Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G gets higher DxOMark score despite having same cameras as 4G version

Previously, the Huawei Mate 30 Pro and Xiaomi CC9 Pro Premium Edition (aka Mi Note 10 Pro) were the top-performing smartphone cameras according to DxOMark with a score of 121 points. However, there’s now a new leader on the board with the Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G setting a new high-score of 123 points.

Interestingly, both 5G and 4G versions share the same quad-camera setup. They feature a 40MP f/1.6 1/1.7″ main sensor, a 40MP f/1.8 1/1.54″ ultra-wide-angle camera, an 8MP f/2.4 1/4″ telephoto camera with 3X optical zoom and a 3D ToF camera for depth-sensing. The major difference is the processor as the Mate 30 Pro 5G utilises a Kirin 990 5G chipset.

Apart from having an integrated 5G modem, the 5G variant is manufactured based on a more efficient 7nm+ EUV process and it runs at higher clock-speeds for its GPU as well as its medium and efficiency CPU cores. Another notable difference is its Neural Processing Unit (NPU). The Kirin 990 5G has two big NPU cores while the 4G version only gets a single NPU core.

Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G

Huawei Mate 30 Pro (4G)

According to DxOMark’s review, the 5G device score 134 points for the photo category and 102 points for video. Although image quality is similar, they noticed improvements for zoom, bokeh and night mode. Strangely, the 5G version loses out in the ultra-wide-angle camera test as the anti-distortion algorithm had reduced its effective field of view.

In the video department, they also noticed improved handling of detail and noise as well as autofocus on the Mate 30 Pro 5G version. DxOMark also added that subject tracking has also improved especially in low-light situations. Unfortunately, it still doesn’t offer HDR video recording like the latest range of iPhone models.

Overall, the 5G device excels in almost every category except for ultra-wide-angle test. They didn’t explain what contributed to the improvements but it is possible that the extra performance boost from the CPU and NPU of the Kirin 990 5G may have been a factor. Considering the Mate 30 Pro 5G review came out more than two months after their original Mate 30 Pro 4G review, there could have been software tweaks that improved its camera performance. Who knows, the 4G version might just get a similar score if they test it again with the latest software updates.

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