The Huawei Mate 40 Pro is arguably the most intriguing smartphone launch of the year, what with it being potentially the very last Huawei phone to use a Kirin chip due to ongoing U.S. sanctions that prevent most of the world’s chipmakers, including Huawei’s longtime partner TSMC, from supplying silicon for Huawei.
But even without the U.S. scrutiny drama, the Huawei Mate 40 Pro would still have been one of the more interesting launches of the year anyway. Ever since 2018’s Huawei P20 Pro, every Huawei flagship has brought with it a breakthrough in camera hardware, whether it be RYYB sensors that can literally see in the dark, a true 10x lossless optical zoom lens, or computational night mode photography before Google and Apple did it.
I’ve been testing a pre-production unit of the Huawei Mate 40 Pro for about a day and a half. Here are my first impressions.
Huawei Mate 40 Pro: Specifications
Specification
Huawei Mate 40 Pro
Dimensions & Weight
162.9 x 75.5 x 9.1mm
212g
Display
6.76-inch flexible OLED
2772 x 1344 resolution
456ppi
90Hz refresh rate
SoC
HiSilicon Kirin 9000
1x ARM Cortex A-77 @ 3.13GHz
3x ARM Cortex A-77 @2.54GHz
4x ARM Cortex A-55 @2.04GHz
5nm TSMC process
ARM Mali-G78MP24 GPU
RAM & Storage
8GB RAM
256GB UFS 3.1 storage
Huawei’s proprietary NM card expansion slot
Battery & Charging
4,400mAh dual-cell battery
66W SuperCharge wired fast charging
50W wireless fast charging
Reverse wireless charging
Security
3D Face unlock
In-display fingerprint scanner
Rear Cameras
50MP f/1.9, RYYB primary camera with OIS
20MP f/1.8, wide-angle camera
12MP f/3.4, 5x periscope telephoto camera
3D ToF sensor
Front Cameras
13MP f/2.4, wide-angle camera
3D ToF sensor
Ports
USB 3.1 Type-C port
Audio
Dual stereo speakers
Connectivity
5G
Bluetooth 5.2
Wi-Fi 6
NFC
Design: Evolution of an established look
The Huawei Mate 40 Pro continues the design aesthetics established with the Mate 20 series: a centrally-placed camera module with a 2×2 camera layout, a curved screen, and real 3D face scanning — a rarity in the Android space. Thankfully, the angular, unsightly notch of the Mate 30 is gone. In its place is a hole-punch cut-out housing a selfie camera, a TOF sensor, and an infrared camera, similar to what we saw in the P40 series.
The “waterfall” curved display first seen in last year’s Mate 30 Pro — meaning the sides of the screen slope at a more dramatic 88-degree angle and curves further down the sides of the phone — is back. Many people in the tech space criticized this design last year (mostly from looking at product shots), but those who actually reviewed the Mate 30 Pro reported no false touch issues across the board. The same can be said here — even with my palm rubbing all over the side, it doesn’t get in the way of scrolling or tapping. The 6.67-inch OLED panel is “just” 90Hz, so it’s technically slower than the 120Hz seen in rivals, but animations appear very smooth to my eyes. I suppose the OnePlus 8T’s animations zip around a hair more fluidly, but I don’t think many people will look at this 90Hz panel and complain.
The back of the Huawei Mate 40 Pro is glass, covered in this soft-touch matte coating that fights off fingerprints quite well. My unit has this silver color that subtly changes shade depending on how the light hits the back. The volume rocker, which had been removed from last year’s Mate 30 series, is back, but it is placed further towards the back edge than usual since the waterfall display curves substantially. However, the double-tap-side-of-screen to trigger the on-screen volume control trick is still here.
The Kirin 9000 SoC: 5nm and 5G
The Huawei Mate 40 Pro is packed with the HiSilicon Kirin 9000, a 5nm chip that also has a 5G modem built-in. This is an impressive feat of engineering, as even Apple’s 5nm A14 Bionic requires a separate radio for 5G.
Because this phone is running pre-production software, I was unable to install many benchmark apps, such as Geekbench 5, PCMark, and GFX Bench. However, I did successfully install 3D Mark, and in the “Wild Life” test that benchmarks graphic performance, the Kirin 9000 beat the Snapdragon 865 running in the Galaxy S20 FE with a score of 6,505 to 3,723. The score on the Mate 40 Pro is ~2x that from the Kirin 990 on the Huawei P40 Pro, and ~1.5x of the score from the Snapdragon 865+ in the ROG Phone 3. It is too early to arrive at a conclusion, but the Kirin 9000 showcases immense potential as far as improvements in the GPU performance is concerned. We’ll be doing more benchmarks in the near future.
