HUAWEI announced the global launch of HUAWEI nova 16s Series in Munich, Germany. The new smartphone series focuses on outdoor photography, True-to-Colour imaging, AI creative tools, design and durability. Designed for young users and outdoor content creators, the series follows the “Chase the Waves” design philosophy and the “Chase the Wild” campaign spirit.

The HUAWEI nova 16s Series is designed to help users capture spontaneous moments during travel, outdoor activities and everyday adventures with professional-level image quality.

200MP True-to-Colour Camera on the nova 16s Pro

The HUAWEI nova 16s Pro features a 200MP RYYB Ultra-Large Sensor Main Camera. Its camera system includes Front and Rear True-to-Colour Cameras, supported by dual 1.5MP multispectral sensors on the front and rear.

These sensors provide scene-specific colour calibration and are designed to improve colour accuracy in challenging lighting conditions. The system can handle harsh midday sunlight, intense seaside backlighting, soft sunset scenes and mixed lighting environments.

The 200MP RYYB sensor is designed to capture more natural light while preserving shadow details, highlight layers and natural colours. It also aims to correct colour distortions caused by changing colour temperatures, including harsh sunlight, cool coastal lighting and warm dusk conditions.

The standard HUAWEI nova 16s features a 50MP Ultra Portrait Camera with a professional True-to-Colour Camera setup. It is designed to deliver natural and eye-accurate colours.

Both models aim to reduce common outdoor photography problems such as overexposed highlights, washed-out skin tones, and flat-looking scenery.

AI Tools for Better Photos

The HUAWEI nova 16s Series includes several AI-powered photography and editing features.

AI Composition provides real-time framing guidance to help users capture more balanced shots. AI Move allows subjects to be repositioned within an image using adaptive lighting and depth matching.

AI De-Glare is designed to remove unwanted reflections from surfaces and glass, while AI Remove allows users to remove distracting people, passersby and environmental clutter with one tap.

The AI Best Expression feature is designed for group photography. It can select the best expression or smile for each person from a series of photos and use one-tap face replacement to improve the final image.

Some AI features may only be available in selected countries and regions, and results may vary.

Slim Design and Large Displays

The HUAWEI nova 16s Pro features a premium frosted glass back with a smooth, velvety finish. It measures 7.1mm thick and weighs 218g, making it relatively slim despite its large display and battery.

The phone features a minimalist 2.5D flat-screen design with symmetrical narrow bezels. The series information lists four colours, Isle Blue, Breathing Crystal, Starry Black and Sky White, although these colours are specifically noted as being available only for the standard HUAWEI nova 16s.

The nova 16s Pro has a 6.84-inch ultra-bright display with an adaptive 1–120Hz LTPO refresh rate. It offers up to 6,000 nits peak brightness at 1% APL and 4,000 nits dynamic peak brightness at 20% APL.

The display also supports AI HDR and 2,160Hz high-frequency PWM dimming, which is designed to improve viewing comfort in low-light conditions. AI HDR is effective when viewing images in the Gallery.

The standard nova 16s features a 6.68-inch high-bright display. Both phones are designed for outdoor visibility, video streaming, travel content and everyday entertainment.

Improved Durability

The HUAWEI nova 16s Pro uses an aerospace-grade aluminium alloy mid-frame and Kunlun Glass with a nano crystal coating.

HUAWEI claims that the phone offers 10 times improved drop resistance compared with the HUAWEI nova 15 regular glass edition. The design is intended to provide better protection against everyday bumps, accidental impacts and scratches.

7,000mAh Battery and 100W Charging

The nova 16s Pro features a 7,000mAh typical battery capacity and a 6,800mAh rated capacity. It supports up to 100W HUAWEI SuperCharge Turbo wired charging.

The maximum 100W charging speed requires an official compatible HUAWEI SuperCharge charger and cable, while actual charging performance may vary.

The large battery is designed for travel, outdoor activities, long photography sessions and all-day use.

