REVIEW | Two weeks with the Huawei Pura 70 Pro
By BusinessWorld Digital Team
The heavy weight of expectations from both consumers and experts alike naturally comes with being labeled as the flagship series of any mobile phone brand. For Huawei, that would be their Pura 70 series.
Released in April, the Pura 70 is the first flagship under the rebranded Huawei P Series that “perfectly demonstrates the brand’s unique style.”
“With its cutting-edge aesthetic design, a leap forward in imaging technology and powerful performance, it brings consumers an unprecedented experience,” Huawei said in its website.
The BusinessWorld Digital Team is fortunate to get its hands on the Huawei Pura 70 Pro for two weeks. During that time, the team decided to put the phone to the test through real-life, practical situations across different kinds of users.
Does the Huawei Pura 70 Pro live up to being a flagship phone?
The Executive
“Feels solid while being held and has some weight to it. The camera layout at the back makes up the uniqueness of the design. The ‘Forward Symbol Design’ shows off a progressive outlook.”
Huawei has surely put a lot of thought into the design of the Pura 70 Pro.
Admittedly, the round corners and grip can make one reminisce about an older model of a very popular smart phone, but the camera layout at the back is unique and refreshing to look at. It has style, no doubt about it.
photo by Jae Queral, Jayson Marinas
The ‘Forward Symbol Design’ is interesting. Semiotically, it shows off a progressive line of thinking, which is quite interesting and applicable for this flagship series.
The camera layout can also be interpreted as a ‘Play Symbol Design.’ Honestly, who wouldn’t want to play with the camera features of the Huawei Pura 70 Pro?
The Pura 70 Pro feels quite solid and has some weight to it. A far cry from much cheaper phones wherein some are featherlight. Weighing approximately 220 grams, the weight and feel of this phone gives a sense of premium considering all the hardware inside, which is quite evident in its performance as well.
The phone is 162.6 mm (about 6.4 in) in height, 75.1 mm (about 2.96 in) in width, and 8.4 mm (about 0.33 in) in depth. It’s not too big or small which makes it suitable for the average Filipino build. However, for the plus-size, the Pura 70 Pro will probably become more comfortable to hold if one of those shock-proof cases is used.
photo by Jae Queral, Jayson Marinas
The screen size (6.8-inch) and quality (OLED) are great. Images are crisp and UI animations are smooth. Watching videos are also quite delightful as the screen displays deep blacks and vivid colors.
The round corners, however, might have taken too much of what could have been a bigger screen and more real estate for apps and media. It is not a big deal, though.
The sound quality and volume are outstanding. Binge listening to music after a hard day’s work would surely be quite a treat.
Overall, the Huawei Pura 70 Pro is built well and provides that premium feel and look. Maybe less rounded corners in succeeding models.
The Reporter
“Being out on coverage daily requires quick action in highly impromptu situations. Taking photos in the heat of things is usually difficult and results in blurred pics. Not the case with this phone.”
The nature of the job demands that one should always be ready and on the go. This also means that reporters should have the right equipment whenever they’re on field work.
For reporters who do not have their own camera crew in tow, it would be too taxing to be carrying around a camera and a tripod.
The go-to tool? The smartphone.
photo by Jae Queral, Jayson Marinas
With its Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) feature, Huawei Pura 70 Pro’s 50MP main sensor will ensure high-quality photos even in low-light conditions.
Be it a landscape shot or a close-up image, the smart phone handles photography like a real pro with its 16MP ultra-wide sensor and a remarkable zoom feature.
The phone has a PRO mode where you can change the aperture, exposure, ISO etc. like a DSLR.
Wide shot from M.I.C.E. 2024 at SMX Clark Pampang | Shot with the Huawei Pura 70 Pro | Photo by Jae Queral
Equally important, it has a fast shutter that really helps vividly capture fast movements and real emotions, whether the coverage is at a press conference, a rally, or an event like concerts.
Case in point: being at a coverage with multiple media outlets each scrambling to get in position to take the money shot. The Huawei Pura 7 Pro was up to the challenge.
