The Chinese manufacturer ZTE has presented its new 5G smartphone Axon 11 5G. Initially, the device will only be available in China. However, it is quite possible that the ZTE Axon 11 5G will also be available in other countries or areas in the foreseeable future.
Snapdragon 765G SoC chipset
Unlike the predecessor ZTE Axon 10 Pro 5G cell phone, the second generation 5G cell phone ZTE Axon 11 supports 5G dual-mode (SA and NSA), and the new 5G smartphone also supports LTE Cat 20 and other older mobile radio standard. As SoC, the manufacturer relies on the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G, which has so far been used in a few devices such as Xiaomi Redmi K30 5G, Oppo Reno3 Pro 5G, OPPO Find X2 and Realme X50 5G etc... Depending on the model, 6 or 8 GB RAM and 128 or 256 GB internal memory are available.
The battery is 4,000 mAh in size and can be quickly recharged with 18 watts with new energy. Other features include Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, Hi-Res Audio with DTS: X and a fingerprint scanner in the AMOLED display. This measures 6.47 inches in 19.5: 9 format and represents a resolution of FHD + with 2,340 x 1,080 pixels. The 90 Hz display in the curved design is slightly rounded at the edges and also has a waterdrop notch in the top center, which has a selfie camera with 20 megapixel resolution and an aperture of f / 2.0.
Quad camera on the back
A quad camera setup is installed on the back of the 159.2 x 73.4 x 7.9 mm and 168 g ZTE Axon 11 5G. Its four lenses work with 64 megapixels (wide angle with f / 1.89 aperture), 8 megapixels (ultra wide angle with f / 2.2 aperture), 2 megapixels (depth sensor with f / 2.4 aperture) and 2 megapixels (macro with f / 2.4 aperture) .
The ZTE Axon 11 5G with its equipment belongs to the upper middle class. As told before, the ZTE 5G phone will initially only be launched in China. However, it could be bought from online stores. The price is not expensive for the version with 6 and 128 GB. The larger version with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage will cost more but not yet available now. This ZTE 5G phone is a budget one if you want to change 4G phone to 5G.
Here now, the new ZTE Axon 11 SE 5G is available with MediaTek MT6873 Dimensity 800 5G Chipset and cheaper price. We will compare the ZTE Axon 11 and Axon 11 SE 5G in future.
To compete with the Chinese mobile phone manufacturers in middle range smartphone, Samsung introduced two new 5G smartphones to the market: Galaxy A51 5G and Galaxy A71 5G. The two new devices differ primarily by 5G, but not only in this way from the LTE versions. We had introduced the mid-range 5G cell phone from Samsung Galaxy A90, which is a powerful competitor to other 5G phones from Huawei, OPPO, VIVO and Xiaomi. Now the two new Samsung 5G phones brings more opportunity to occupy market share for Samsung worldwide.
The Samsung Galaxy A51 5G is said to cost just under $500, according to Samsung, which is a mid -range 5G smartphone for the money. An octa-core processor with a rate of up to 2.2 GHz works inside the phone. It is supported by either 6 or 8 GB RAM and 128 GB internal storage. If required, this can be expanded by up to 1 TB using a microSD memory card. The power supply is provided by a 4,500 mAh battery, which is slightly larger than the 4G Galaxy A51. It can be charged with a maximum of 15 watts via USB Type-C.
The front camera sits in a central hole in the 6.5-inch display with a resolution of 1,080 x 2,400 pixels. It has a resolution of 32 megapixels. Samsung uses a quad camera on the back. The main sensor has a resolution of 48 megapixels. There is also a wide-angle camera with 12 megapixels and two sensors for macro shooting and depth information, each with 5 megapxels.
The differences between the Samsung Galaxy A51 5G and the Galaxy A71 5G are not too big. The display is somewhat larger at 6.7 inches, but has the same resolution. The CPU and RAM as well as the internal memory are identical. The battery is also the same size, but can be charged even faster with 25 watts. In addition, the camera setup on the back of the device is slightly better. Here the main sensor has a resolution of 64 megapixels, while all other sensors have identical specifications. The price is a little higher around $ 599.
