Your New $2220 Smartphone: The Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS
by Ian Cutress on March 27, 2018 6:05 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Huawei
- OLED
- Fingerprint
- Porsche Design
- Kirin 970
- Mate RS
- 512 GB
- IP67
In a world where we were only just starting to see the emergence of $999 flagship phones, Huawei and Porsche Design go and break the barrier by marketing their new device at €2095, which without tax and after conversion comes to the pricely sum of US$2220. At this price there has to be something more than just a simple P20 Pro under the hood, and it can’t all be brand name, right?
The first thing to notice is that unlike previous Porsche Design models of Huawei phones, this new ‘Mate RS’ edition seems to be built completely differently to the P20 Pro. The biggest giveaway is the camera placement – rather than being on the top left corner as in the P20 Pro, it is placed in the center at the back, which is much more akin to the Mate series of smartphones. However, this unit has Huawei’s new tri-camera implementation, featuring the 40MP RGB sensor, a 20MP monochrome sensor, and an 8MP telephoto lens. What the astute might recognize is that the Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS is basically an updated Mate-style designed device, but with the new P20 Pro internals, plus a bit more. This is why the PD device is called a Mate, rather than a P-series. The 'RS' bit is for Rally Sport, a common nomenclature on cars that are a bit sporty.
For the fistful of dolla-dolla bills, prospective owners are set to get the best that Huawei has to offer. The $2220 model comes equipped with 512 GB of storage, the most we have ever seen in a smartphone, while the $1800 model has 256 GB. Both storage variants are matched everywhere else in the design: a 6.0-inch FullView OLED display with a 2880x1440 resolution (538 ppi, 18:9), 6 GB of DRAM, a Kirin 970 processor with its NPU, the tri-camera setup with support for AIS, 5x Hybrid Zoom, and 960 FPS video recording, and Dual SIM capabilities with dual LTE and dual VoLTE. This model has the same battery size as the P20 Pro, coming in at 4000 mAh.
| Huawei P20 Pro and Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS | |||
| P20 Pro | PD Huawei Mate RS |
||
| SoC | HiSilicon Kirin 970 4x Cortex A73 4x Cortex A53 Mali-G72MP12 |
HiSilicon Kirin 970 4x Cortex A73 4x Cortex A53 Mali-G72MP12 |
|
| Display | S | 6.1-inch OLED |
6.0-inch OLED |
| R | 2240x1080 | 2880x1440 | |
| Dim | H | 155.0 mm | 152.9 mm |
| W | 73.9 mm | 72.5 mm | |
| D | 7.8 mm | 8.5 mm | |
| RAM | 6 GB | 6 GB | |
| NAND | 128 GB + microSD |
256 GB / 512 GB + microSD |
|
| Battery | 4000 mAh | 4000 mAh 10W Qi Wireless Charging |
|
| IP Rating | IP67 | IP67 | |
| Front Camera | 24MP f/2.0 | 24MP f/2.0 | |
| Rear Camera #1 |
20 MP BW f/1.6 |
20 MP BW f/1.6 |
|
| Rear Camera #2 | 40 MP RGB f/1.8 1 um 10 MP Mode 102400 ISO |
40MP f/1.8 1 um 10 MP Mode 102400 ISO |
|
| Rear Camera #3 | 8 MP f/2.4 Telephoto 5x Hybrid Zoom |
8 MP f/2.4 Telephoto 5x Hybrid Zoom |
|
| Modem | Cat 18 / 13 LTE 5CA / 2CA |
Cat 18 / 13 LTE 5CA / 2CA |
|
| SIM Size | Dual Nano SIM | Dual Nano SIM | |
| Wireless | 802.11ac 2x2 MIMO | 802.11ac 2x2 MIMO | |
| Connectivity | USB Type-C | USB Type-C | |
| Features | Fingerprint Sensor AI Assisted Video Capture Pixel Fusion 4D Predicative Focus 960 FPS video (720p) Master AI AI Image Stabilization |
P20 Pro + Wireless Charging In-screen Fingerprint Aerospace Cooling No Notch |
|
| OS | EMUI 8.1 | EMUI 8.1 | |
| Price | 128 GB: 899€ / $952 | 256 GB: 1649€ / $1800 512 GB: 2049€ / $2220 |
|
There’s also an ingress protection rating of IP67, and Huawei states that they are using their aerospace cooling technology with microcapsule phase change materials inside, similar to what was advertised with the Matebook X released in 2017. Also on the cards are dual fingerprint sensors – one on the back as standard, and one embedded into the display. This is a new in-screen fingerprint sensor from Goodix, rather than the Synaptics one seen earlier this year. The Mate RS will also support 10W wireless charging, making it the first Huawei high-end device to support wireless charging.