Huawei Mate 40 Pro with Kirin 9000
Samsung Galaxy S20 FE with Snapdragon 865
Huawei Mate 40 Pro with Kirin 9000 vs. Samsung Galaxy S20 FE with Snapdragon 865
I was able to test the 5G in Hong Kong, and in the Speedtest from the Ookla app, data speeds were very similar to what the iPhone 12 has been getting.
Cameras: Another zoom and low-light beast
Whether you like the look of the Mate series’ centrally-located camera module or not, you can’t deny that it is fairly unique and stands out from the sea of similar-looking camera modules on the market. This year’s design, dubbed “Space Ring,” houses a 50MP, f/1.9, RYYB primary camera, and a 12MP, f/3.4 Periscope zoom lens. Both of these sensors appear to be the exact same ones used in the P40 Pro earlier this year. The other two cameras consist of a 3D ToF sensor and a 20MP ultra-wide-angle camera.
The Mate 40 Pro module houses a 50MP main camera (bottom left), 20MP ultra-wide angle camera (bottom right), a 12MP Periscope zoom lens (upper left), and a 3D ToF sensor (upper right).
The latter camera — the ultra-wide — is interesting. It’s still an 18mm lens (meaning the field-of-vision is 100-degrees, relatively narrow compared to other phones’ ultra-wide sensors), but the pixel count has been halved from the 40MP lens used in the Mate 30 Pro and P40 Pro. Huawei has not released a spec sheet or early information at the time of me writing this article, so I don’t know why this change happened, but I can tell the ultra-wide camera is still the sharpest in the mobile space (but with framing being a bit too tight), and excels even more in even extreme low light condition. See the ultra-wide samples below. The Mate 40 Pro’s ultra-wide shots are sharper, and at night, they exhibit a lot less noise than the iPhone 12’s ultra-wide.
Ultra-wide: Huawei Mate 40 Pro vs iPhone 12
In the below set, I took ultra-wide, 1X, and 10X zoom shots with both the Huawei Mate 40 Pro and the Apple iPhone 12 Pro, and to my eyes, Huawei won the ultra-wide and 10X zoom, but loses the 1X to Apple’s new shooter.
Ultra-wide, 1x, 10x: Huawei Mate 40 Pro vs iPhone 12
In night time photography, I’m a fan of the Mate 40 Pro’s contrasty vibe. For example, the neon lights in the image below look far cleaner than on the iPhone 12’s shot.
Night Shots: Huawei Mate 40 Pro vs iPhone 12
Huawei added a similar ultra-wide camera to its front shooter this year, giving it also a 100-degree field-of-view. For the most part, selfies on the Huawei Mate 40 Pro appear excellent. In the set below, the Mate 40 Pro’s selfie camera has the widest field-of-view, and is a happy medium between the iPhone 12’s all-natural look and Samsung’s overly beautified, skin-smoothened aesthetic. Notice the Mate 40 Pro’s shot is the only one that didn’t completely blow out the sky behind me — you can actually see some semblance of clouds.
Selfies: Huawei Mate 40 Pro vs iPhone 12 vs Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
Software — You already know where the issue is
The Huawei Mate 40 Pro runs EMUI 11 over Android 10. I haven’t had time to dive too deep into the software yet, but my early impressions are that the UI mostly feels the same as previous Huawei phones, with the most notable addition being improved multitasking in the form of a slide-over menu that allows the user to launch apps in a floating window.
There’s also a new Always-On Display that intelligently only turns on when you move your head towards the screen. It works like magic — anytime I tilt my head over at the phone screen, the AOD lights up. Huawei hasn’t explained how exactly it’s doing this at the time of writing this article, but I’m assuming it’s using the 3D face scanning system to detect head movement, perhaps?
Multi-tasking with EMUI 11
Multi-tasking with EMUI 11
But of course, the elephant in the room: The Huawei Mate 40 Pro does not ship with Google’s Mobile Services core and they cannot be installed without some sort of hack or unofficial methodology. I’ve used the last two non-GMS Huawei devices so I’ve gotten pretty familiar with what apps I can use and what I can’t: key Google services like YouTube, Drive, Docs, Keep are all no go. But Google Maps and Chrome work. Other widely-used apps (for me) like WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter all work.
Thoughts so far
As is the case with the last four or five Huawei flagships, the Huawei Mate 40 Pro has absolutely top-notch hardware — arguably the best in Android. But the software issue is going to require compromises in usage habits for many people around the world. I’m going to be testing this phone thoroughly over the upcoming days, so stay tuned for more coverage.
Although no one likes a know-it-all, they dominate the Internet.
The Internet began as a vast repository of information. It quickly became a breeding ground for self-proclaimed experts seeking what most people desire: recognition and money.
Today, anyone with an Internet connection and some typing skills can position themselves, regardless of their education or experience, as a subject matter expert (SME). From relationship advice, career coaching, and health and nutrition tips to citizen journalists practicing pseudo-journalism, the Internet is awash with individuals—Internet talking heads—sharing their “insights,” which are, in large part, essentially educated guesses without the education or experience.
