Huawei Delivers on Vow to 'Rewrite Rules of Photography' in Latest Phones, Says IDC

Huawei delivered on its promise to “rewrite the rules of photography,” blogged IHS analyst Wayne Lam Tuesday, highlighting “first-to-market” features for smartphones in the P30 series launched Tuesday in Paris. Huawei is the first vendor to incorporate a folded optics design that enables lossless optical zoom photography in a smartphone, said Lam. The 5x periscopic design allows for the lengthy optical column to be fitted along the length of the larger P30 Pro chassis by essentially folding the optical path 90 degrees. The design allows the periscopic zoom lens to work with the primary 40-megapixel (MP), wide and time-of-flight cameras to produce a 10x hybrid zoom, he said. Other notable features: an electro-magnetic induction speaker, high-ISO sensitivity, 40-megapixel image sensor that captures 40 percent more light, enhanced depth sensing, low-light videos, 40-watt fast charging to 70 percent in 30 minutes and 15-watt Qi wireless charging. Huawei ranked second among global smartphone manufacturers last year, shipping 206.1 million units vs. Apple’s 204.7 million units and Samsung’s 289.9 million units; it’s on track to ship 226.8 million phones this year, said IHS. The excitement about mobile photography innovations is “good news for the smartphone industry,” struggling to surpass “stagnant sales forecasts,” said Lam. Huawei and Samsung are investing heavily in mobile photography improvements, while Apple has “arguably been left behind in the current design cycle.” Other “radical” mobile photography designs are coming to market, including one from Nokia’s (HMD)/Light.co with a five-lens, selectable depth-of-focus camera. “Ultimately, competition breeds better products,” and the next wave to mobile photography, including time-of-flight and other “novel” optical sensors, “should give the industry confidence that smartphone innovations have longer legs than the naysayers have proclaimed,” said the analyst. As for Huawei's future in the U.S. market, Lam said the company's success in Europe "helps limit the immediate impact of pressures the company faces from the United States government." Short term, there doesn't appear to be a solution to the situation in the U.S., he said, and Huawei will continue to focus on its existing businesses.