Here now the Samsung Galaxy A71 5G is available for sale in the USA and will be available in China in April. When will the Galaxy A51 5G be available is unknown yet.
Before we get started, we should tell you can still install Google apps on the device, but that's not really safe. But Huawei will have to go without Google in the long run anyway. Today we will have a test of this new Huawei 5G smartphone: Huawei P40 Pro.
Huawei P40 Pro Specifications:
These are not all specifications of the Huawei P40 Pro. On the Huawei official website, you can get more information about the Android smartphone.
At the beginning of 2020, we was afraid that all flagship phones would get bigger, but Huawei hardly changed anything with the P40 Pro. It feels similar to the Huawei P30 Pro. That doesn't mean it's a particularly light and compact smartphone, but we find it a lot more comfortable than the latest new Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra.
The processing is of course clear again and the design is now a bit "rounder" because the glass on the back and front has also been bent at the top and bottom. Incidentally, the display was not bent there. But we have to say that the difference compared to the P30 Pro is not big and it feels very similar. We tested the P40 Pro in silver color, which is one of the most beautiful colors on the market. The camera hump is now a bit bigger, which unfortunately has a small disadvantage. The camera hump is not quite as wide, but just as high, thick and sharp-edged as the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. That could have been solved a little more comfortably for my taste.
The display of Huawei P40 Pro made a very good impression in the first impression and we were also completely satisfied in the test. It doesn't quite come close to the current Samsung panel with 120 Hz, but it's not that far away either. FHD+ doesn't bother too much, by the way, it is criticized in this price range.
The front camera is very good, but the hole is too wide. There is a front camera and an infrared sensor designed to optimize unlocking in poor light. Face unlock works great too, but it's still a 2D scanner and not a 3D scanner. If you are already installing such a wide hole, then please use a camera that enables a 3D scan of the face.
But apart from that, we was very satisfied with the display, it delivers good colors and viewing angles, is pleasantly fast at 90 Hz and there is a thin bezel. It's not the best OLED display on the market, but it's good enough for a flagship in this price range, and luckily not bent as much as the Mate 30 Pro.
The highlight of the P series is the camera and that will also be the case in 2020. Huawei has improved the video quality and it still does not come close to Apple and Samsung, but it is no longer a weakness (like last year). In addition, there is finally 4K with 60 fps. The quality should be enough for most.
However, Huawei has put the focus back on the photos and there is now a new sensor with 50 megapixels. This sensor is damn good and takes extremely sharp pictures, even in poor lighting conditions without night mode.
The difference to the P30 Pro is not serious (which speaks for the P30 pro), but the P40 Pro has made another leap. The pictures with 5x zoom are also very passable.
Too bad that the 10x optical zoom is only available in the Huawei P40 Pro Plus, that would have been a unique selling point. The 10x hybrid zoom is also good. The 5x zoom of the Huawei P40 Pro is frankly a bit too much.
The front camera takes very good pictures, as we have already mentioned and the ultra-wide shots can also convince. With portrait photos, the Huawei P40 Pro recognizes the outlines very well thanks to the ToF sensor, but we also found in the test that the object in focus often looked a little blurred. Huawei would have to add a software update.
Huawei has installed one of the best cameras on the market and shows that Samsung cannot deliver better pictures with twice as many megapixels. We think the sensor from Huawei is clearly better.
The Huawei P40 Pro offers excellent battery life. The competition has now built bigger batteries in their flagships, but Huawei gets more out of the 4200 mAh than Samsung out of 5000 mAh. The P40 Pro is again a long-distance runner, despite the 90 Hz, which drain the battery a little faster.
Nothing has changed with fast charging, as in 2019 there is the option for up to 40 watts, which is easily enough. It charges wirelessly with up to 27 watts, which is also enough. The Plus model, which comes in June, offers Qi with up to 40 watts and is the current leader on the market.
Huawei has of course given the P40 Pro reverse charging again, so you can also charge other Qi models wirelessly on the back of the P40 Pro.
Over the past few years, we have gradually become warm with EMUI and EMUI 10.1 is also a step forward.. In addition, the performance is right, because the Huawei P40 Pro is very fast, there is nothing to complain about.