The Internet has become a 24/7/365 sitcom where armchair experts think they’re the star.
Not long ago, years, sometimes decades, of dedicated work and acquiring education in one’s field was once required to be recognized as an expert. The knowledge and opinions of doctors, scientists, historians, et al. were respected due to their education and experience. Today, a social media account and a knack for hyperbole are all it takes to present oneself as an “expert” to achieve Internet fame that can be monetized.
On the Internet, nearly every piece of content is self-serving in some way.
The line between actual expertise and self-professed knowledge has become blurry as an out-of-focus selfie. Inadvertently, social media platforms have created an informal degree program where likes and shares are equivalent to degrees. After reading selective articles, they’ve found via and watching some TikTok videos, a person can post a video claiming they’re an herbal medicine expert. Their new “knowledge,” which their followers will absorb, claims that Panda dung tea—one of the most expensive teas in the world and isn’t what its name implies—cures everything from hypertension to existential crisis. Meanwhile, registered dietitians are shaking their heads, wondering how to compete against all the misinformation their clients are exposed to.
More disturbing are individuals obsessed with evangelizing their beliefs or conspiracy theories. These people write in-depth blog posts, such as Elvis Is Alive and the Moon Landings Were Staged, with links to obscure YouTube videos, websites, social media accounts, and blogs. Regardless of your beliefs, someone or a group on the Internet shares them, thus confirming your beliefs.
Misinformation is the Internet’s currency used to get likes, shares, and engagement; thus, it often spreads like a cosmic joke. Consider the prevalence of clickbait headlines:
You Won’t Believe What Taylor Swift Says About Climate Change!
This Bedtime Drink Melts Belly Fat While You Sleep!
In One Week, I Turned $10 Into $1 Million!
Titles that make outrageous claims are how the content creator gets reads and views, which generates revenue via affiliate marketing, product placement, and pay-per-click (PPC) ads. Clickbait headlines are how you end up watching a TikTok video by a purported nutrition expert adamantly asserting you can lose belly fat while you sleep by drinking, for 14 consecutive days, a concoction of raw eggs, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar 15 minutes before going to bed.
Our constant search for answers that’ll explain our convoluted world and our desire for shortcuts to success is how Internet talking heads achieve influencer status. Because we tend to seek low-hanging fruits, we listen to those with little experience or knowledge of the topics they discuss yet are astute enough to know what most people want to hear.
There’s a trend, more disturbing than spreading misinformation, that needs to be called out: individuals who’ve never achieved significant wealth or traded stocks giving how-to-make-easy-money advice, the appeal of which is undeniable. Several people I know have lost substantial money by following the “advice” of Internet talking heads.
Anyone on social media claiming to have a foolproof money-making strategy is lying. They wouldn’t be peddling their money-making strategy if they could make easy money.
Successful people tend to be secretive.
Social media companies design their respective algorithms to serve their advertisers—their source of revenue—interest; hence, content from Internet talking heads appears most prominent in your feeds. When a video of a self-professed expert goes viral, likely because it pressed an emotional button, the more people see it, the more engagement it receives, such as likes, shares and comments, creating a cycle akin to a tornado.
Imagine scrolling through your TikTok feed and stumbling upon a “scientist” who claims they can predict the weather using only aluminum foil, copper wire, sea salt and baking soda. You chuckle, but you notice his video got over 7,000 likes, has been shared over 600 times and received over 400 comments. You think to yourself, “Maybe this guy is onto something.” What started as a quest to achieve Internet fame evolved into an Internet-wide belief that weather forecasting can be as easy as DIY crafts.
Since anyone can call themselves “an expert,” you must cultivate critical thinking skills to distinguish genuine expertise from self-professed experts’ self-promoting nonsense. While the absurdity of the Internet can be entertaining, misinformation has serious consequences. The next time you read a headline that sounds too good to be true, it’s probably an Internet talking head making an educated guess; without the education seeking Internet fame, they can monetize.
TORONTO – A new survey says a majority of software engineers and developers feel tight project deadlines can put safety at risk.
Seventy-five per cent of the 1,000 global workers who responded to the survey released Tuesday say pressure to deliver projects on time and on budget could be compromising critical aspects like safety.
The concern is even higher among engineers and developers in North America, with 77 per cent of those surveyed on the continent reporting the urgency of projects could be straining safety.
The study was conducted between July and September by research agency Coleman Parkes and commissioned by BlackBerry Ltd.’s QNX division, which builds connected-car technology.
The results reflect a timeless tug of war engineers and developers grapple with as they balance the need to meet project deadlines with regulations and safety checks that can slow down the process.
