You know what they say: “The best camera is the one you always have with you”. Considering this, over the past years, smartphone manufacturers invested ridiculous amounts in developing the technology needed to create the best portable camera.
And guess what? Some of them did one hell of a job!
It’s been a few years since Huawei isn’t just “one of those Chinese manufacturers trying to make a name for themselves”, while Apple doesn’t need any presentation, as the Cupertino-based company is known for making some of the best smartphone cameras.
So here we are, in 2019, putting the P30 Pro and the iPhone XS Max side by side, trying to see if the number of lenses matter. Or, even better, which one of them is the mobile photography king.
Or queen. Whatever, your call.
Technically speaking, the Huawei flagship comes with a quad-lens setup, with 40, 20 and 8MP, able to shoot 2160p videos at 30fps, 1080p videos at 60fps and – get ready for this, 720p at 960fps. In contrast, the iPhone XS Max has a dual 12 MP setup, with dual OIS, shooting 2160p videos at 60fps and 1080p videos at 240fps. Yes, this is how far technology went.
But still, which one of these two is actually the best?
We had the chance to test both these smartphones and we must admit: it was very difficult to decide upon a winner, but in the end, we did it.
The iPhone was absolutely impressive, as the two lenses on its back, with f/1.8 aperture for the main one, and f/2.4 for the telephone one, both with optical image stabilization, delivered some stupendous images. A lot of you will say that it’s the same setup as on the iPhone X, but it’s the addition of Smart HDR that’s a real game changer.
The images are incredibly crisp and clear, while the portrait mode is out of this world. Some of the photos we took don’t even look like they were taken with a smartphone.
When we moved to the Huawei P30 Pro, it was something completely different. From pretty much any point of view. To get a bit into details, the setup on the back consists in a 40 MP SuperSpectrum Lens with an f/1.6 aperture and optical image stabilization, a 20 MP ultra wide-angle lens with f/2.2, as well as the third 8 MP optical Periscope Zoom lens, with f/3.4 and OIS, able to deliver 5 times optical zoom. Oh, and there’s a fourth camera as well, a time-of-flight camera, to be more specific, in charge of measuring depth.
Huawei didn’t use all these fancy words in vain, trust us. We were stunned with the quality of the images, as they totally look like they’re taken with a DSLR. Initially, we believed that they look so good just on the P30 Pro’s display, but after checking them out on a laptop, they look the same.
Therefore, the conclusion is easy: Huawei’s P30 Pro has the best camera of the moment. But this doesn’t mean that everybody will get it.
Most people look at the camera specs and what that phone can do in terms of photography before buying a new one, but it’s not just the final results that matter, but also the ease of use. And this is where Apple excels.
Yes, the P30 Pro is a beast when it comes to the camera, but the interface, with so many settings and buttons, can be pretty difficult to use for your average buyer. As for Apple, it’s definitely simpler and it takes less time to get used to it. Sure, you can always fine-tune some of the settings, but when taking phones in Auto, it still looks – at least a bit – simpler to use the camera than on a Huawei.
For us, this entire camera showdown is, in the end, a matter of personal preferences. If you’re the type of users who likes to have full control over the settings and adjust everything, in order to obtain the perfect photo, the Huawei P30 Pro can be your best friend and you’ll end up with some ridiculously good-looking photos.
On the other side, if you want to take some amazing snaps with your smartphone, but without that much hassle, then you should totally go for the iPhone XS Max. You’ll surely love it.
But what about you? Which one of these smartphones would you pick for mobile photography and why? Let us know, by dropping a few lines in the comments section below!camera