Features

Bali through the lens of the HUAWEI P60 Pro

Bringing HUAWEI’s godlike camera smartphone to the Island of the Gods

Published

July 14, 2023

Vincenz

Any Indonesians out there? Selamat pagi!

Or are you one of the gods in Bali? Om swastiastu!

Regardless if you’re a god or a boring human being (like yours truly), Bali, Indonesia is one heavenly place that is a must-visit. It’s called the “Island of the Gods” for a reason.

Not only does it have one of the best beaches around, it’s also an island home to scenic volcano views and mountainous peaks and terrain. Most of all, the rich Bali heritage and culture has been preserved for hundreds of years.

Godlike smartphone cameras

Just to backtrack, the HUAWEI P60 Pro was first launched in China last March 2023 followed by a global rollout this May.

The specific camera hardware goes like this:

48MP main (wide) camera, f/1.4-4.0 Dual Variable aperture system
13MP f/2.2 ultra-wide angle (UWA) rear camera
48MP f/2.1 telephoto lens with 3.5x optical zoom
13MP f/2.4 ultra-wide angle (UWA) front camera

Even though it’s unfortunate that their exclusive partnership with Leica has ended, the phone’s XMAGE imaging system is still one of the best in the smartphone market today.

Can’t wait to see how the “godlike” cameras of the HUAWEI P60 Pro perform? Well, I’m gonna let all the 60 photo sets speak for themselves — with a little bit of trivia and commentary in-between.

Pop on the top

Admit it or not, most of us hate the idea of waking up early before the sun even shines. But it would be a big missed opportunity to skip the early morning ride towards the peak of an active volcano called Gunung Batur (or Mount Batur).

After some time, with the right weather and timing, you could end up having ✨ SwEEt anD LoVeLy ✨ shots like this.

Portrait Mode

Despite the large pack of ATVs, the HUAWEI P60 Pro still clearly captured the detail of the grasses, trees, and the whole mountainous area. More so, how the colors of the sunrise pop with the right amount of HDR evident in the sun along its light rays.

Portrait Mode

Bear with us. There will be more definitely-in-a-relationship shots like this of my friend together with her Hype Boy.

Tough and rough

After that scenic sunrise, Bali tourists have the option to continue the ATV ride further down the rougher surfaces of the mountain (or volcano).

3.5x Telephoto Zoom

With the 3.5x telephoto zoom lens of the HUAWEI P60 Pro, my friend and her boyfie were able to take these exhilarating shots of the ATVs like they were shot by a professional camera with a super-fast shutter release.

3.5x Telephoto Zoom

Even though these are the common sights among the rural parts of most Southeast Asian nations, these luscious forests and rural landscapes are the views that Bali tourists get to enjoy in their visit.

Life lesson: not everything is smooth-sailing. Just by looking at the transition of photos, that felt like a rough and tough ride.

This is where the ultra-wide angle (UWA) camera of the P60 Pro comes in handy. With that super-wide FoV (Field of View), my friend perfectly flexed her look alongside that massive ATV above those rocks (or hardened ash, whatever they may be).

Don’t Mess Up My Temple

If you read that to the tune of EXO’s (Don’t Mess Up My) Tempo, you were absolutely right — just in time for their latest 7th Album comeback release 🤩

Anyhow, Bali being a god-loved island, you will see many temples around. One of which is the very popular Lempuyang Temple.

You can even do a photo-op with your lovey-dovey if you both like it that way 🙄

That’s just one among the many temples in the island. There are also the Temples of Uluwatu, Taman Ayun, Ulun Danu Beratan, Besakih Mother Temple, and many more in the itinerary.

This suddenly reminded me of my Jakarta trip last January 2020 where I also wandered around several temples even in the middle of Indonesia’s city center. This proves how Indonesians value their culture.

Breathtaking Penida-scapade

Another highlight of Bali is none other than the view you will see when you go to the western part of the smaller Penida Island just below the main island of Bali — Nusa Penida to be precise.

