China’s mobile phone industry was buzzing with the news of the Huawei Mate 60 Pro [CH] last week. The device was supposed to be revealed in an event set on September 12 but it quietly went on sale last week. That’s not the reason for the buzz, although it was part of the reason.
HiSilicon Kirin Returns With 5G?
What really got the tech enthusiasts in China going ga-ga was what’s under the hood. While the specification on the official website did not detail the System on Chip, it didn’t take long for tech enthusiasts to find out it is being powered by Kirin 9000S. That’s right, folks. Kirin is back. I believe the Huawei Mate40 Series was the last to be powered by a Kirin chip (a Kirin 9000, btw).
After the sanction by the US. Huawei has lost the ability to develop and manufacture its own Kirin chips but it looks like the saying ‘what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger‘ is true because enthusiasts uncovered that the Kirin 9000S is designed by China’s semiconductor company SMIC and apparently, it is a 7 nm chip. Also, while it is not stated, the new 9000S has better than 5G speeds. So I guess 5G is back for Huawei?
NearLink Debuts On Mate60
In addition, there is a new kind of connectivity introduced with the device called NearLink, a new kind of short-range wireless connectivity standard that isn’t quite short-range. NearLink is lauded as the next-gen wireless technology that does what Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are already doing but way better.
For starters, it consumes 60% less power than traditional wireless connections and it has a range of up to 600 meters (1,969 feet!) – 2x more than the most sophisticated access point over 5 GHz band. Moreover, transmission speed is blazing fast, reportedly over 900 Mbps, and with a latency of 20 microseconds. We also heard that it can support up to a stupendous 4,096 simultaneous connections.
While the new Huawei Mate 60 Pro is the first device to rock this tech, it is pretty much useless at this point since there are little to no devices to work with it.
The Rest Of The Key Specifications
Anyways, other spec sheet details include a 120 Hz variable refresh rate 6.82-inch LTPO display with FHD+ (2,720 x 1,260 pixels) resolution, 2nd-generation Kunlun glass, 12 GB RAM, up to 1 TB ROM, support expandable storage (up to 256 GB), Huawei Xmage camera system (50 MP OIS + 12 MP super wide angle + 48 MP macro/telephoto) with 3.5x optical zoom and up to 100x digital zoom, a 13MP front-facing camera with a 3D depth camera, a 5,000 mAh battery, supports 88 W super fast charging, supports 50 W Huawei super-fast wireless charging, 20 W wireless reverse charging, IP68 rated, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, USB 3.1 Gen1, a comprehensive suite of positioning, and the usual suspect of sensors you can expect from a flagship device.
Pricing And Availability
The Huawei Mate 60 Pro is available in China with a starting price of 6,499 yuan [CH] (US$889).
Images: Huawei [CH].
