Huawei Mate 20 series: All the rumors in one place

In this post, which will be updated regularly, we take a closer look at the latest rumors surrounding the upcoming Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro smartphones. The Huawei Mate 20 and Huawei Mate 20 Pro are among the most anticipated smartphones of the year. They are expected to feature top-of-the-line specs and will take on the likes of the Galaxy Note 9 and LG V40. Before we dive into the latest rumors surrounding the two handsets, I want to point out that their names have yet to be officially confirmed. Their predecessors are the Mate 10 and 10 Pro, and it’s assumed that Huawei will skip the number 11 and jump straight to 20 — just like it did with the P20 series. Therefore, I’ll refer to the two devices as the Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro in this post. Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 pro: Release date The nitty-gritty The launch date of the Huawei Mate 20 series has yet to be announced. The smartphones could make their debut around the same time as their predecessors. That means we could see them either in October or November. Huawei launched the Mate 10 smartphones on October 16 last year, while the Mate 9 made its debut on November 3, 2016. Although not confirmed, the company is expected to announce the Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro around the same time — October or November. Read next: Here are the best Huawei phones you can buy right now As far as the release date goes, the Huawei Mate 20 series will probably hit the shelves in Europe and other regions within a month or so after launch. One or even both smartphones are expected to go on sale in the U.S. as well, but at a later date. The Mate 10 Pro, for example, was released stateside in February 2018, around four months after going on sale on the old continent. Due to the company’s recent U.S. woes, Huawei is not likely to launch the Mate 20 or Mate 20 Pro with any carrier partners in the U.S. — it’ll likely sell both phones through Amazon. Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro: Specs and features The nitty-gritty The Huawei Mate 20 series may be powered by the Kirin 980 chipset. They could feature a triple-camera setup on the back. The Pro model may sport an in-display fingerprint scanner. The folks over at XDA-Developers got their hands on alleged firmware files of the Huawei Mate 20, which reveal some of the specs and features the smartphone may offer. The flagship is said to feature a 6.3-inch AMOLED display, up from the 5.9-inch panel found on its predecessor. Unfortunately, there’s no word on resolution or the aspect ratio. There’s a good chance Huawei will stick with the QHD resolution of the Mate 10, and switch from a 16:9 to an 18:9 aspect ratio to keep up with the latest trends. However, this is just speculation for now. The firmware files also reveal that the Huawei Mate 20 might be powered by the Kirin 980 SoC, which will likely be announced at IFA in Berlin. Rumors have it the chipset will offer 20 percent better performance and will be 40 percent more power-efficient than its rivals. As usual, it will also make its way to Huawei’s P30 series that should launch next year. The Huawei Mate 20 may feature a triple-camera setup on the back. The phone is expected to sport 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, although there might be a few other memory variants available. It’s possible it will feature a triple-camera setup on the back like the P20 Pro, but then again that may only be available on the Pro model. There are no rumors on this topic yet, so things can still go either way. If the rumors are true, the Huawei Mate 20 will feature a massive 4,200mAh battery, which would make it a market leader in its class. For comparison, the Galaxy Note 8’s battery has a capacity of just 3,300mAh, even though the phone has a 6.3-inch display. Other specs and features include wireless charging, some kind of IP rating for protection against water and dust, and Android 9.0 Pie with Huawei’s EMUI skin on top. Unfortunately, details regarding the headphone jack and expandable storage are unknown at the moment. Both were present on the Mate 10, and I hope the story will be the same with its successor. Details about the Huawei Mate 20 Pro are scarce. According to The Bell, the device could sport a massive 6.9-inch AMOLED display made by Samsung, which would be quite an upgrade over the 6-inch panel found on its predecessor. Like the Mate 20, we haven’t heard anything about the resolution or the aspect ratio. Based on its size, the device should sport a larger battery than the Mate 20. A capacity of 5,000mAh would make