If you can’t reach the ever-scenic shooting place featured in the Korean Drama Descendants of the Sun because it’s in the faraway island of Zakynthos in Greece (and requires a European visa for most travelers), Nusa Penida is your next best bet.

Whether it’s the main (wide) and ultra-wide cameras of the HUAWEI P60 Pro, shots look stunning and superb. Not only does it highlight the subjects, but also the full view you see like anyone who sees it IRL.

And as I was writing this, it felt like I teleported to that particular scenery and became part of their escapade.

I’m Gonna Swing…

From the chandelier? Not really. But here at Uma Ceking in Ubud, Bali, there are several swings for any couple to enjoy 👀

3.5x Portrait

1x Portrait | 3.5x Portrait

Already evident with the heart-shaped swings and seats, it is, indeed, heaven for couples (and haven for the lovelorn souls 🥺).

Tourists from different parts of the globe surely enjoy their lovely surroundings.

If I were here all by myself, I think I still would have enjoyed my alone time just by focusing on these beautiful stacks of Ceking Rice Terraces all noon long.

The Indo Taste

Indonesia is known for their popular fried rice Nasi Goreng, famous instant noodles Mi Goreng, or just several packs and varieties of Sambal that locals put in their rice, meat, or other types of meal.

Even though I love spicy food, the level of Indonesia’s spiciness is just on a whole other level.

Still, it wouldn’t be a complete Bali experience without actually trying their cuisine. These include a special set of nasi putih (white rice), daging (meat), kulit (roasted crispy pork skin), gorengan (batter fried meat), sayur (Balinese vegetables), and even sosis (blood sausage). Lastly, base genep (or Balinese spices) to top that authentic Bali taste.

And oh! The perfect way to fulfill that tropical island experience is by drinking fresh coconut juice.

Cat-puccino

You heard that right! Catpuccino (or “cat poo chino” as how they stylized it) is a real deal in Bali.

The “cat poop coffee” isn’t coming from the usual cats we see since most of us know that cats and coffee are not in good terms.

The coffee actually comes from Asian Palm Civets (also known as musang) — or just civet cats in simpler terms. But because of how they digest coffee cherries and leave the rest of the beans out, harvesters believe their “poo” gives an extra oomph when brewed as coffee.

Even though it looks or sounds disgusting, Kopi Luwak is considered as the most expensive coffee in the world. And with the very thorough and tedious process of actually making it into a by-product, it’s more of the many reasons why this Bali delicacy is a must-try.

Wild and mild

While we’re already on the topic, it’s also not surprising for any tropical country to have a variety of wild and mild animals roaming around.

Whether that may be a civet cat or a domesticated cat, these furries will be harmless as long as they are unharmed and being taken care of.

And can I just mention how fierce this tabby cat looks — the same way my indoor tabby cat looks at me whenever I’m eating.

I don’t support biases among pets but if cats aren’t your thing, these adorable sleeping puppies are enough to fill-up your empty day.

But if you’re more of a thrill-seeker, here’s a Malayan Krait (or Bungarus Candidus) at Tanah Lot — popularly known as the “Holy Snake”.

Built like a chimp-ion

The aforementioned animals aren’t the only thingyou will see when you visit Bali. There’s a specific sanctuary for Bali Monkeys at the Ubud Monkey Forest.

These long-tailed monkeys aren’t just here to wander. Knowing how intelligent these species are, they can even interact with you like you belong in their tribe.

Taking selfies like a chimp-ion — like how this Balinese macaque held the HUAWEI P60 Pro and took ultra-wide angle (UWA) groufies with the gang.

Using the same type of lens at the back gives us the ethereal vibe of the forest.

And even without the Leica lens optics, HUAWEI was still able to deliver “sun-kissed” shots with flares all around particularly due to its XMAGE imaging system.

Water the odds?

With Bali’s rich heritage, you shouldn’t be surprised to see a lot of water-filled temples, statues, symbolisms, and scriptures anywhere you go.

The abundance of temples will be more than enough for your photo-ops. Just remember to walk with respect and leave the preserved ruins unscathed.

Another must-visit is the Tirta Empul Temple where visitors can bathe in the sacred and holy water to “purify” and “cleanse” themselves.

