With 2023 in full swing and an exciting line-up of new smartphone launches ahead, many are flocking to stores for a brand-new upgrade, looking for the one smartphone that will serve them well throughout the rest of the year. Users expect smartphones to excel not only in having a diversity of features but also want the top-most quality for every feature in their phone — new aesthetics, powerful cameras, smart features, battery life, durability. After the recent Samsung event that witnessed a flurry of product launches, tech geeks everywhere have their eyes fixed on two devices: The HUAWEI Mate50 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. There are a whole lot of things they are curious about. On top of the list is whether the new Samsung flagship stacks up against the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro. But, comparing all the key aspects of the two, it is clear that the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro still offers much more than its competition.

Elegant and stunning symmetrical design

The HUAWEI Mate50 Pro pushes the boundaries of smartphone aesthetics to reach new heights. The phone combines the iconic symmetrical Space Ring design with Clous de Paris step-patterned embossing, which creates an intricate yet subtle texture. The Clous de Paris pattern is a time-honoured embossing process that originated in France. With its intricate pyramid-shaped ornamentations, the Clous de Paris pattern is a tribute to elegance, perseverance, and classic design. And Huawei has brought this elegance to its latest premium flagship smartphone.

Last year, Samsung’s Ultra model saw a major overhaul in its design, borrowing many elements from the Note Series. The Galaxy S23 Ultra sticks closely to its predecessor’s design aesthetics to the extent that it is not easy to tell the two apart without close inspection. Similar to the S22 Ultra, the curved display almost entirely takes up the front of the Galaxy S23 Ultra except for the hole punch cut out for the selfie camera and tiny bezels at the top and bottom. On the back, 5 camera lenses continue to dot the top left corner, albeit slightly bigger. One minor change is the smaller radius of the edge curvature, which gives the phone a boxier appearance. This also provides the screen with a greater flat surface area, making it a bit more comfortable to use the built-in S Pen. While it is subjective, we prefer the luxurious and symmetrical design of the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro over the plain and simplistic design of the Samsung S23 Ultra.

Versatile rear camera for craft-focused photographers

One of the major improvements on the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is the new 200MP main camera. That’s almost double the resolution of the S22 Ultra’s main shooter and will provide you with a great deal of flexibility if you want to crop in on your photos after shooting. But the tradeoff is that each of those 200MP images will be around 50 MB in size. However, the phone takes advantage of the high resolution sensor with 16:1 pixel binning for better low light sensitivity, producing more typical 12.5MP images. Samsung promises better “Nightography” performance with the improved sensor, which will also allow users to shoot better Night Portraits. In short, the S23 Ultra gives users a good set of cameras for everyday photography.

That said, the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro brings something even more exceptional. The HUAWEI Mate50 Series marked the launch of its very own patented XMAGE technology. One of the main draws of the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro is the Ultra Aperture Camera, which allows users to manually adjust between 10 aperture sizes to achieve professional level shots. Combined with the camera’s sub-millimetre-level segmentation algorithms, the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro can create magnificent portraits.

Efficient charging speeds combined with long battery life

The HUAWEI Mate50 Pro comes with 4700mAh, while the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra has a 5000mAh battery. However, the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro can be charged up in a matter of minutes with the HUAWEI SuperCharge, which now has 66W of fast charging and 50W of wireless charging. On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra only has 45W of Fast Charging and 10W wireless charging. Besides, the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro is uniquely equipped with the EMUI 13’s Low Battery Emergency Mode feature. This means that when the smartphone is hovering at 1% battery level, the smartphone activates SuperEnergy Boosting and gives users an extra 3 hours of standby and 12 minutes of calls. With such an innovation, gone are the days when users go into panic mode as soon as their battery percentages hit single digits.

An incredibly durable display

Samsung’s S Series flagships are known for their outstanding displays, and the S23 Ultra carries on that legacy. The Samsung S23 Ultra has a 6.8-inch 120Hz AMOLED display with a peak brightness of 1750 nits and HDR10+ support. The refresh rate can scale down as low as 1Hz to preserve battery life when the higher refresh rate is not needed. And the resolution remains the same as last year at 1440 x 3088. In the case of the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro, it has a 6.74-inch OLED display with a refresh rate of 120Hz and a resolution of 1212 x 2616. It offers support for the P3 wide colour gamut and 1440Hz PWM dimming to reduce flickering and relieve eye fatigue.

But what’s more important for a smartphone display is durability. A more durable display can help avoid repeated visits to servicing centres. In this regard, Huawei’s Kunlun Glass gives the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro a leg-up on the competition. The Kunlun Glass has earned the first-ever five-star glass drop resistance certification from Switzerland’s SGS. Its overall drop resistance is improved by 10 times, which has proven to be more durable than the Corning Gorilla Glass on the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.

The Kunlun Glass was even tried and tested through rounds and rounds of tests, earning viral acclaim for its ground-breaking durability and damage resistance. Users who are constantly on the move or are the outdoorsy, sporty types can now enjoy the assurance of the Kunlun Glass on the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro.

Smart features for efficient file management

Managing files is one of the more cumbersome parts of owning a smartphone. This is especially tedious for anyone who has to manage tons of files and documents on the phone and is already bogged down by packed schedules. To optimise productivity and boost efficiency, the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro comes with SuperHub. Users can simply drag and drop any file to SuperHub’s floating window to store them temporarily and seamlessly cut and paste them to another application’s window. The HUAWEI Mate50 Pro’s SuperStorage feature can also automatically detect duplicated files and allow users to compress them in the HUAWEI Optimiser app, helping users save space more effectively and efficiently.

The HUAWEI Mate50 Pro is a flagship smartphone with an exquisite design and futuristic features way ahead of its time. The trailblazing innovations of the Ultra Aperture XMAGE Camera will likely be the benchmark for smartphone cameras for years to come. On top of that, the faster charging speeds and a host of smart features make the HUAWEI Mate50 Pro the go-to flagship smartphone in 2023.