For multimedia reports where videos are required, the phone’s stabilization features also ensure smooth video footage, with solid recording capabilities of 4k video at 30fps in its arsenal.
Stylish, not too heavy, and dependable. Any reporter would enjoy using this phone for coverages.
Camera Video Tests:
Panning Test: https://youtube.com/shorts/SdjsPK4Htug
Zoom test: https://youtube.com/shorts/LyMGQpSAj_w
The Workhorse
“The UI is smooth and responsive, and multitasking is not an issue. Battery life is great even for a heavy user.”
In this day and age, it would be particularly difficult for the working class not to learn to handle multiple tasks at the same time.
From brick-and-mortar operations to digital and social media, businesses have to cover multiple fronts across multiple platforms. Everything is faster, and an employee should be able to keep up with the pace.
More than laptops and desktop computers, smartphones have become a multitasking tool. Gone are the days when phones are just used for communication, now it is an enabling device for productivity.
photo by Jae Queral, Jay Marinas
The Huawei Pura 70 Pro did not disappoint.
Running on EMUI 14.2 that is based on Android 14, the user interface is clean and intuitive.
Customization for themes and layout of the UI is good. A user can always change things up the way they want the Pura 70 Pro presents and switches apps.
Having multiple apps open is also not a problem. Switching from one to another is fast and smooth thanks to the 12gb of RAM.
The usual hurdle in deciding to get a Huawei phone is the absence of the Google Playstore.
Due to restrictions imposed by the US government, companies based from the US, such as Google, are not allowed to do business with Huawei.
As such, the usual misconception is that Huawei phones have no apps. That’s entirely untrue.
Having used the Huawei Pura 70 Pro, there was no lack of productivity apps available for users of the phone.
The Huawei AppGallery is the phone maker’s own version of the Playstore. It has productivity apps that are available on the Google Playstore, and some viable alternatives to actual Google applications.
Using alternatives to well-known applications only available in the Google Playstore takes some adjustment, but at the end of the day, a PDF is a PDF.
The Gamer
“GPU lag or stutter usually happens when playing on settings too high for the phone. The Pura 70 Pro showed no signs of struggle with ML and PUBG in ultra or high settings.”
Any gamer would want to use high or ultra settings when playing games on their phone. It’s not uncommon to try and push your hardware and experience its limits.
For gamers, one of the biggest things that can take the fun away is technostress.
Playing Mobile Legends (ML) on settings too high for your phone will either result in stuttering due to dropped frames or delays in the control interface (i.e. delayed movement or commands).
The Huawei Pura 70 Pro does not have that problem.
Animations and character models are smooth and well-defined. Even during team clashes, where animation effects are triggered at the same time or on top of each other, the Pura 70 Pro has no trouble rendering such even in ultra settings.
The same can be said when playing PUBG Mobile on the Huawei Pura 70 Pro. There were no lags or frame drops even in intense battles at high or maximum settings.
The 90Hz refresh rate enhances the gaming experience, providing fluid visuals.
The Huawei Pura 70 Pro is equipped with the Kirin 9010 chipset manufactured by Huawei. It is comparable to Snapdragon 888 regarding the CPU and GPU performance. Considering its performance with some of the games tested, the chipset lives up to the hype.
The high-performance chipset makes it suitable for demanding applications and games.
When it comes to heat, after playing six consecutive ranked matches on ML, the Huawei Pura 70 Pro does get hot, but not to the point where it feels like it is getting overworked.
As a phone used for gaming, the Huawei Pura 70 Pro runs fast, efficient, and smooth.
CONCLUSION
The Huawei Pura 70 Pro is an all-around smartphone that can satisfy the different demands of various types of users.
photo by Jae Queral, Jayson Marinas
It can support high productivity and heavy gamers because of its fast and efficient chipset and a very reliable battery.
The main hero, though, are the cameras. Highly detailed and crisp photos, and stabilized videos.
Huawei’s Pura 70 Pro is a worthy flagship model. – Jino Nicolas, Mira Martinez, Jae Queral, and Jayson Marinas