Want to see and feed these giant Koi fishes? Tirta Gangga is where you have to head next!

Can we just appreciate the prowess of the P60 Pro’s 3.5x telephoto shooter as it was able to achieve the beautiful scenery of the dragon-decorated bridge alongside the majestic-looking swan boat passing by.

Seas the day

How could one skip the swimming and tanning on Bali’s beautiful beaches?

Quality-wise, the consistency is evident all throughout the set — regardless which type of lens you use. Heck, its portrait mode algorithm even looks professionally-shot with that clear distinction between the foreground subject and objects against the slushy water waves.

Even these selfies are testaments that HUAWEI values not just the rear cameras on the P60 Pro, but even the front camera as well.

A split-second movement usually results to blurred shots. But with the fast AF (Auto Focus) of the P60 Pro, it felt like there was a freeze in time — regardless if there is an abundance or absence of light.

Mandatory memento

Any trip would feel incomplete without bringing along some souvenirs before going back home.

Whether it’s the tiny ref magnets, dangling keychains, vibrant surfboards, colorful paintings in huge canvases, wacky-looking Balinese masks (called barong), or just photos of these altogether, these are already enough to keep and relive the Bali moments whenever, wherever.

Even a photo of your hotel’s façade/balcony, or just a super wide-angle #OOTD selfie are enough mementos after all that hectic travel to and from several tourist spots around the town.

And don’t forget your mandatory plane window shots before you head back to reality!

1x | Ultra-Wide

Perfect for pros and non-pros alike

Whether you take it early in the dawn or a little bit late by the dusk, the HUAWEI P60 Pro proves to be a real champ when it comes to taking photos — even without the necessary pro-grade skills and equipment to do so.

Admittedly, neither of them are professionals when it comes to photography. But as I usually say in my camera-specific write-ups, anyone can take professionally-looking snaps as long as they get the right framing and timing.

And with the HUAWEI P60 Pro’s astounding cameras plus excellent XMAGE imaging system and AI algorithm, they were able to shoot not just picture perfect photos, but professional-looking perspectives — at least in my eyes who’s very photography-centric.

Even that one macaque is a proof that regardless of which user is holding the phone, a device equipped with a great set of camera hardware contributes in taking great-looking sequential photos in a second — especially those blurry-free snaps we all desire.

Special thanks to my friend Judai, together with her lovey-dovey boyfie and friends for bringing us (virtually) to Bali through the wonderful cameras of the HUAWEI P60 Pro.

Features

Can the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G Survive?

REDMI Titan Durability Challenge!

Published

January 17, 2026

GadgetMatch and Michael Josh Villanueva

As someone who travels and is outdoors a lot, THE Michael Josh will be the first to admit that he is NOT gentle with his phones.

They live in his pockets, bags, hands. They get dropped, they get wet, and they get dusty.

So when REDMI asked him to test something they call “REDMI Titan Durability,” he figured the only fair way to do it was to put the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G to the ultimate durability test.

Reviews

POCO M8 Pro review: Goin’ loco over this POCO

POCO starts 2026 with some bang

Published

January 15, 2026

Vincenz

Looking back at my first few months with GadgetMatch back in 2018 nostalgically evoked my Pocophone F1 core memory. It was touted as THE “flagship killer for less.”

Pre-pandemic, that “Pocophone” simply became “POCO” and became an “independent” kiddo who moved out of its parent’s house.

Almost eight years after that very first iteration, I’ve finally had my first (and long overdue) POCO-perience with the latest POCO M8 Pro.

Design: Repurposed with a purpose

While I have not held a POCO phone until very recently, I am still aware of the brand’s offerings over the years.

Seeing the POCO M8 Pro for the first time instantly reminded me of last year’s Redmi Note 14 Pro series. That’s not me saying POCO blatantly ripped the aesthetics as the POCO X7 also had the same design language.

Graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

Like a full circle moment, the aforementioned phones were launched back a year ago.

In all honesty, it still confuses me which direction Xiaomi is heading, especially with the non-stop rebadging of existing POCO and REDMI phones — just with scrambled internals and CMF (color, materials, finish).

