. It packs two 5W speakers, which may not sound like much, but it does provide with you with immersive stereo experience to go with your gaming. That also means that you do not need to get a separate headphone or speaker set-up to get going. There are even two built-in speakers on the MateView GT itself, for you to communicate with your team mates or rivals in heated gaming sessions.

If you have multiple gaming devices, you can hook up to four devices at the same time. You get two HDMI 2.0 ports, for you PlayStation, or Xbox, or Nintendo Switch. You have one DisplayPort for your gaming PC, and another USB Type-C port for your productivity machine. The USB port can also be used to charge your devices too.

Pricing and Availability

The HUAWEI MateView and MateView GT is now available for pre-order (7th – 21st July). You can pre-order yours now via HUAWEI’s Online Store. Of course, you can also head down to HUAWEI’s official store on Shopee and Lazada to pre order both the MateView and MateView GT. The HUAWEI MateView retails at MYR 2,988 while the MateView GT retails at 2,488 with MYR 100 rebate for each pre-order. Each pre-order also entitles you to a complementary HUAWEI WiFi AX3 Dual Core router capable of WiFi 6 networking.

Lifestyle, Mobile, News

HUAWEI Launches the MatePad Pro 12.6-inch in Malaysia Priced from MYR 3,999

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HUAWEI launched their MatePad Pro series last year, to be fair. It had a 10.8-inch display, and it comes with a clever magnetic keyboard case and an M-Pencil that really adds up to your productivity. 10.8-inch, while quite large in a lot of cases, could be bigger. For 2021, HUAWEI launches the HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.6-inch.

What is the difference? Internally, not much.

The HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.6 comes with a very powerful Kirin 9000E 5G (up to) System on a Chip (SoC) still. At this point, the HiSilicon Kirin 9000E 5G processor with 5nm architecture is still HUAWEI’s most powerful and advanced processor to date. That processor is paired to an ample 8GB of RAM to ensure that you can easily and smoothly multitask like a champ. There is also 1256GB is memory, which is ample for mobile devices today.

Out the back is a 13-Megapixel main shooter supported by an 8-Megapixel ultra-wide sensor and a Time-of-Flight 3D sensor for great looking photos. The MatePad Pro 10.8-inch only comes with a single 13-Megapixel camera out the back. Both devices come with an 8-Megapixel front facing camera that hides in a punch hole at one corner of the device’s display though. The rear camera is also capable of shooting videos at 4K resolution.

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Source: HUAWEI

The new 2021 MatePad Pro comes with a 12.6-inch display though, compared to a 10.8-inch display of the older MatePad Pro. The 12.6-inch display shows you 2,560 x 1,600 resolution. It is an OLED display too, which also means even better colours. To be specific, the 12.6-inch OLED display boasts DCI-P3 colour gamut for good measure.

Of course, a larger screen comes with a bigger battery at 10,050 mAh compared to the 7,250 mAh on the MatePad Pro 10.8-inch. It still features 40W super charging (via USB Type-C) and fast wireless charging too in case you need more battery life out of your HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.6-inch.

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Source: HUAWEI

There is another difference between the HUAWEI MatePad Pro 10.8-inch and 12.6-inch is more than skin deep though. The older HUAWEI MatePad Pro 10.8-inch runs on EMUI 11. The new MatePad Pro 12.6-inch runs on HUAWEI’s new Harmony OS 2. That said, the HUAWEI MatePad Pro 10.8-inch that ships out now onward will run on Harmony OS 2 as well.

Harmony OS 2 is built to be a productivity beast though. With the HUAWEI MateBook series notebook PCs, the HUAWEI MatePad 12.6-inch can work as a secondary display and an external storage as well. You can work on your notebook and share items between the tablet and notebook when you need to and very seamlessly at that.

On top of all of these, the HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.6-inch is available with an updated HUAWEI M-Pencil. The 2nd Generation M-Pencil is built for a better and more natural feel of a regular pencil when you use it with HUAWEI’s MatePad series devices. At the same time the HUAWEI MatePad can be paired to the bigger magnetic keyboard too, in case the 10.8-inch variant feels a little cramped.

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The HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.6-inch is immediately available in Matte Grey colour option. It will set you back MYR 3,999. You can get your’s from HUAWEI’s official online store, and partnering online retailers including Shopee, Lazada, and Senheng. The HUAWEI MatePad Pro in Olive Green will be available for pre-order from the 7th July 2021 onward. The pre-order of the Olive Green variant of the HUAWEI MatePad Pro entitles you to a HUAWEI Classic Backpack, one month VIP access to HUAWEI Video, six TVOD passes, and free three months access to 50GB of HUAWEI Cloud Storage. More information on the HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.6-inch on HUAWEI’s website.

