When Huawei said they’re rethinking possibilities with the Huawei Mate 30 series, they weren’t kidding at all. Unveiled in Munich, Germany, the Huawei Mate 30 and Mate 30 Pro’s hardware do not disappoint.

A modern design

The Huawei Mate 30 series features an edge-to-edge screen that the company is calling the Horizon Display. It curves at an angle of 88 degrees deliver the most screen it can despite still having a notch — which Huawei says is ultra-narrow.

The edge-to-edge display on the Mate 30 Pro created the need for the Side-Touch Interaction feature. It replaces the physical volume keys. This also lets you customize the virtual button’s position giving you more control on how you want to interact with your device.

These are all very similar to the tech implemented by vivo on the NEX 3. Groundbreaking stuff. We’re quite surprised the invite wasn’t by innovation only. 😏

Rethinking the cameras 

Flip over the Huawei Mate 30 and you’ll see the phone’s triple camera module now enclosed in a circle. The cameras are as follows: A 40MP SuperSensing Camera, 16MP Ultra Wide-angle Camera and an 8MP Telephoto Camera.

On the Mate 30 Pro you’ll get a quad camera system: the 40MP Cine Camera, 40MP SuperSensing Camera, an 8MP Telephoto Camera and a 3D Depth Sensing Camera.

Huawei really pushed the boundaries on these cameras. The Cine Camera features a large 1/1.54-inch sensor size with a high maximum Video ISO of 51200 to capture videos with an extended dynamic range at 4K/60fps as well as ultra slow-motion at the highest 7680 fps.

The Mate 30 Pro also offers what Huawei calls pro-bokeh capabilities on video recording. We’ll have to test the feature if it’s any better than the bokeh effect found on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+. Video also has a combination of Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) and AI Stabilisation (AIS) for superior stabilization.

The cameras also have a sensor larger than the ones found on other flagships today. This lends nicely to taking night shots. And the samples Huawei showed on stage was pretty impressive.

Shanghai at Night. Taken with the Huawei Mate 30 Pro Night Mode

Fast and powerful

We already know that the Huawei Mate 30 and Mate 30 Pro is equipped with the Kirin 990. It’s a chip specifically designed to support 5G. In various graphs throughout the presentation, Huawei pointed out how they have built the most advanced 5G tech and put all of it in the Huawei Mate 30 series.

Of course, having 5G means larger power consumption. Fret not, the Huawei Mate 30 sports a 4200mAh battery while the Mate 30 Pro has an even bigger battery capacity with 4500mAh.

It also won’t take long to charge those batteries as the Huawei Mate 30 series supports the 27W Wireless Huawei SuperCharge and the 40W Huawei SuperCharge. The Reverse Wireless Charging feature that was introduced on the Mate 20 series is now also three times faster.

New materials, new variants

The 6.53-inch Huawei Mate 30 Pro and 6.62-inch HUAWEI Mate 30 come in various colour variants and materials: Emerald Green, Space Silver, Cosmic Purple, Black.

Huawei also introduced a new material — vegan leather. They say it’s also water and dust resistant. The vegan leather variants will come in two colors: Forest Green and Orange.

Pricing and availability

Pricing are as follows: Huawei Mate 30 with 8GB+128GB will retail for EUR 799, the Huawei Mate 30 PRO with 8GB+256GB will retail for EUR 1099. The 5G version of the Mate 30 Pro will retail for EUR 1199. Also announced at the event was the Huawei Mate 30 RS Porsche Edition with 12GB+512GB and it will retail for EUR 2095.

Google is by definition an “internet” company. Every part of its business depends on connectivity, whether its Google Search or AdSense. The company has penetrated every developed market and now intends to grab the untapped markets of India and other Southeast Asian countries.

Google Assistant

Courtesy: Bhardwaj

At its Google for India 2019 event, the company announced the launch of a special helpline that users can call to have their questions answered. We usually use Google Assitant on the go via any Android phone, but it depends on internet connectivity. How do you reach out to a feature-phone user who barely has a 2G connection?

A 24×7 healpline. Teaming up with Vodafone India, users will be able to dial 000-800-9191-000 and they won’t be charged for the call or the service. Early this year, Google also worked with KaiOS to integrate Google Assistant on entry-level 4G phones like the JioPhone.

Google Assistant was launched in India a couple of years back and Hindi is now the second-largest language globally. You can also switch languages by a simple voice command now.

Google Pay

Courtesy: Bhardwaj

Usually, you can use payment solutions like these in the US via NFC. Your cards are saved on the app and a gentle tap to a PoS machine will initiate the transaction. However, in India the app leverages the countries universal UPI protocol to transfer money. Up till now, you had to add your bank account in the app and scan a QR code to send money.

Google has now announced support for NFC cards. This will make the experience much simpler and streamlined. Though your phone needs to have an NFC reader and only HDFC, Axis, Kotak, and Standard Chartered bank are supported for tokenization at the moment.

The company went on to share a few interesting stats about its position in the country. The app handled 918 million transactions a month in the country.

New AI Lab

Courtesy: Bhardwaj

A new artificial intelligence research lab is being set up in Bengaluru to create India-specific products. Google has tied up with state-run BSNL for expanding Wi-Fi hotspots in villages in Gujarat, Bihar, and Maharashtra. They’ve already deployed more than 5,000 WiFi hotspots in partnership with Indian Railways.

E-cigarettes or vapes are considered to be a better alternative than actual cigarettes. Many active smokers have shifted to these electric pens and have been successful in overcoming their addiction. Countries around the world recognize the benefits of an e-cigarette, but India has a different opinion.

India has banned e-cigarettes amid growing fears over the health risks posed by vaping. The Union cabinet has made the manufacturing, import, sale, distribution, and advertisements of e-cigarettes a cognizable offense.

Justifying the ban, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, “E-cigarettes were promoted as a way to get people out of their smoking habits but reports have shown that many people are not using it as a weaning mechanism but are rather addicted to it.”

E-cigarettes are the most common form of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS). These are basically devices that do not burn or use tobacco leaves. Instead, they vaporize a solution using a battery. This vapor is then inhaled by the user.

The government said the decision to ban e-cigarettes is aimed at protecting the youth, the section that is most vulnerable to the health hazards of e-cigarettes. Though, India isn’t the only country to have concerns.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported six deaths due to unknown lung disease in the last few weeks. Governments have long considered a plan to regulate or limit the usage.

Justifying the ban, Sitharaman cited a US report that said e-cigarette sales have risen 77 percent because of consumption by students. Storage of e-cigarettes shall now be punishable with imprisonment of up to six months or a fine of up to INR 50,000 or both.

Obviously, following the announcement, tocks of cigarette makers ITC and Godfrey Phillips ended higher by 0.9 percent and 5.3 percent, respectively. Conventional tobacco-filled cigarettes are still legal in the country but heavily taxed. The government has repeatedly tried to make them more expensive to discourage consumption, but the plan never worked.