Having said that, I still consider the M8 Pro a level up from the last M7 Pro. The former’s design felt like it was not given much importance.

The centered camera island with a squircle cutout seemed like a signature design element of Xiaomi’s newer midrange line moving forward.

I also love how the phone felt in my hands. Even with that plastic back, it felt grippy enough when held.

You have to be wary of fingerprint smudges though — especially if you rock the black colorway. Luckily, the green shade I have still looks clean despite those unwanted smears.

And, if you’re brave enough to clean it in running water, the POCO M8 Pro boasts not just one, not two, but quadruple IP ratings: IP66, IP68, IP69, and even IP69K. These used to be exclusive only among 2025 flagships.

Now Playing: IDOL I

Much like my fanaticism to anything tech, the same can be said with Korean Pop Stars. More known as “K-Pop Idols”, I have been a huge geek of K-Pop for 16 long years (and still counting).

Interestingly, after finishing a series that just ended in Netflix, IDOL I swiftly came by. Even if I am the type of viewer who values the drama’s synopsis more than the cast involved, this K-Drama instantly hit two birds in one.

For one, its starred by a true iconic idol herself: Choi Sooyoung — or one of the nine members of SNSD / Girls’ Generation a.k.a the ultimate 2nd generation K-Pop girl group I’ve been stanning since my youth.

Although Maeng Se-na here is a heartless and “selfish” lawyer, she is the opposite for being a huge (yet silent) fan of “Gold Boys” with Do Ra-ik as his “Ult” (or Ultimate Bias).

In a wild turn of events, the idol became a “murderer” overnight — blaming him for the sudden death of his co-member after waking up from their drinking session.

But, no matter how the general public looks at him as the prime suspect, finding faults against Ra-ik is difficult. That’s pointing out the fact that he was just sleeping in his bed while his former bandmate slash loyal friend got stabbed without clear answers.

I can pretty much say the same thing with the 6.83-inch screen of the POCO M8 Pro: I cannot see any fault at all.

For one, it’s an AMOLED display that made me enjoy binging the first four episodes non-stop. But, being able to display 68.7 billion Colors and 12-bit color depth aside from the usual HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support? That’s likely unusual for a phone in such price point.

And, with a 1.5K display resolution plus a pixel density of 447 ppi, it’s as crisp as it could get. Watching it outdoors is neither a problem with its mighty 3200 nits peak brightness.

While my eyes aren’t very sensitive to light and flicker, its 3840Hz PWM dimming and TÜV Rheinland Flicker-Free and Low Blue Light certifications are still worth mentioning — especially if you stay up all night binge-watching hours worth of titles like yours truly.

On Queue: Apink’s RE:LOVE + Chuu’s XO, My Cyberlove

Pumping up the volume by 60%, it’s expected that the POCO M8 Pro possesses a louder than ever sound output. However, my audio assessment doesn’t end just there.

Just like POCO starting the year with a bang, the K-Pop scene in January 2026 has already exploded with real hit bangers.

First and foremost, Apink finally gathered again to released their 11th Mini Album (their previous Mini Album dates back to 2020). As per usual, I used Apple Music to take full advantage of that Lossless format.

Their title track “Love Me More” not only brought a lot of the group’s nostalgic intro and dance break instrumental during their early days in the industry, it also reminded me of the pre-millennium K-Pop era back in the early 90s.

Pair that with b-sides such as “Sunshine” that sounded pure and soulful, this latest mini album will truly make Pink Pandas’ hearts flutter.

In addition, Chuu (LOONA) finally releases her 1st Full Album titled “XO, My Cyberlove.” It is a complete opposite of her first ever solo song “Heart Attack” almost a decade ago which highlighted her cutesy, innocent charms.

The comeback track of the same title is as quirky and whimsical as it gets. Not only does it highlight Chuu’s light yet ethereal vocals, but it shows her newer, more mature side.

Furthermore, lyrics that evoke unexpected budding love in this digital era where everyone enjoys making connections through the cyber world.