sense, as that is what the recently announced 6.9-inch Honor Note 10 is packing. The Huawei Mate 20 Pro should be powered by the same Kirin 980 chipset as its smaller brother. It could have at least 6GB of RAM, with an 8GB model also being an option. Camera details haven’t been confirmed yet, but I’d be surprised if it doesn’t come with a triple-camera setup that’s similar to the one found on the P20 Pro. Rumors also suggest we’ll see wireless charging, an IP rating, and an in-display fingerprint scanner (hooray!). Other features like the headphone jack, storage variants, and front-facing cameras remain a mystery for now. Huawei Mate 20 rumored specsHuawei Mate 20 Pro rumored specs Display6.3-inch AMOLED QHD+ resolution 18:9 aspect ratio6.9-inch AMOLED 18:9 aspect ratio ProcessorHiSilicon Kirin 980HiSilicon Kirin 980 RAM6GB6 or 8GB Storage128GBTBA CameraDual- or triple-camera setupTriple-camera setup Battery4,200mAh5,000mAh In-display fingeprint scannerNoYes SoftwareAndroid 9.0 Pie with EMUI 9.0Android 9.0 Pie with EMUI 9.0 Other featuresWireless charging, IP ratingWireless charging, IP rating Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro: Design Huawei Mate 10 Pro and P20 Pro The nitty-gritty Images of the Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro have yet to leak. The smartphones are expected to sport a similar design, with a few minor changes here and there. They may feature a metal frame and a glass back. We haven’t come across any images of the Huawei Mate 20 and 20 Pro, so we don’t know what they will look like. I hope the smartphones will sport a similar design as their predecessors, with a few changes here and there. The Mate 10 Pro is still the most beautiful smartphone out there in my opinion, as it features thin bezels up from and a minimalistic back with a reflective stripe that runs horizontally across the cameras — giving the device more character. Editor's PickWhat is 5G, and what can we expect from it?You've likely heard the term a lot recently, but what is 5G? Good question. Simply put, 5G networking is the next major evolution of mobile wireless technology. It will empower customers with even faster data connections, … The Mate 20 series will almost certainly feature a metal frame and a glass back, especially because it is rumored to support wireless charging. I also expect to see minimal bezels up front and hope Huawei will opt for a notch-less design to further differentiate the handsets from the P20 series. The two devices are expected to look similar, but not the same. If the rumors are true, one of them will have a fingerprint scanner on the front or at the rear, while the other will come with the scanner hidden beneath the display. There may be a few other design changes between the two, but it’s hard to predict which ones at this point. I’ll be sure to update this section as soon as I come across leaked images of the devices and other design rumors. Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro: Price The nitty-gritty The Huawei Mate 20 smartphones could cost more than their predecessors. The Pro model could go for as much as a 1,000 euros. The regular Mate 20 should be around 100 euros cheaper. We’re still months away from the reveal of the Mate 20 smartphones, so we don’t know how much they will cost. But we can get a good idea of what to expect by looking at their predecessors. The Mate 10 launched with a price tag of 700 euros, while the Pro model went for 800 euros. Only the Mate 10 Pro made its way to the U.S., where it initially retailed for $800. The Mate 20 Pro could be up to 200 euros more expensive than its predecessor. We can be sure that the Mate 20 smartphones won’t be cheaper than their predecessors, especially because they are rumored to come with larger displays and possibly even things like a triple-camera setup and an in-display fingerprint scanner. The best case scenario would be for the pricing to remain unchanged, but I have a feeling it’s going to go up. The reason why is because the Mate series is generally more expensive than the P series. As the P20 Pro costs 900 euros, the Mate 20 Pro could potentially go for 950 or even a 1,000 euros — making it up to 200 euros more expensive than its predecessor. In the U.S, the price hike may be less drastic, possibly coming in at around $100. The regular Mate 20 will probably cost around 100 euros less than the Pro version, just like last year. These are all the rumors we’ve come across so far about the Huawei Mate 20 series. We’ll update this page as soon as we hear more. In the meantime, share your thoughts on Huawei’s upcoming smartphones. Do you think they will give the Galaxy Note 9 a run for its money? Let us know in the comments!