Huawei P30 and P30 Pro: news, rumours, pricing, specs and release date

The wait for Huawei’s next-generation of smartphones is almost over after the company confirmed its new handsets will be unveiled in the French capital tomorrow.

The P30 and more powerful P30 Pro are the Chinese smartphone maker’s flagship models, aimed at challenging the Samsung Galaxy S10 and iPhone XS at the top of the mobile market.

Here’s everything you need to know about the P30 and P30 Pro before their official release in Paris:

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When are they out?

Tomorrow. Huawei has announced on Twitter that the P30 and P30 Pro will be unveiled in Paris on 26 March.

When do pre-orders open?

We don’t yet know but given that last year’s P20 and P20 Pro went on sale less than two weeks after being revealed, pre-orders for the new P30 phones are likely to open shortly after their unveiling on March 26. The two phones are expected to hit UK stores in early April.

How much will they cost?

Tech news site Pocket-Lint expects the new P30 line-up to match the pricing of the current P20 range. Therefore, the standard P30 should start at £599, while the more powerful P30 Pro should start at £799.

What will they look like?

Leaked images and reports about the designs of the new devices over the last few months have led to all kinds of rumours. But a series of tweets last week from serial-leaker Evan Blass has given fans their best look yet at the latest handsets.

Blass’s post shows the P30 phone, though the P30 Pro isn’t expected to differ greatly from the standard model.

At the front, the P20’s “notch”– a small indent at the top of the display housing the phone’s front-facing camera – is significantly thinner on the P30.

The bezel at the bottom of the P30’s display is also smaller than its predecessor’s, while the edges of the screen curve downwards, matching the design of last year’s range-topping Mate 20 Pro model.

As earlier rumours have suggested, the images reveal the P30 will have a rear-facing triple-lens camera that has been co-developed by the German photography firm Leica. Engadget claims that one of the lenses will offer a 10x optical zoom, a feature that isn’t available on any other smartphone.

The leaked images also suggest that Huawei has kept the P20’s face-scanning login system as there’s no fingerprint scanner at the back of the new devices.

Unlike the P20, where users could only log on by scanning their face or inputting a code, the P30 and P30 Pro may come with a fingerprint scanner built into their displays. The system would be similar to that of the Mate 20 Pro.

What cameras will they have?

Huawei is well known for equipping its smartphones with multi-lens cameras that dominate the rear panel – and that’s expected to continue with the new P30 and P30 Pro.

Stuff claims that the P30 Pro will have four rear-facing cameras aligned vertically in a module that looks like an extra-tall version of the one on the iPhone XS. There’s a good chance the quad-lens system will feature a “pretty sizeable flash”.

The standard P30, meanwhile, is expected to come with a triple rear-facing camera system.

According to Trusted Reviews, the P30 and P30 Pro will also come with a new “periscope-style” camera, offering a superior zoom lens to the P20 lineup.

Meanwhile, P30 Pro devices are expected to come with 10x optical zoom lens, which the tech site claims “would be a huge breakthrough in smartphone photography.” The camera would provide better “visual fidelity” compared to the digital zoom lenses available on most other smartphones.

What specs will they have?

The P30 is tipped to replace the P20’s LCD screen with a more vibrant OLED panel, according to Pocket-Lint. The P30’s screen is also tipped to grow from 5.8in to 6.1in in diameter.

The P30 Pro, meanwhile, is expected to retain the same OLED panel as the P20 Pro, although its size will increase from 6.1in to 6.5in, the website says.

As for performance, the P30 and P30 Pro will probably house Huawei’s new Kirin 980 processor, which Stuff claims will deliver “one of the speediest Android experiences” on the market.

There’s a good chance the P30 Pro will be compatible with new 5G networks, says T3, which offer faster download speeds compared to today’s 4G signals.