With POCO M8 Pro’s speakers, I fully enjoyed playing the entirety of her freshly-baked album while I was writing this piece. Teeny Tiny Heart and Love Potion are currently my fave b-sides from this release.

Such music fulfillment was possible with the Dolby Atmos stereo speaker setup and Hi-Res Audio support of the M8 Pro. Not only its proudly loud, the audio produced is full and immaculate with clear line between its highs, mids, and lows.

Performance: Adequate for most

On paper, the POCO M8 Pro runs Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 SoC based on a 4nm process. As confusing as it seems, this is different from the more powerful Snapdragon 7 Gen 4.

That being told, game settings will vary depending on how demanding one is.

For instance, CoDM (Call of Duty: Mobile) runs in Very High and Max settings upon first set-up.

Meanwhile, Racing Master (based on NVIDIA’s PhysX engine) can run Ultra settings at 60fps.

However, it throttles during the first two ranked races.

Fortunately, the game detects if it gets sluggish — suggesting lowering down the settings altogether.

Lastly, playing Zenless Zone Zero is doable but, at the lowest graphics by default.

You wouldn’t dare to go past it as Combat Mode will literally feel like combatting the phone itself due to how heavy the game is.

The only “remedy” for these hardware limitations? It’s none other than the Game Turbo mode that boosts graphics performance and input through Xiaomi’s software advancements. And it sort of helped make the gameplay smoother, but not fully.

For the rest of apps that are not graphics-intensive, the M8 Pro can breeze through various apps without hiccups, do split-screens, or multitasking along floating windows with ease.

I can truthfully say that the only thing dragging the POCO M8 Pro down is the software as a whole.

After experiencing the beauty of vivo’s OriginOS 6 and HONOR’s MagicOS 10, Xiaomi’s HyperOS still feels like an after-thought. While it can keep up with the modern-day Android features, its stability and optimizations simply don’t make the cut.

Besides, its built-in AI tools, device ecosystem, as well as cross-compatibility functionality aren’t as polished as what you get on other Chinese brands. Let alone, a rip-off from everyone’s fruit rival without much feature improvements.

Seriously, Xiaomi?

Worst thing? Maybe the ad slash bloatware infestation found not just on the lock screen. Even transferring personal files through Xiaomi’s native File Manager app plays an unskippable ad.

Battery: Eat it up! Eat it, eat it up! 🍝🎶

At 8.31mm, the POCO M8 Pro is as slender as it can get. How they were able to fit a 6500mAh battery inside its chassis is a true feat of engineering.

For the record, this is the first POCO M-series smartphone to have such a ginormous battery. It joins the same league as the POCO F8 Ultra, F7, and the X7 Pro (in India).

For added context, the M7 Pro, as well as the X7 with a similar form factor, only had a 5110mAh battery. But, numbers are just part of the story.

In day-to-day scenarios with light to moderate usage, the POCO M8 Pro can last you a full day — even more when you hit the bed with around 30% to spare.

As one would expect though, the biggest hogging can be felt when playing games.

During my gameplay stress test, downloading resources in Racing Master for about 30 minutes already consumed 5% charge (92% down to 87%). An hour of racing ate up 11 percent — from 87% down to 76%.

Letting it rest on my desk for 18 hours, the phone depleted to 51%.

At around 9 in the evening, I then started playing HoYoverse’s Zenless Zone Zero for exactly an hour. Battery charge went down further to 36%. Then, a 1.5-hour game in CoDM resulted to a 28% battery percentage. And, as of writing, the POCO M8 Pro still had a 3 percent charge left in its massive tank.

That said, the POCO M8 Pro comes with Xiaomi’s 100W wired HyperCharge speeds — adapter still bundled in the box.

By default, the battery charging speed is set in regular with the prompt / option to enable boosting.

In my GadgetMatch Charge Test results, it can be seen that the difference isn’t too far off.