Mobile, News

Huawei Brings the New 12.6-inch MatePad Pro to Malaysia

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Huawei recently announced their new MatePad Pro series internationally. The new tablet is Huawei’s latest take on a productivity centered tablet and it’s making its way to Malaysia. The new tablet goes up for pre-orders starting today, June 10 2021.

Enhance Your Productivity

The Huawei MatePad Pro comes with a relatively large 12.6-inch OLED display which comes with a WQHD+ resolution of 2560×1600 pixels. The tablet’s high-resolution display comes in a slim body measuring only 6.7mm thick. The slim body and large display allow users to get more done; especially with Huawei’s implementation of multiwindow which allows users to use more than one app at a time. Enhance your productivity further by pairing the tablet with the new magnetic keyboard or M-Pencil.

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Huawei has built the MatePad Pro with the thinnest bezels for the best viewing experience. The 90.1% screen to body ratio allows for an uninterrupted viewing experience. The MatePad Pro is also one of the first tablets to come with a professionally calibrated display. The OLED display has an ∆E lower than 0.5. This allows users to use the tablet for colour sensitive work without lugging around a heavy professional, purpose-built laptop. Using the tablet for long hours shouldn’t be an issue either as it comes with Eye Comfort mode. The lowered blue light emissions help reduce eye strain and fatigue.

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You can even use the MatePad Pro as an extension of your PC with the many features that Huawei has built into it. The tablet can now bridge the gap between your devices. The Tablet-PC multiscreen collaboration capabilities allow you to use the tablet as an extension of your PC or even a collaborative surface. The Mirror, Extend and Collaborate Modes allows you to decide what works for your workflow. Files can even be transferred wirelessly between devices by simply dragging and dropping.

Power-packed to Relax & Unwind

That said, the Huawei MatePad Pro isn’t just a workhorse. The tablet can also be your companion even when you relax and unwind. The display and built-in Harman/Kardon tuned speakers allows users to lose themselves in their content. The screen will also adapt and optimise according to the content displayed thanks to Huawei’s ClariVu technology. Gaming on the tablet will take advantage of the vibrant colours of the OLED panel while the speakers will produce immersive sounds to complete the experience.

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The MatePad Pro comes with the new Kirin 9000E processor which is power efficient and packs a punch! It will be able to handle almost anything thanks to the enhanced efficiency of the Neural Processor and the synergistic tuning of the overall SoC. Paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of onboard memory, the tablet is built for both work and play. The new tablet also supports WiFi 6 for better connectivity and with the large, 10,050mAh battery with 40W SuperCharge, you’ll be ready for all-day performance.

Pricing & Availability

The 12.6-inch Huawei MatePad Pro will be available in Matte Grey in only the 8GB and 256GB configuration. It will retail for MYR3,999 (USD$971.05).

Huawei MatePad Pro Pre order

The MatePad Pro will be available for pre-order starting today, 10 June 2021, from the Huawei Store Online, Huawei Experience Stores, Lazada and Shopee. Pre-orders will come with freebies worth up to MYR1,747 which include the 2nd Generation M-Pencil, the Huawei Magnetic Keyboard and more.

Pre-order & Win

Users who pre-order the tablet can also stand a chance to win another MatePad Pro with the 2nd Generation M-Pencil. Simply head to the Huawei Store Online and answer the questions correctly, submit your order number and submit the required information. Winners will be announced on Huawei Mobile Malaysia’s Facebook page on 21 June 2021 at 2pm. Submissions close at 11:59pm on 17 June 2021.

Podcast

Tech & Tonic S2E10 – Are Proper Cameras Still Relevant in 2021?

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Smartphone cameras have been on a roll in the past two years. OnePlus launches their OnePlus 9 flagship series in partnership with Hasselblad, OPPO’s Find X3 Pro comes with a microscopic lens, Samsung pushing technology with 108-Megapixel sensors, Sony even pushing the limits of their 12-Megapixel sensors with their Alpha camera knowhow. These are nothing new, to be fair. Co-branding smartphone cameras with big camera brand names started with Nokia and Zeiss. The phenomenon hit the main stage with HUAWEI and Leica’s big partnership since the HUAWEI P9.

With the advancement in camera technology on smartphones though, has these brands made proper cameras obsolete? While nothing bigger sensor still has its own advantages in terms of low-light performance and detail, smartphone cameras have progressed so much with the software that they are paired with that even low-light photography is a breeze with a smartphone. The advancement of smartphone technology also made it easier for you to get the shots you want in less time and less work than a DSLR or mirrorless.

What does this mean for dedicated cameras though? Does this mean we can replace these kinds of stuff with the small slate in our pockets? Or, should you still spend your hard-earned money on a proper camera that could set you back anywhere between half the price of a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra to multiple flagship smartphones? We discuss this in this episode of Tech & Tonic.