Notwithstanding the sanctions by the U.S., Huawei is still releasing high-end smartphones, albeit with just 4G connectivity and not the super fast 5G connectivity which is fast becoming a standard. That said, we’d be expecting to continue to see new models of the Mate and P series but I did not expect a new model. But here it is, a brand new and very high-end model, the Huawei P50 Pocket Folding Phone.
That’s right, folks. It’s another folding phone. The Huawei P50 Pocket is the second foldable phone from Huawei after the Mate X series which has already seen three iterations to date and an answer to Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, i.e. it is a vertical folding phone. There are not many folding phones. Even lesser is the vertical folding variety which the market now has three now, including Motorola Razr.
As expected, when closed, the phone is pretty much square. Since it can’t bank on technical superiority, Huawei is betting on build and aesthetics. The latter, as some may have noted, borrows the design of the P50 series smartphone featuring dual circular modules on the back.
However, instead of having an additional camera module on the lower circle, it is a 1.04-inch cover screen.
The top circular module, on the other hand, packs a three-camera setup comprising of a 40 MP “True-Chroma” camera, a 13 MP ultra-wide angle, and a 32 MP “ultra spectrum” camera. Meanwhile, a 10.7 MP selfie camera can be found in the main 6.9-inch main folding screen.
The new P50 Pocket also claims near-invisible fold lines on the screen like the recently announced Oppo Find N.
The cover screen is a 60 Hz, 340 by 340 pixels OLED item while the main display is a variable refresh rate (up to 120 Hz) FHD+ (2,790 x 1,188) OLED display.
Under the hood, it is outfitted with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 4G chip, backed by up to 12 GB RAM and 512 GB ROM. And it is, of course, powered by Huawei’s very own Harmony OS.
The P50 Pocket has a 4,000 mAh battery that supports Huawei 40W SuperCharge. The rest of the specs are pretty rudimentary. What really shines is the design, which has a unique 3D micro-sculpture design on it.
That and the so-called multi-dimensional hinge which boasts innovative materials that afford it to fold seamlessly and unfold without any sign of creasing (or less creasing).
Three colors are being introduced: white with a diamond pattern, premium gold with organically flowing patterns designed by Iris Van Herpen, and a black example. It appears that the latter is announced for China market only.
The Huawei P50 Pocket Folding Phone may be a 4G device but it ain’t cheap. It has a starting price of 8,988 yuan (approx. US$1,411).
Images: Huawei.