But you know what is coming: The Google services are missing. No Google Play Store, no YouTube app, no Google Pay, no banking app in the AppGallery, no Android Auto, everything is missing. Some apps can be found through other stores or downloaded APK files, but to be honest it is tedious. Those who rely on Google and Co. will not be happy with the P40 Pro.
We tried to get the best out of it, but that's not enough. You don't just have to look for some apps somewhere on the web, you also have to check for updates and install them manually. And if there is a deal like Monument Valley 2, then you are unlucky with the Huawei P40 Pro.
This didn't bother me so much with the Huawei Mate 30 Pro, and the Huawei Mate Xs which is a smartphone for a very small target group. With Google apps, that would have been an excellent flagship.
Huawei P40 Pro Conclusion
In summary, the Huawei P40 Pro has the best hardware on the market. It hasn't gotten bigger, it has a great display, it has an excellent camera, and it still has a good battery life and almost everything else you would expect in an Android flagship.
However, for many users, you couldn't use it in everyday life without Google apps. Only those who can completely do without Google apps and the selection of the Play Store can access here without hesitation.
If it weren't for the problems with the US government, the Huawei P40 Pro would again be one of the best Android smartphones on the market. But the software is decisive in the end and if you don't want to collect APKs and do without things like mobile payments via Google Pay, this is unfortunately wrong.
The Huawei P40 Pro with Google services would be a very clear purchase recommendation, but without it things look a bit different. Other 5G smartphones are not much worse (or sometimes better). The P40 Pro is going to have a hard time of it in 2020.
Yesterday, Huawei introduced the new P40 series to the public, but not as planned in Paris, but at a purely online event. The Lite models have already been shown; today the top models have been presented, which includes three models: Huawei P40, Huawei P40 Pro, Huawei P40 Pro+.
As the first new 5G cell phone from Huawei in 2020, Huawei P40 series phones will be the new flagship in the first half of the year. The price of the new flagship phone is not yet known. Huawei accept pre-order now till April 8. And Huawei will start shipping order from April 11. For pre-orders, there is also a Huawei Watch GT2e and Freebuds 3.
Anyone who has followed this new Huawei 5G phone in the last few weeks will already know the data, but if you are one of those who like to be surprised, then we have an overview with the most important specifications of the Huawei P40 series:
| Huawei P40 Series Specs Comparison | |||||
| P40 Pro | P40 Pro+ | P40 | |||
| SoC | HiSilicon Kirin 990 5G | ||||
| 2x Cortex-A76 @ 2.86 GHz | |||||
| 2x Cortex-A76 @ 2.36 GHz | |||||
| 4x Cortex-A55 @ 1.95 GHz | |||||
| GPU | Mali G76MP16 @ 700MHz | ||||
| DRAM | 8GB | ||||
| Display | 6.58" OLED | 6.1" OLED | |||
| 2640 x 1200 (19.8:9) | 2340 x 1080 | ||||
| 90Hz | 60Hz | ||||
| Size | Height | 158.2mm | 148.9mm | ||
| Width | 72.6mm | 71.06mm | |||
| Depth | 8.95mm | 9.0mm | 8.5mm | ||
| Weight | 209g | 226g | 175g | ||
| Battery Capacity | 4100mAh (Rated) | 3700mAh (Rated) | |||
| 4200mAh (Typical) | 3800mAh (Typical) | ||||
| 40W SuperCharge | 22.5W Charging | ||||
| Wireless Charging | 27W SuperCharge | 40W SuperCharge | - | ||
| Rear Cameras | |||||
| Main | 50MP 1/1.28" 2.44µm RYYB sensor | ||||
| f/1.9 OIS | |||||
| 23mm eq. | |||||
| Telephoto | - | 3x Optical | |||
| 8MP | |||||
| f/2.4 OIS | |||||
| 80mm eq. | |||||
| Periscope | 5x Optical | 10x Optical | - | ||
| Telephoto | 12MP RYYB | 8MP | |||
| f/3.4 OIS | f/4.4 OIS | ||||
| 125mm eq. | 240mm eq. | ||||
| Wide | 40MP | 16MP | |||
| f/1.8 | f/2.2 | ||||
