I am not a great photographer and so I have always figured that carrying a professional camera would somehow enhance my photography skills. However, between the bulk, the babying it needs, and the fact that the best shot is always the one a person is ready for, a proper camera in the pocket has always made more sense than having a bulky one. The catch has always been trading quality for convenience.
The Huawei Pura 90s Pro Max is the closest I have come to not making that trade-off. It shoots like a professional camera, survives being handled like a phone (think sturdy display screen), and still slips into a pocket easily. After spending time shooting with it, here are what stood out.
The powerful camera and vibrant colours
The headline spec is hard to ignore: a 200MP ultra large sensor telephoto camera, Huawei’s first with chip-level 200MP RAW real-time processing. In practice, this means the further the zoom goes, the less grainy things get.
Huawei claims a 200 percent improvement in telephoto video definition and up to 20x ultra-telephoto video that stays crisp rather than falling apart into noise. Paired with an industry-leading CIPA 7.0 stabilisation level, handheld shots at long focal lengths came out steadier than expected.
Also, paired with the second gen true-to-colour camera, the AI colour engine ensures industry-grade vibrant colour and accuracy across different scenarios.
In the image below, the lady was standing in front of a brightly lit backdrop – see how she still stood well-lit in front of the backdrop. The flowers and butterfly images also showcase the vibrancy of colours picked up by this camera. All three images were not edited.
A photography coach on-hand
This feature is new to me (not new new, but my first time actually trying it out), and it grows on the user. AI composition can be switched on, the phone moved to align the dot with the ring, letting the AI do its work, then a tap of the shutter takes the photo.
AI composition reads the scene (portrait, architecture, landscape) and suggests better framing and angle in real time. It’s one of those features that’s less gimmicky and more practical, especially in how it coaches the shooter to the shot. Huawei says this version brings a 20 percent improvement in scene coverage and trigger rate compared to the previous version.
The practical duo: AI de-glare and AI move
The AI de-glare feature has got to be one of the most practical camera features every camera should offer. Anyone who’s tried to shoot through a café window, a museum display case, or a night scene from within a building knows the pain of glare. Gone are the days of pressing a phone against the glass panel. Instead, AI helps remove the glare with a single tap.
The AI move feature also does the job when it comes to moving, repositioning and resizing items within images easily. After taking the image, the feature provides the ability to select sections within the photo to shift around. It identifies items within the image, allows shifting across the photo, and reconstructs the background once items have been shifted. This is especially useful for images that involve shifting or resizing images within a photo without having to recapture it again.
Design
The Pura 90s Pro Max follows Huawei’s Rhythm of Colour design philosophy, pairing a flat-edged display with a look that’s understated yet elegant. It’s available in three colours in Singapore: Blush Gold, Orange Ocean, and Graphite Black, with the Orange Ocean model featuring an industry-first dual-tone gradient metal mid-frame. The dual-tone gradient mid-frame means the dual tone isn’t just on the back of the phone, but across the entire non-display section.
The front is protected by anti-reflection and scratch-resistant kunlun glass that cuts screen reflection by up to 70 percent while improving resistance to scratches and fingerprints. Under the blazing sun, I was able to view the content of the phone easily which was pretty amazing considering how hot and sunny Singapore and Malaysia’s outdoors are.
Battery and charging
The phone consists of a 6000mAh battery with 100W wired SuperCharge and 60W wireless charging.
I personally really love bubbly effect and fast moving charging values that appear when the fast charger is connected to this device because it gives all that battery assurance. While charging and using the phone quite extensively, the battery increased by about 45 percent in 30 minutes.
AI and connectivity
Rounding things out is the Celia AI agent, handling knowledge Q&A, drafting, and travel/ride-hailing integration (though I have yet to try it out), alongside the AppGallery ecosystem and surprisingly, the return of 5G in this series.
Accessibility and practicality
One of the most common questions I get from friends (and readers) when using a Huawei phone is: But can Google apps still be used? The honest answer used to be complicated. Now, GBox is available in AppGallery, This container app lets Google services and apps, Maps, YouTube, Gmail, and more, run smoothly on the device without needing Google Mobile Services baked into the OS. It is a one-time installation from AppGallery, signing in with a Google account inside it, after which Google apps sit alongside everything else on the home screen.
And for the everyday essentials that matter in Singapore specifically, banking apps are already there. OCBC, DBS and UOB are all available for download directly on AppGallery, so switching phones doesn’t mean losing access to how money gets managed day to day.
Huawei has also introduced Petal Interconnect – an app that allows Huawei users to share photos (essentially like AirDrop) to MacOS and iOS users. Apple users can download the app on the App Store for swift sharing of files between devices.
What could have been better
Blaze Purple staying off the Singapore list is quite a shame for anyone drawn to gradient purples. Hopefully, it is a regional allocation decision rather than a permanent snub. Also, with most AI-assisted editing suite, features wuch as AI composition, AI remove, AI de-glare, and AI move can only be used with an Internet access.
Conclusion
For anyone whose phone doubles as their primary camera and wants AI that quietly fixes real shooting problems (glare, awkward framing, an object in the wrong spot) rather than just adding filters, the Pura 90s Pro Max is worth putting on the shortlist.
Availability
The Huawei Pura 90s Pro Max retails at S$1,498 in Singapore, with pre-orders opening July 30 to August 5, 2026 and general sale starting August 6, 2026 across Huawei Experience Stores, Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop, and retailers including Singtel, Best Denki, Challenger, Courts, iShopChangi, and MetaPod.
Early birds get S$30 off via platform vouchers, plus up to S$886 in bundled gifts including a Huawei MatePad SE 11-inch and a year of Huawei Care+.
Most images featured in this post were taken with the Huawei P90s Pro Max.
Thank you to Huawei for hosting Entelechy Asia at your global product launch event in Kuala Lumpur.
Entelechy Asia 