	*Boosted HyperCharge*	*Regular HyperCharge*	*PPS Charging* (UGREEN 100W Nexode)
*START TIME* *From 0%*	1:11AM	3:10PM	4:06PM
3 minutes	10%	8%	1%
5 minutes	17%	11%	4%
*10 minutes*	25%	18%	13%
15 minutes	40%	23%	21%
20 minutes	46%	32%	28%
*30 minutes*	70%	50%	46%
45 minutes	88%	71%	67%
*1 hour*	99%	91%	84%
1 hour 15 minutes	–	99%	96%
*END TIME* *100%*	2:14AM 1 hour 3 minutes	4:27PM 1 hour 17 minutes	5:30PM 1 hour 24 minutes

PPS Charging is also possible. Although the device only showed “Quick Charge” while being filled up, it’s safe to say that it performs as fast as Xiaomi’s regular HyperCharge with a super close margin of only seven minutes.

Cameras: Surprisingly Satisfying

Prospective buyers of the M8 Pro wouldn’t have a hard time dealing with its conventional camera configuration: a 50MP f/1.6 main (wide) camera based on Light Fusion 800’s 1/1.55-inch sensor. That’s paired with a less outstanding 8MP f/2.2 UWA (ultra-wide angle) camera.

For the most part, the main camera does its job very well considering this type of device.

With the satisfactory 1x image sensor, 2x zoom is also possible, thanks to in-sensor cropping.

I honestly used the 2x mode more than I thought — especially when capturing my cats and food I devour.

You can go beyond the bounds. But, with obvious hardware limitations, the camera processing can only do so much.

Once that natural light disappears, it will be tricky to take low-light shots as this has NO dedicated Night Mode feature. No luck if you are using them indoors with artificial light around.

Instead, regular Photo Mode automatically detects a low-light subject and toggles Night Mode processing by itself.

While most results are satisfying, it’s also a testament that its cameras are far from being flawless.

Good thing, the flash exists for a funkier look in subjects that suit it — food specifically.

Portraits weren’t missed. Although it only relies on some software-based processing, it still gets the job done of separating the subject away from the background — humans and pets alike.

Personally, the aperture function was a bit of a nuisance.

For context, these shots were set to a low “f/1.8 aperture.” But, the M8 Pro rendered DoF (Depth of Field) that isn’t as shallow as what it’s supposed to show.

My frustration continues as the setting defaults back to f/4.5 after quitting and re-opening the camera app. That’s not even the standard lens opening when taking portrait photos.

And while we’re already here, selfies taken with its front-facing shooter.

Is the POCO M8 Pro your GadgetMatch?

While this isn’t the “flagship killer” most expect from a POCO phone, it’s hard not to go loco over how well-rounded yet wallet-friendly this POCO phone is — especially in the year 2026 where inflation is still unstoppable alongside the almost instantaneous and ridiculous RAM price hike.

ICYMI, the POCO M8 Pro has a starting price of GBP 299 / SG$ 389 / RM 1199 / PhP 16,999 (around US$ 279) for the 8+256GB configuration.

Meanwhile, the 12+512GB variant that I handle is priced at GBP 349 / SG$ 449 / RM 1499 / PhP 19,999 (approx. US$ 359).

Its closest rival is none other than the HONOR X9d. Coincidental or not, it was launched just a day after the unveiling of the M8 Pro.

Frankly, the only thing you’ll let go from HONOR’s sweet treat are its monstrous 8300mAh battery and more polished OS. This POCO-ffering blows it out of the water with a greater chipset, faster wired charging, bigger and better display, capable cameras, durability never forgotten.

Although it wasn’t totally highlighted, the POCO M8 Pro is undoubtedly a rebadged REDMI Note 15 Pro+ — Xiaomi’s upcoming midranger that heavily markets its “Titan Durability” capabilities.

The POCO M8 Pro has them all: from its sturdy aluminum frame, four IP ratings, even the fully-shielded front glass care of Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The biggest disparity? REDMI has a 200MP main camera over POCO’s 50MP shooter.

Despite some inconsistencies, the POCO M8 Pro is still an all-around midranger that will satisfy most users who want to purchase a shiny new smartphone without burning holes in your pockets.

It is a Swipe Right, Super Swipe, and a worthy recipient of the GadgetMatch Seal of Approval.