| 18mm eq. | 17mm eq. | ||||
| Extra | ToF | - | |||
| Front Camera | 32MP f/2.2 AF | 32MP f/2.0 FF | |||
| + IR camera | + IR camera | ||||
| Storage | 128 / 256GB | ||||
| + proprietary "nanoSD" card | |||||
| I/O | USB-C | ||||
| Wireless (local) | 802.11ax (Wifi 6), | ||||
| Bluetooth 5.1 | |||||
| Cellular | 4G + 5G NR NSA+SA Sub-6GHz | ||||
| Splash, Water, Dust Resistance | IP68 | IP53 | |||
| (water resistant up to 1m) | (no water resistance) | ||||
| Dual-SIM | 2x nano-SIM | ||||
| Launch OS | AOSP 10 w/ EMUI 10 | ||||
| without Google services | |||||
| Launch Price | 8+256GB: | 8+512GB: | 8+128GB: | ||
| 999 | 1399 | 799 | |||
Huawei P40 Pro Vs Huawei P40 Pro+: Display
The Huawei P40 Pro and the Huawei P40 Pro+ have an identical 6.58-inch OLED display with FHD+ resolution with curves on all four sides of the screen. There is a big cutout at the top left corner of the screen, which houses the selfie camera and a couple of other sensors to assist face unlock. When it comes to additional parameters, both phones offer a 90Hz refresh rate and these panels are also HDR10 compliant.
Huawei P40 Pro Vs Huawei P40 Pro+: Processor
The Huawei P40 Pro and the P40 Pro+ are based on the HiSilicon Kirin 990 5G SoC, which is an octa-core processor based on 7nm fabrication. So, in terms of performance, both smartphones are likely to perform similarly in most of the tasks.
Huawei P40 Pro Vs Huawei P40 Pro+: RAM And Storage
The Huawei P40 Pro and the P40 Pro+ offers 8GB RAM with 256GB and 512GB internal storage, respectively. Both models do not have a microSD card slot.
Huawei P40 Pro Vs Huawei P40 Pro+: Primary Camera Setup
The Huawei P40 Pro has a quad-camera setup with a 50MP wide-angle lens, 40MP ultra-wide angle lens, 12MP periscopic zoom lens, and a 3D ToF sensor. The Huawei P40 Pro+ on the other hand, has a Penta-camera setup with a 50MP wide-angle lens, 40MP ultra-wide angle lens, 8MP telephoto lens, 8MP periscopic lens, and a 3D ToF sensor.
Huawei P40 Pro Vs Huawei P40 Pro+: Battery And Charging
Both smartphones do include a 4,200 mAh battery with support for 40W wired fast charging. When it comes to wireless charging, the Huawei P40 Pro supports 27W wireless charging and 27W reverse wireless charging. The Huawei P40 Pro+ is one of the fastest wireless charging smartphones that supports 40W wireless charging and 27W reverse wireless charging.
The new router Huawei 4G Router 3 Pro (Huawei B535-232) was available in European countries for a few months, which is integrated LTE Cat7 modem and allows speeds of up to 300 Mbit/s in the downlink. As we introducted before, Huawei B535 router has many predecessor such as the Huawei B618 or the Huawei B818, which can provide much faster link speeds, but they also cost a lot more expensive than Huawei B535.
Like other Huawei 4G WiFi routers, the Huawei B535 LTE router is packed in a simple cardboard box. In addition to the router with the model number B535-232, you will also find a power supply unit (output: 12V, 1A) and a stand dock. A multilingual quick start guide and a warranty card are also included.
If you already had a few LTE routers in hand, the first thing you notice about the Huawei B535 is the comparatively flat design. The body of Huawei 4G Router 3 Pro is made of gray and white plasti and visually unobtrusive. Various LEDs are located on the front, which indicate the operating status. For example, the reception strength is signaled using five bars. There are also LEDs for power, internet, WLAN and LAN.
There are two buttons for power and WPS on the top. These have a clear pressure point. All connections are on the back of the Huawei B535 4G Router 3 Pro. There are four Gigabit LAN connections, a connection for the power supply, a reset button and two SMA connections under one cover for an external cellular antenna. The Huawei B535 does not offer support for USB devices or telephone.
