Huawei just released its latest flagship smartphone in its home country, called the Mate 90 Pro Max, and there’s a lot to be excited about here. The first thing that catches the eye is the peppy, vibrant colors that launched the phone and the textured design on the back, making it stand out from the usual minimalist flagships that we’ve gotten used to in recent years. Of course, it’s not a revolutionary design choice, but the phone has more personality than much of the competition.
Moving on to its design, there’s still a lot to talk about, like its 50MP primary camera that has a large 1/1.28-inch RYYB sensor with optical image stabilization and a continuously variable f/1.4 to f/4.0 aperture. It’s paired with a 40MP ultrawide and a 200MP periscope telephoto with 4x optical zoom, OIS, and Huawei’s third-generation Red Maple color sensor. Huawei also lists 8x “optical quality” zoom (probably an in-sensor crop) and up to 100x digital zoom.
The Collector’s Edition takes the camera obsession even further
Huawei also sells a Mate 90 Pro Max Collector’s Edition that supports the Ruiying Z10 external camera module. The accessory has its own 1-inch RYYB sensor, covers a focal length of 24mm to 240mm, and offers 10x continuous optical zoom with a variable f/2.0 to f/4.5 aperture.
Up front, the phone gets a 6.9-inch dual-layer LTPO OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a claimed peak brightness of 12,000 nits, all protected by tough third-generation Kunlun Glass.
Large battery and Huawei’s own silicon
The Mate 90 Pro Max uses Huawei’s own Kirin 9050 series processors, with the 16GB RAM versions getting the more powerful Kirin 9050 Pro. There’s also a fairly large 6,800mAh battery inside, paired with 100W wired and 50W wireless charging. Connectivity features include Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, NFC, and eSIM support, while the phone also comes with an IP69 rating for dust and water resistance.
The phone is available in Crystal White, Emerald Green, Obsidian Black, and Rose Gold, while the Collector’s Edition is limited to Emerald Green. Pricing starts at 9,499 Yuan, or about $1,417, while the Collector’s Edition starts at 10,999 Yuan (~$1,640). The complete Pro Camera Kit costs 19,499 Yuan, or about $2,910. Unfortunately, Huawei has only announced the Mate 90 Pro Max for China, and with the company’s continued restrictions in the United States, a stateside release is effectively off the table.
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