Huawei has announced its high-end smartphone Mate 50 series in China. The highlighted features include satellite communication support and a variable aperture camera.
Equipped with satellite communication
The biggest feature of the Mate 50 series is that it supports satellite communication. Huawei has obtained a new patent through which they use satellites to improve cellular communication performance with lesser power consumption.
It supports the BeiDou Satellite Message 3 protocol, allowing users to send text messages and location information via satellite communications even in areas where radio waves from network towers do not reach, such as when you are in a remote area or when you are in danger abroad, or when you need help in an earthquake or any other disaster.
Apple is expected to announce the latest iPhone 14, also equipped with satellite communication, at its latest launch event on September 7. But Huawei announced the Mate 50 series smartphone with satellite communication function one day earlier than Apple. Also, Google recently confirmed that Android 14 would come with support for satellite connectivity.
Variable aperture camera
In addition, both Mate 50 and Mate 50 pro have the same camera setup — a main 50MP rear camera with a variable aperture. You can change the aperture from 1.4 to 4.0 and adjust the degree of blurring in the photo to make it more attractive. A new feature called the 6-blade aperture is used, which helps you shoot the sun and the light beams in a beautiful way.
Both models also have 13MP ultrawide with an f/2.2 aperture and a telephoto lens too; while the Mate 50 has a 12MP with 100x digital zoom, and the Pro version has a badass 64 MP telephoto lens with 200x digital zoom.
The RS Porche design version swaps the telephoto lens with a 48MP Periscope telephoto camera that can even take macro shots. On the front, it has a 13MP ultrawide lens with 3D ToF sensor and advanced face ID unlock.
Equipped with Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 that does not support 5G communication
The Mate 50, Mate 50 Pro, and Mate 50 RS Porsche Design all are powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. As the sanctions from the United States have not been lifted, it’s not 5G compatible.
The Mate 50 sports a 6.7-inch 90hz OLED display, but the pro version comes with a 6.74-inch 120hz display. Another highlight of the Mate 50 series is the “Emergency Battery Mode”, which automatically activates when the battery level reaches 1%. In this mode, the battery will last for 3 hours in standby mode and 12 minutes in talk mode. Battery capacity on the spec sheet is almost similar to Mate 50, having 4460mah, and the Pro version has 4700mah with the support for 66 Watt wired and 50 Watt wireless fast charging.
Black, Orange, and Silver are the available colors for Mate 50. And Pro version and the Mate 50RS come in two colors — blue and purple in ceramic effect.
The price in China is 4,999 yuan (about $720) for the Mate 50, 6,799 yuan (about $975) for the Mate 50 Pro, and 12,999 yuan (about $1860) for the Mate 50 RS Porsche Design.