We recently compared the Huawei P20 Pro to its older cousin, the Huawei Mate 10 Pro. This time we’re going to pit it against another powerful flagship smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S9+. Let’s find out which one is better on paper in our quick specs comparison below.
| HUAWEI P20 PRO | SAMSUNG GALAXY S9+ |
|---|---|
| 6.1-inch 2240 x 1080 OLED FullView display, 408ppi | 6.2-inch WQHD+ (2960 x 1440) 18.5:9 Super AMOLED display, 531ppi |
| 3D Glass | Gorilla Glass 5 (front and back) |
| HiSilicon Kirin 970 octa-core (4 x ARM Cortex A73 2.36GHz + 4 x ARM Cortex A53 1.8GHz) | Samsung Exynos 9810 octa-core CPU (4 x 2.7GHz Custom CPU + 4 x 1.8GHz ARM Cortex A55) |
| Mali-G72 MP12 GPU | Mali G72-MP18 GPU |
| 6GB RAM | 6GB LPDDR4 RAM |
| 128GB internal storage | 64GB, 128GB, 256GB UFS 2.1 internal storage |
| no microSD card slot | microSD card slot (uses SIM 2 slot) |
| Leica triple rear caemeras: 40MP f/1.8 RGB sensor + 20MP f/1.6 monochrome sensor + 8MP f/2.4 telephoto lens triple Leica cameras w/ Huawei AIS, 5x Hybrid Zoom, AI Image Stabilization, LED flash | 12MP f/1.5-f/2.4 Dual Pixel, OIS, 2x optical zoom + 12MP f/2.4 dual pixel, OIS, wide-angle, dual-tone LED flash |
| 24MP f/2.0 front camera with AI beautification and 3D portrait lighting | 8MP f/1.7 front-facing camera |
| 4K and 960fps video recording | 2160p @ 30fps video recording, Slow-mo 960fps @ 720p (0.2 secs) |
| Single/Dual-SIM | Dual-SIM (nano, hybrid) |
| 4G LTE Cat. 18 (1.2Gbps) | 4G LTE Cat. 18 6CA 1.2Gbps |
| WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, DLNA | WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac |
| Bluetooth 4.2, BLE, aptX, aptX HD | Bluetooth 5.0, A2DP, LE, aptX |
| NFC | NFC |
| GPS with GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO | GPS with aGPS, GLONASS, BeiDou |
| USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 1 | USB Type-C |
| IP67 water and dust resistance | IP68 dust and water-resistance |
| Fingerprint scanner | Fingerprint scanner |
| Infrared Remote Control | Iris scanner, Heart rate scanner |
| Android 8.1 Oreo (EMUI 8.1) | Android 8.0 with Samsung Experience 9 |
| 4,000mAh battery with SuperCharge and AI battery management | 3,500 Li-Po battery, Fast Charging, Wireless Charging |
| 155.0 x 73.9 x 7.8 mm | 158.1 x 73.8 x 8.5 mm |
| 180 g | 189 g |
| Twilight, Pink Gold, Black, Midnight Blue, Champagne Gold | Midnight Black, Lilac Purple, Coral Blue |
Summary of advantages
HUAWEI P20 PRO:
* Leica triple rear cameras with higher resolution
* Higher front camera resolution
* Infrared Remote Control
* Updated Android Oreo
* Larger battery
* Thinner and lighter
SAMSUNG GALAXY S9+:
* Newer and better performing CPU
* More powerful GPU
* Higher display resolution
* More storage options
* MicroSD card support
* Bluetooth 5.0
* Better Ingress Protection
* Iris Scanner
* Heart rate scanner
* Wireless Charging
The P20 Pro definitely edges the Galaxy S9+ when it comes to cameras. Not only it packs three cameras, it’s the chart topper in DxOMark Mobile at 109 points while the S9+ is at 99. Don’t get us wrong though, as the S9+ is still one of the best camera phones out there. It also has a hand Infrared Remote Control, a way larger battery, thinner and lighter build, and an updated Android Oreo although the S9+ could also get it in future updates.
When it comes to performance, the S9+ sports a newer Samsung Exynos 9810 chipset and a more powerful GPU. While we haven’t benchmarked the P20 Pro, we can get an idea how it performs through its cousin, the Mate 10 Pro as they sport the same chipset. Using AnTuTu v7, our Mate 10 Pro got a score of 211,449, while the S9+ got a score of 240,270. The gap is not that huge but it gives us an idea which chipset can provide more firepower.
While the P20 Pro wins in terms of camera performance, the Galaxy S9+ provides more bells and whistles such as a higher resolution display, multiple storage options with support for a microSD card, better Bluetooth connection, better Ingress Protection for liquids, an Iris scanner for better biometric security, and heart rate scanner. It may have a smaller battery but the S9+ supports fast wireless charging which is hand if you don’t like charging with cables.
To summarize, if you want a smartphone with best cameras and a big battery, go for the Huawei P20 Pro, but if you want something with better display and performance, and more features, the Galaxy S9+ is the one for you.
As for the price, the Galaxy S9+ starts at $335 for the 64GB in china. The P20 Pro at around $315.