When I first received the Huawei Mate 80 Pro, I was very impressed by two things – its size and premium finish. The 6.75‑inch display takes up almost the entire front, framed by the slimmest of bezels, protected by Kunlun Glass 2, Huawei’s proprietary reinforced glass that’s been tested for drop resistance (important if you’re clumsy like me!).
The back features Huawei’s dual space rings circular camera system, which gives it a clean look that’s quite distinct from the Pura series’ triangular module (a phone that is still extremely tasteful). At about 219 g it’s not the lightest, but it feels solid in hand, not bulky.
The display
The screen on this phone is pretty stunning – 6.75‑inch LTPO OLED running at a 1–120 Hz adaptive screen refresh rate with 2832 x 1280 high resolution. Whether you are scrolling through social media or watching a 4K video, the display is smooth and the colours are rich.
Something that stood out for me is that the screen has peak brightness of 3000 nits which means that even in Singapore’s harsh midday sun, the sunlight will not wash out your screen. It also uses 1440 Hz high‑frequency PWM dimming which is aimed at reducing eye strain for people who are sensitive to the occasional screen flicker. If you spend a lot of time on your phone, this is a thoughtful feature.
Performance
Under the hood sits the Kirin 9030, Huawei’s latest in‑house chip built on a 6 nm process with a 9‑core CPU cluster and the Maleoon 935 GPU. This is a meaningful step up from the Kirin 9020 found in the Pura 80 series, especially in AI‑heavy tasks and graphics. AI features in this phone include AI composition, AI remove and AI best expression (picks the best photo with smiling faces).
The Mate 80 Pro I’ve gotten my hands on has the 16GB RAM with 512 GB storage but other variations have RAM that starts at 12 GB and goes up to 16 GB, paired with storage options from 256 GB all the way up to 1 TB. Do note that there is no microSD slot, so pick your storage wisely upfront.
Day‑to‑day use is smooth and responsive with apps opening fast, multi-tasking very smooth, and the switching within modes in the camera app doesn’t stutter.
The phone runs on Huawei’s HarmonyOS 6, and if you are already in the Huawei ecosystem, this feels polished and well thought out. Huawei’s AppGallery has grown a lot, and Petal Search helps bridge gaps.
Camera System
Three cameras on the back, and all pull their weight.
Spotted the Disney Cruise from afar – photo on the left with 1x zoom and photo on the right with 40x zoom.
The main 50 MP RYYB sensor comes with a variable aperture ranging from f/1.4 to f/4.0 with OIS. That variable aperture is genuinely useful. Huawei’s XMAGE imaging system processes these shots with a “True‑to‑Colour” philosophy, meaning photos look natural rather than over‑saturated and over‑sharpened.
The 40 MP ultra‑wide angle camera with 0.6x zoom.
Close-ups of flowers taken with super macro mode.
The 48 MP macro telephoto at around 4x optical zoom is sharp and stable thanks to OIS. Portraits at this focal length look excellent, with natural background compression.
On the front, a 13 MP ultra‑wide selfie camera is paired with a 3D ToF sensor. This enables more secure face unlock and better depth mapping for portrait selfies.
Video goes up to 4K with HDR Vivid support, OIS and gyro‑EIS, and a full suite of shooting modes including Night, Ultra Speed Snapshot, slow‑motion, and light‑painting.
Battery
The Huawei Mate 80 Pro packs a 5,750 mAh battery – a big one for that matter, making it is one of the clearest advantages the Mate 80 Pro holds over most rivals including Huawei’s Pura 80. For a heavy user in Singapore’s always‑on lifestyle, this matters.
Charging is just as impressive: 100 W wired charging (supercharge mode was activated when I plugged it with my fast charger), 80 W wireless charging, plus reverse wired and reverse wireless so you can charge your accessories like earbuds or a smartwatch straight from the phone.
Final Thoughts
The Huawei Mate 80 Pro is for the person who wants a flagship that covers all bases like big battery, strong performance and a fantastic camera system, all with a premium finish.
Availability
You can order the Huawei Mate 80 Pro for S$1,298 now. Secure yours at all Huawei Experience Stores, or through the official Huawei stores on Shopee, Lazada,
Entelechy Asia 