Finding that balance is an issue that developers of even the simplest appliances face because of advancements in technology, said John Wall, a senior vice-president at BlackBerry and head of QNX.
“The software is getting more complicated and there is more software whether it’s in a vehicle, robotics, a toaster, you name it… so being able to patch vulnerabilities, to prevent bad actors from doing malicious acts is becoming more and more important,” he said.
The medical, industrial and automotive industries have standardized safety measures and anything they produce undergoes rigorous testing, but that work doesn’t happen overnight. It has to be carried out from the start and then at every step of the development process.
“What makes safety and security difficult is it’s an ongoing thing,” Wall said. “It’s not something where you’ve done it, and you are finished.”
The Waterloo, Ont.-based business found 90 per cent of its survey respondents reported that organizations are prioritizing safety.
However, when asked about why safety may not be a priority for their organization, 46 per cent of those surveyed answered cost pressures and 35 per cent said a lack of resources.
That doesn’t surprise Wall. Delays have become rampant in the development of tech, and in some cases, stand to push back the launch of vehicle lines by two years, he said.
“We have to make sure that people don’t compromise on safety and security to be able to get products out quicker,” he said.
“What we don’t want to see is people cutting corners and creating unsafe situations.”
The survey also took a peek at security breaches, which have hit major companies like London Drugs, Indigo Books & Music, Giant Tiger and Ticketmaster in recent years.
About 40 per cent of the survey’s respondents said they have encountered a security breach in their employer’s operating system. Those breaches resulted in major impacts for 27 per cent of respondents, moderate impacts for 42 per cent and minor impacts for 27 per cent.
“There are vulnerabilities all the time and this is what makes the job very difficult because when you ship the software, presumably the software has no security vulnerabilities, but things get discovered after the fact,” Wall said.
Security issues, he added, have really come to the forefront of the problems developers face, so “really without security, you have no safety.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
As online shoppers hunt for bargains offered by Amazon during its annual fall sale this week, cybersecurity researchers are warning Canadians to beware of an influx of scammers posing as the tech giant.
In the 30 days leading up to Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days, taking place Tuesday and Wednesday, there were more than 1,000 newly registered Amazon-related web domains, according to Check Point Software Technologies, a company that offers cybersecurity solutions.
The company said it deemed 88 per cent of those domains malicious or suspicious, suggesting they could have been set up by scammers to prey on vulnerable consumers. One in every 54 newly created Amazon-related domain included the phrase “Amazon Prime.”
“They’re almost indiscernible from the real Amazon domain,” said Robert Falzon, head of engineering at Check Point in Canada.
“With all these domains registered that look so similar, it’s tricking a lot of people. And that’s the whole intent here.”
Falzon said Check Point Research sees an uptick in attempted scams around big online shopping days throughout the year, including Prime Days.
Scams often come in the form of phishing emails, which are deceptive messages that appear to be from a reputable source in attempt to steal sensitive information.
In this case, he said scammers posing as Amazon commonly offer “outrageous” deals that appear to be associated with Prime Days, in order to trick recipients into clicking on a malicious link.
The cybersecurity firm said it has identified and blocked 100 unique Amazon Prime-themed scam emails targeting organizations and consumers over the past two weeks.
Scammers also target Prime members with unsolicited calls, claiming urgent account issues and requesting payment information.
“It’s like Christmas for them,” said Falzon.
“People expect there to be significant savings on Prime Day, so they’re not shocked that they see something of significant value. Usually, the old adage applies: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
Amazon’s website lists a number of red flags that it recommends customers watch for to identify a potential impersonation scam.
Those include false urgency, requests for personal information, or indications that the sender prefers to complete the purchase outside of the Amazon website or mobile app.
Scammers may also request that customers exclusively pay with gift cards, a claim code or PIN. Any notifications about an order or delivery for an unexpected item should also raise alarm bells, the company says.
“During busy shopping moments, we tend to see a rise in impersonation scams reported by customers,” said Amazon spokeswoman Octavia Roufogalis in a statement.
“We will continue to invest in protecting consumers and educating the public on scam avoidance. We encourage consumers to report suspected scams to us so that we can protect their accounts and refer bad actors to law enforcement to help keep consumers safe.”
Falzon added that these scams are more successful than people might think.
As of June 30, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre said there had been $284 million lost to fraud so far this year, affecting 15,941 victims.
But Falzon said many incidents go unreported, as some Canadians who are targeted do not know how or where to flag a scam, or may choose not to out of embarrassment.
Check Point recommends Amazon customers take precautions while shopping on Prime Days, including by checking URLs carefully, creating strong passwords on their accounts, and avoiding personal information being shared such as their birthday or social security number.
The cybersecurity company said consumers should also look for “https” at the beginning of a website URL, which indicates a secure connection, and use credit cards rather than debit cards for online shopping, which offer better protection and less liability if stolen.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