In theory, the modem of the Huawei B535 LTE router can reach speeds of up to 300 Mbit/s in the downlink and up to 100 Mbit/s in the uplink (LTE Cat7). Almost all frequency bands important for Europe are supported, as the following list shows. Only the band 32 (1,500 MHz) cannot be used by the router, but there are no restrictions. Huawei does not provide any information about the possible CA combinations.
2G GSM network is not supported. In view of the now very good LTE network expansion, this is surely not be a good problem for most users.
In terms of LTE speeds, the Huawei B535 was able to convince in the test. Although the device was tested in the test with unlimited SIM cards from Vodafone, it was far from the theoretical maximum, but with well over 150 Mbit/s in the downlink and up to 70 Mbit/s in the uplink, you can do a good life. We also take a comparison test with the Netgear Nighthawk M2 Router and it shows that the network theoretically enables even higher speeds.
The latency was usually well below 30 milliseconds, and the peak was even less than 20 milliseconds. The reception and transmission power was very good in the test (LTE B3, B7, B20).
The Huawei B535 4G Router 3 Pro also offers the option of connecting an external cellular antenna. The effect of a 4G LTE outdoor antenna was not tested separately in the test. If the external antenna is not automatically recognized, you can manually switch to the external antenna in the web interface.
So that the maximum LTE speed also reaches the connected end devices, a fast WLAN module is of course required. The Huawei B535 supports WLAN ac at 2.4 GHz with up to 300 Mbit/s and at 5 GHz with up to 867 Mbit/s. In the test, the 867 Mbit/s could also be reached up to 5 meters by line of sight.
As soon as a wall came between the router and the end device, the data rate dropped noticeably. Fast surfing and video streaming was also about 10 meters away from the router and was still possible without problems after two walls. The Wi-Fi range of the Huawei B535 was convincing in the test!
The Huawei B535 can simultaneously supply a maximum of 64 end devices with a WLAN connection. The WLAN name can be set separately for 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, so as the password. There is also the option of setting up a guest WLAN. The guest WLAN can either run indefinitely or be automatically switched off after one or four hours.
The Huawei B535 does not have a WLAN extender function, i.e. the use of an existing WLAN as Internet access. There is also no WLAN timer.
The four RJ45 Gigabit Ethernet LAN connections on the back allow the connection of devices such as computers, televisions or games consoles via cable. The connections worked smoothly in the test.
If desired, the LAN 4 connection can also be used as a WAN connection. This means that the internal cellular modem is switched off and the Internet connection is processed via an existing LAN connection. Of course, this is particularly useful if you only occasionally use the Huawei B535 as an LTE router. For the rest of the time, the device then functions as a normal WLAN access point.
To set up and configure the Huawei B535 4G Router 3 Pro, you can either use the Huawei Smart Home app (available for Android and iOS) or the browser web interface. Both the app and the web interface have a modern, functional and clearly structured design and are easy to use.
In addition to the usual settings for WLAN and network, which were mentioned in the test, there are also some more special functions. These include, for example, the VPN function, the bridge mode and the dynamic DNS function. There is also the option of filtering IP addresses or domains.
In addition to an SMS function, there is also a statistics function with which the data volume used and online time can be checked. There is also an easy-to-use parental control function, which can limit the usage time (separated by days and times) for individual devices, for example.
Unfortunately, neither the app nor the web interface offer the option of displaying detailed information about the Internet connection, such as the frequency band used, the antenna technology used or the CA status. There are also no such settings, for example to set the router to a specific frequency band. The LTE router models from AVM, for example the FRITZ! Box 6820 LTE offers significantly better equipment in this area. After all, there is the possibility to use "only 3G" or "only 4G". The Huawei B535 does not support GSM / 2G anyway.
The Huawei B535-232 4G Router 3 Pro left a very good impression in the test. The design of hardware and software is simple and functional, operation via app and web interface is simple and well thought out. In places, however, more information and setting options would be desirable.
The connection speeds via LTE and WLAN are good, and the many RJ45 Ethernet LAN connections are commendable. You have to do without a telephone system and a USB connection, but Huawei has installed connections for an external 4G LTE antenna. If you can live with the few functions described, the Huawei B535 is a very good LTE router at a fair price.