Stereo Speakers and Wide Sound

The HUAWEI nova 16s Pro includes symmetrical dual stereo speakers with a 100-degree ultra-wide soundstage. The system is designed to provide crisp and directional audio for music, videos, outdoor entertainment, travel and commuting. The effect may vary depending on the original audio content.

Overall, the HUAWEI nova 16s Series focuses heavily on outdoor photography and content creation. The nova 16s Pro stands out with its 200MP camera, True-to-Colour imaging system, large ultra-bright display, 7,000mAh battery, 100W charging, and improved durability. Meanwhile, the standard nova 16s offers a 50MP portrait-focused camera and a 6.68-inch display.

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Smartphone cameras have come a long way in terms of photography capabilities compared to digital cameras. A webinar hosted by Counterpoint Research revealed that the imaging system continues steep advances as software drives innovation in a new direction. Honor, DXOMARK, Qualcomm, and Eugenio Recuenco were the guests of the webinar and it focused on various topics like smartphone camera trends, OEM imaging comparisons, and more. 

The report states that at the upper end of the market flagship camera counts are flattening, focal lens lengths are been stretched and image processing demands are pushing chipset makers. Since 2019, the average number of camera counts per smartphone is below three. OEMs like Honor are adopting sophisticated computational photography techniques to keep up with the pace of advancement. 

Beyond megapixels and camera counts, there is an increasing importance of software in camera systems. They offer features like multi-frame and multi-camera fusion techniques. Qualcomm VP says that software and algorithm-based photography means processing power is paramount for smartphone camera performance to deliver extreme image signal and neural processing. 

DXOMARK’s Director says that Honor’s Magic4 Ultimate makes the best use of multi-camera fusion computational photography. 

Related: 

• Xiaomi 12 Ultra renders reveal final design featuring Leica-branded camera setup
• AGM Glory G1S rugged smartphone with a thermal camera launched at $699
• Thailand Smartphone Shipments Saw a 10% Dip in the Q1 2022, Samsung Leading Brand: Counterpoint

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Over the past few years, DxOMark has turned out to be an important part of smartphone benchmarks. Almost all of the new flagship models that are released in the market are subjected to their thorough camera tests. But there are some smartphone companies who opt out of DxOMark tests, and OPPO is one of them.

Earlier today, OPPO’s VP, Brian Shen, questioned the significance of DxOMark benchmarks in today’s smartphone market. While talking to his followers on Weibo, he said that there was no need to set a specific standard when it comes to smartphone cameras. He questioned whether it was right to tune every smartphone camera to one particular standard.

“Do you really need DXO? Do all cameras have to be tuned to the same standard?

I mean, there may be a need for rating agencies, but does anything as subjective as taking a picture have to be set to the same standard? Is it right To beautify everyone into one style?” Brian posted on his Weibo earlier today.

Interestingly, OPPO smartphones are never rated on DxOMark’s camera tests. As a result, you won’t find a single flagship from the company on DxOMark’s best smartphone camera list. On the other hand, you’ll find almost everyone else, including Huawei, Xiaomi, Samsung, Sony and even OnePlus on DxOMark’s chart.

This goes on to prove that most companies don’t mind getting their smartphones rated from the benchmarking platform. While I agree one specific standard is never the best way to judge a smartphone camera, what DxOMark gives us is the opportunity to compare the best phones out there on a standard benchmark. Understanding how different smartphone cameras work in a set environment does give us an idea of where it stands among the competition.

• RELATED: Meitu’s beauty-focused selfie flagship T9 finally rated on DxOMark

That said, some might prefer Google Pixel 3’s camera (DxoMark score: 107) over Huawei Mate 20 Pro (DxOMark score: 109). So there’s definitely a hint of personal preference to a smartphone’s camera performance. But it’s unlikely that you would end up finding Asus Zenfone 5’s camera (much lower down the DxoMark chart at 90 points) better than say something like the Galaxy Note 9 (featuring one of the top DxoMark scores — 103).

What are your thoughts? Should we stop giving too much importance to DxOMark ratings?

(Source)

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