Mate 30 comes to UK at last; shows Huawei’s renewed confidence in launching a phone without Google Services

Just after the Mate 20 X got a DxOMark score over a year after its release, comes news that the Mate 30 Pro, released at the end of 2019, is finally coming to the UK.

And on the same day Samsung is set to unveil its new Galaxy S20 family. Hmm, the timing is uncanny….

But back to the phone, which was eagerly awaited and then suffered such a heavy blow after losing the ability to ship with Google Mobile Services.

At the time, Huawei stated its intention to go with its own solution, but the networks were somewhat unconvinced and cancelled their planned releases.

Even a promise of the phone being available SIM free in the UK never actually happened (until now), with an extremely limited release in Europe.

The only real way to get one was an import from China, which wasn’t cheap – especially if you wanted one of the leather-clad versions or the 5G variant.

Now the phone is getting a release exclusively from Carphone Warehouse, in the 4G variant only and just one colour – space silver.

Confidence boost

It shows the market is now a little more confident that Huawei Mobile Services is now ready to offer customers a usable experience without the need to come with Google Mobile Services.

Sure, it’s still possible to sideload GMS (and there are also hacks to allow apps like Google Maps or YouTube to work even without it) but most people won’t be wanting to get involved with any of that, and will rely on Huawei Mobile Services, and Huawei’s App Gallery app store, instead.

Now it seems there will be plenty of alternatives for Google’s core apps, and other apps like Netflix are expected to receive certification soon. Add in the possibility of mobile payments via Huawei Pay, and suddenly things aren’t as bleak as they were back in September 2019 when I first got my hands on with the phone.

This isn’t just good news for anyone wanting to get the Mate 30 Pro, as it now means there’s an increased likelihood of the P40 series getting a UK launch from the get go.

I’ve heard at least one big UK operator is intending to take a punt with the P40, and following positive news from Huawei’s recent developer conference and having seen a Mate 30 Pro running vanilla Android but still working with Maps and YouTube, there is definitely now more of a realistic possibility to get by without Google apps – even if not everyone is going to be convinced just yet,

The P-series is arguably more popular than the Mate series, and the end of March is when we expect to see the latest and greatest camera developments from Huawei.

Reward for patience

For those who can’t wait any longer for a successor to their Mate 20, or perhaps even the Mate 10 or older, the Mate 30 is available to pre-order today for £899 and early customers will get a free set of FreeBuds 3 in white and a Huawei Watch GT 2 (46mm black sports edition).

That’s quite a substantial discount, if you factor in the value of the freebies.

The phone will begin shipping to all from February 20th.

• To pre-register, go to the Carphone Warehouse site now.

Press release

HUAWEI Set to Launch the Ground-Breaking Mate 30 Pro in the UK,
Exclusively with Carphone Warehouse

Iconic Handset Features the Flagship Kirin 990 SoC, Amazing Quad Camera System with Breakthrough SuperSensing Cine Camera & Futuristic Halo Ring Design

London – 11 February 2019 – Huawei today announced that its ground-breaking HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro will launch in the UK later this month exclusively with Carphone Warehouse. Setting new standards in every area from aesthetic design through to hardware engineering and software innovation, the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro is the pinnacle of mobile technological development.

Benefiting from Huawei’s 32-years of expertise in communication technologies and a decade in design innovation, the HUAWEI Mate 30 looks and performs like no other smartphone. Inspired by the design principle of minimalism, the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro showcases the perfect example of how aesthetic design fuses with technology. Its unique, iconic OLED HUAWEI Horizon Display offers an immersive viewing experience, while the Kirin 990 SoC – affords unrivalled levels of performance and efficiency.

A revolutionary integrated quad-camera includes the SuperSensing Cine Camera, a dual main camera system designed for amazing photographic and video graphic results, while the HUAWEI SuperCharge and EMUI10 offer long-lasting battery life for heavy mobile users and an enhanced user experience.

Anson Zhang, Managing Director of the UK Consumer Business Group, Huawei, said: “We are delighted to bring the Mate 30 Pro, a device which unleashes the full potential of the smartphone, to the UK. Huawei prides itself on delivering stand-out experiences for our customers – and the Mate 30 Pro is the ultimate expression of that philosophy, re-defining what is possible on a smartphone.”

Rethink Design: Futuristic iconic handset

The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro builds upon the aesthetic of the HUAWEI Mate 20 Series with a futuristic design that is sure to make a lasting impression. With an ultra-narrow notch design and the thinnest of bezels, the Huawei Mate 30 Pro features the HUAWEI Horizon Display, which curves at an angle of 88 degrees to maximise the display area to provide an unparalleled, edge-to-edge immersive viewing experience.

HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro introduces the Intuitive Side-touch Interaction feature to replace the side volume buttons with invisible virtual keys. This feature also allows users to customise the volume key position on either sides of the device and makes HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro the most integrated, all-in-one design smartphone currently available. Together, HUAWEI 3D Face Unlock and In-Screen Fingerprint provide high levels of biometric security and convenience.

Turn the device over and the iconic ring design of the quad-camera system immediately stands out, surrounded by a metallic ‘halo’. Mirroring the design of a DSLR camera and designed to be held comfortably, the beautiful HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro makes the user the focus of the crowd, attracting all the attention. The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro also features HUAWEI Acoustic Display Technology to deliver high-quality audio through a sound emitting display.

Rethink Performance

The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro is powered by the HUAWEI Kirin 990 series chipset, Huawei’s most sophisticated smartphone chipset launched to date. The HUAWEI Kirin 990 challenges the limits of silicon-based physics by incorporating a three-level power efficiency architecture for the CPU, Huawei’s self-developed Da Vinci NPU architecture (large dual-NPU + tiny NPU cores) as well as a supersised 16-core GPU to deliver super-fast performance and high-power efficiency.

The HUAWEI Mate 30 sports a large battery of 4500mAh and with TÜV Rheinland certified wired and wireless Huawei SuperCharge Technology, the 27W Wireless HUAWEI SuperCharge and the 40W HUAWEI SuperCharge provide users safe and fast charging, while wired and wireless in-car charging and a wired powerbank ensure a seamless experience across all scenarios.

Additionally, the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro provides upgraded reverse wireless charging bringing users a quick and convenient way to recharge other devices.

Rethink Photography and Videography – SuperSensing Cine Camera for Stunning Images and Videos

The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro sports a revolutionary quad camera system with the 40MP Cine Camera, 40MP SuperSensing Camera, an 8MP Telephoto Camera and a 3D Depth Sensing Camera.

The SuperSensing Cine Camera is a Dual-main camera system capable of taking stunning photos that rival high-end cameras. The Cine Camera features a large 1/1.54-inch sensor size with a high maximum Video ISO of 51200 to capture videos with an extended dynamic range at 4K/60fps as well as ultra slow-motion at the highest 7680 fps. It also supports 4K Low-light Ultra-wide time-lapse video. The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro also offers pro-bokeh capabilities while recoding for professional looking results. Additionally, the second of the dual-camera system is a 1/1.7-inch HUAWEI SuperSensing Camera which attracts 40% more lights to deliver stunning results in low light conditions with an impressive light sensitivity of ISO409600, making it the best low light one-shot device ever even for ultra-wide shots.

The 8MP HUAWEI Telephoto Camera offers 3x optical zoom, 5x Hybrid Zoom and up to 30x Digital Zoom. Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) + AI Stabilisation (AIS) and 3D Depth Sensing, complete the package making the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro the most capable handset for smartphone photography and videography available to consumers. A front-facing 3D Depth Sensing Camera delivers pro-bokeh effects with accurate depth-of-field information for selfies and portraits.

Rethink Interaction: A Faster, Safer and More Engaging Experience
The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro features a range of new features that deliver an amazingly smooth and engaging user experience:

· EMUI10 operating system featuring a contemporary magazine inspired layout,
Always-On-Display (AOD) where the colour of the lock screen changes throughout the day;
· Dark Mode brings enhanced legibility making the screen look gentler and more comfortable when night falls;
· Intuitive Side-touch Interaction to customise invisible virtual keys for volume adjustment, gaming and camera set-up as well as being ideal for both right and left-handed users;
· AI gesture control for contactless screen interaction, whereas AI Auto-Rotate and AI Private View are all designed to improve users experience;
· HiCar smart travel for advanced, seamless connectivity between device and a car’s communication and entertainment system;
· Multi-screen Collaboration allows users to transfer data and control multiple screens between Huawei devices;
· HUAWEI 3D Face Unlock and In-screen Fingerprint to provide advanced data security and privacy protection with (HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro only);
· Memory: 8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage
· The HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro supports Huawei Mobile Services and Huawei AppGallery. The rapidly expanding marketplace for apps, Huawei AppGallery delivers a wide variety of apps users use on a daily basis, including a variety of services for gaming, productivity, and video content.

Colours, Pricing and Availability

The 6.53-inch HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro (RRP £899) will launch in Space Silver exclusively with Carphone Warehouse. Pre-registration will open on 11th February, and will launch on 20th February. Customers who purchase a Mate 30 Pro will also receive a bundled HUAWEI Watch GT 2 (46mm Black Sport Edition) and a pair of HUAWEI Freebuds 3 (White) – while stocks last.

This promotion is organised and administered by Carphone Warehouse. To pre-register, please visit: http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/huawei/register-your-interest-mate-30-pro.html

Official press release