So this is a Mate 10 Pro with the P20 Pro internals, the P20 Pro cameras, a higher resolution display (up from FHD+), more storage, IP67, wireless charging, and an integrated fingerprint sensor. For those wondering, there is no notch.
Porsche Design calls this new smartphone ‘the 911 GT3 RS of smartphones’, and plan to offer a range of high-end accessories for the discerning buyer who wants them. The new devices will be available from April 12th, and will be available in red and black.
All being said, and price aside, that red version looked very nice up on stage, better than these pictures. Time to request a sample.
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peevee - Thursday, March 29, 2018 - link
A microSD card would be so much cheaper.StevoLincolnite - Wednesday, April 4, 2018 - link
I have a 32GB Note 5.I do the exact same thing as you...
Except when I record or take a photo it is uploaded to my online storage... And then downloaded to my NAS. Automagically, no input required.
Of course having 80Mbps mobile speeds helps a ton.
Cliff34 - Sunday, April 1, 2018 - link
I have a 13 month old and we always take photos and videos. I mean everyday. 128 GB fills up in a few months. A phone with bigger storage will definitely help!jballen - Tuesday, March 27, 2018 - link
As used on Porsche cars, “RS” stands for “Rennsport”, which is Gernan for “racing”.joex4444 - Tuesday, March 27, 2018 - link
Does Huawei still spy on Americans?StormyParis - Tuesday, March 27, 2018 - link
Have they ever ? Source ?Notmyusualid - Wednesday, March 28, 2018 - link
Quote: "The director of the FBI says the whole of Chinese society is a threat to the US — and that Americans must step up to defend themselves"Quote: " During Tuesday's Senate hearing, the top US intel chiefs drew attention to Chinese cybersecurity strategies.
"Frankly, the United States is under attack by entities that are using cyber to penetrate virtually every major action that takes place" within the US, Coats said.
And also:
The Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community, also released Tuesday, outlines China's cyber capabilities.
"China will continue to use cyber espionage and bolster cyber attack capabilities to support national security priorities," the report says, adding that while China's cyber activity is at much lower levels than it was before September 2015, it is still threatening.
It continues: "Most detected Chinese cyber operations against US private industry are focused on cleared defense contractors or IT and communications firms whose products and services support government and private sector networks worldwide."
Pointing to the findings, several intelligence heads reaffirmed the need to beef up US counterintelligence efforts in cyber. Many identified it as one of the top priorities for the intelligence community in the coming year.
So, if these sorts of organizations / people are concerned - then so am I. So I'll pass on a Chinese phone / router / etc.
Still a nice handset though...
Hurr Durr - Thursday, March 29, 2018 - link
"US Intelligence Community" is beyond joke now. FBI director is in an open mutiny against his elected President.Yet you choose to worry about chinamen.
watzupken - Tuesday, April 3, 2018 - link
To be fair, I don't think US is that clean either when it comes to security(think NSA). It is a case of the pot calling the kettle black.PeachNCream - Wednesday, March 28, 2018 - link
I usually stay away from conversations that have the potential to degrade into a debate about politics, but I wanted to toss in my support behind Notmyusualid. The US government has made public statements about Huawei, cautioning private citizens and businesses from purchasing their phones due to the risks. I don't know if there's any hard evidence that people can find out there in support of their claims, but the things said last month are unusually bold and unusually specific. Here's a link to a CNN article about it:http://money.cnn.com/2018/02/14/technology/huawei-...
With that said, I'd personally not have any reservations about buying a Huawei phone with the right features at the right price because I don't care if someone in China knows that I'm reading a specific e-book or watching whatever on Youtube.