Huawei may be facing the harshest situation as the US continues to squeeze the Chinese tech brand out of some markets around the world but that won’t stop the company from always doing what it knows best, making great premium smartphones which we’ve seen over the years.

Earlier on this year when the company released it’s P 40 Series, it was a great device even though it lacked the essential Google Mobile Service or GMS which Huawei supplemented with the HMS or Huawei Mobile Service but that’s another different story in itself.

Usually, the other flagship the company releases every is the Mate series and the previous Mate 30 series was a serious banger which many of us loved because it broke lots of limits even though the device was quite polarizing because of the overtly curved display which ousted the device’s volume rocker for a virtual one but some users never mind this anyway.

Later on this year, there should be the Mate 40 series as well which will surely include some cutting edge technology and other boundary crossing innovations as well which s what we’re here to explore. So here is everything we know about the Huawei Mate 40 series.

Huawei Mate 40 series release date and price

• October 2020
• From around $799 likely

Last year’s Huawei Mate 30 series was released in September the same was the Mate 20 series only the difference being the Mate 10 which was announced in November 2017 and that might put the Mate 40 in October of 2020 as rumors have indicated.

Meanwhile there have been some leaks and rumors swirling around the internet about the release of the device, the company’s official Twitter handle had made it known that there surely will be a Maate 40 series this year.

We've got some exciting news for you…
The next-generation #HuaweiMate is coming soon – Stay tuned! 1/2 pic.twitter.com/6QGgZFz1zJ

— Huawei Mobile UK (@HuaweiMobileUK) September 15, 2020

And as for the pricing of the device, it’s definitely going to be a US$1k smartphone but that will be limited to the high-end variants like that the “Pro” and the “Porsche” models.

In comparison, the previous Huawei Mate 30 had a price point of about US$899 for the base model while the Pro model was priced about US$1,099 and then the Mate 30 Pro 5G was even US$100 more expensive.

And the same could be about the Mate 40 series as well which could even get much more expensive due to the fact that the device will sport even much more interesting hardware specifications.

Rumours claim the Mate 40 Pro will start at 5999 yuan, which is around £660 in the UK, $870 in the US and €730 in Europe. If true, this would make the starting price of the 2020 models cheaper than their predecessors, which seems unlikely.

The design will be different this time around

• Mate 40: 158.6 x 72.5 x 8.9mm, or 10.4mm with the camera bump
• Mate 40 Pro: 162.8 x 75.5 x 9mm or 10.4mm with the camera bump

While the above specification isn’t certain or official by any means, there have been rumors about the design of the device to have a quite prominent rear camera module which will be much more pronounced than the previous Mate 30 camera module.

There were also renders that the design of the camera will still remain the same circular format with a triple setup on the base model while the pro model will have a quad rear setup.

And also there will be curved display or maybe that’s an assumption but based on the previous generations like the Mate 20, Mate 30 there could be some similarities with the Mate 40 as well in terms of it’s curvature but the excessive “Horizontal” waterfall display on the previous Mate 30 Pro could be daring again this time around.

While the front could be redesigned for a pill-shaped camera arrange much like the Huawei P40 series rather than the small notch on the Mate 30 series.

In terms of IP ratings – the Mate 30 Pro has a higher IP rating than the Mate 30 so it wouldn’t be too surprising to see the same for the Mate 40 series. Both devices are expected to have aluminium frames with glass backs. But there could be variants as well which could include the ceramics design or the vegan leather back design.

Still on the Display 

• Mate 40: 6.4-inch, OLED, curved, 90Hz
• Mate 40 Pro: 6.7-inch, OLED, waterfall

While the Huawei Mate 30 had a flat display while the Mate 30 Pro had a daring waterfall display, the difference this time around based on rumors and reports could be that both are curved just the Mate 40 Pro being the daredevil with the massive waterfall curvature once again.

As for the screen size, the Mate 40 base model will have a 6.4-inch OLED panel while the Mate 4 Pro will have a much larger 6.7-inch OLED panel both with Full HD+ resolution and HDR10 support while we can also expect either 90Hz to 120Hz refresh rate from either ofnthe device but the “Pro” model will be the one sporting the high-end features FYI.

Cameras are going to be great

• Mate 40: Triple rear camera
• Mate 40 Pro: Quad rear camera

The Huawei P Series always focus on the camera while the Mate series are always for better video much like the super slow-motion introduced on the Mate 30 Pro last year. It’s obvious the Mate 40 will want to pick the crown from where the Mate 30 left off but do not forget that there were three different P Series this year with each sporting better camera at the upgrades and the same could be with the Mate 40 ( Mate 40, Mate 40 Pro and Mate 40 Pro+).

But as mentioned earlier, rumor has it that the Mate 40 will have a triple camera setup while the Mate 40 Pro will sport a quad setup with the primary sensor being a 50MP coupled with a 20MP ultra-wide sensor then an 8MP telephoto sensor and laser autofocus sensor as well.

The Mate 40 Pro meanwhile, is reported to have a 50-megapixel wide-angle sensor with liquid lens technology, an 80-megapixel Cine sensor, along with a periscope and Time of Flight sensor. None of these specifications are confirmed yet though.

And it would definitely be Leica optics this time around as well and it’s further showcase the prowess of Huawei’s hardware especially in the camera department of the device.

Known hardware and specifications

• Mate 40: Kirin 9000, 6/8GB RAM?
• Mate 40 Pro: Kirin 9000, 8/12GB RAM?

Better processor, more storage spaces option and bigger RAM seems to be the case with modern flagships in 2020 and we’d expect that to be the same with the Mate 40 series as well. The device will likely be the last generation of Huawei devices running the HiSilicon Kirin chipsets as the US trade ban will push Huawei to outsource elsewhere.

As for the Mate 40 series, the probably stockpiled Kirin chipsets 9000 SoC will be used for the devices. The number of devices which will be powered by the chipset is unknown as report says Huawei has about 8 million chips available in stockpile. Meanwhile there haven’t been any report about Kirin 9000 yet.

The Mate 30 had 6 or 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, while the Mate 30 Pro has 8GB of RAM with 128GB or 256GB of storage. We’d expect the Mate 40 to offer 8GB of RAM at least and the Mate 40 Pro the same, as well as maybe another higher option – perhaps 12GB.

And as for the power of the device, there should be a 4000mAh and above on both devices with the Pro model probably having a much larger battery capability as well as fast charging capabilities. But rumors had suggested there could be between 4300mAh, 4500mAh and 5000mAh Li-Po batteries on the devices depending on the variant.

The important software

• No Google apps or services 
• Huawei’s own AppGallery app store will be present

Huawei Mate 40 series will definitely not feature Android OS and I’m sure you know why but in case you do not, you can head back in time to read about the back and forth between the company and the United States.

Meanwhile during the Mate 30 era, Huawei allowed it’s users to sideload Android applications to the devices as well as the Google Play tore which worked perfectly only that could become impossible thi time around with the extended ban.

Which could ultimately force users to use the Huawei App Gallery instead and the company further ecplained it will formally launch devices that uses its own proprietary software next year, the HarmonyOS which also supports Android applications but bye bye to Google mobile services until China and the U.S. are both able to come to a compromise.