HONOR View 30 announced: Kirin 990, 5G, triple cameras for under $500

The HONOR View series is essentially the HUAWEI sub-brand’s affordable flagship series, bringing capable cameras and high-end power to the table. We saw the HONOR View 20 launched in December 2018, and the brand has decided that the time is right for the HONOR View 30 and HONOR View 30 Pro to be unveiled.

The two phones both offer a Kirin 990 chipset with a 5G modem, as well as support for NSA/SA flavors of 5G, and 4G+5G dual SIM capabilities.

The two devices take a page out of Samsung’s playbook by featuring a dual camera punch-hole cutout on their 6.57-inch FHD+ displays (LCD), housing a 32MP standard and 8MP ultra-wide selfie pairing.

The HONOR View 30 offers a 4,200mAh battery while the Pro model offers a 4,100mAh pack. You’re getting 40W wired charging either way, but those hoping for 27W wireless charging (or wireless charging at all) will need to get the View 30 Pro.

Slightly different triple camera phones

The two phones seem similar when it comes to photography, as both devices feature a triple camera setup. The Pro model serves up a 40MP f/1.6 RYYB main camera (IMX 600) with OIS, a 12MP ultra-wide camera with “AI” stabilization and pixel-binning, and an 8MP 3x telephoto camera (f/2.4, OIS with 5x hybrid zoom). Meanwhile, the vanilla View 30 serves up the same primary camera but with an f/1.7 aperture and no OIS. Other standard View 30 cameras include an 8MP ultra-wide camera and an 8MP 3x telephoto snapper (with 5x hybrid zoom and OIS too).

Oddly enough, HONOR says the View 30 series is capable of generating a 3D model from 2D photos for some reason. The cameras are also apparently capable of measuring your heart rate and breathing rate. We’ll need to get our hands on a review unit before making any conclusions about these two features.

Honor’s phones are also equipped with Magic UI 3.0.1 atop Android 10, NFC, side-mounted fingerprint scanners, and GPU Turbo 4.0. Hoping for a 3.5mm port? Well, you’ll need to use Bluetooth or the included 3.5mm to USB-C adapter.

The HONOR View 30 Pro has a starting price of 3,899 yuan (~$554) for the 8GB/128GB option, and 4,199 yuan (~$597) for the 8GB/256GB model. Meanwhile, the standard View 30 retails for 3,299 yuan (~$469) if you want the 6GB/128GB model, while the 8GB/128GB option will set you back 3,699 yuan (~$526). The phones will be available in Galaxy Black, Icelandic Frost, Phantom Blue, and Twilight Orange. There’s no word on wider availability, but it goes on sale in China from December 12.