Huawei beats Apple to it and releases a dual-camera smartphone
In a surprise move, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei has released a couple of new handsets that offer a feature long-rumored to launch with the “iPhone 7” and “iPhone 7 Plus.” Huawei’s models, the P9 and P9 Plus, offer users a dual-camera system, in which a pair of rear-facing cameras work in tandem to achieve impressive photographic performance.
P9 and P9 Plus
You might think Huawei is pushing an Apple knock-off on its Chinese customers with the P9 and P9 Plus. Heck, the handsets even borrow from the iPhone’s naming system, right? But when you look into Huawei’s new smartphones, the devices seem fairly impressive.
You see, Huawei has actually called on the German camera-maker Leica in order to create its dual-camera system. The result means the handset, as BBC News explains, can create “shallow depth-of-field shots more commonly associated with larger lenses.” The news came earlier today from Huawei’s P9 global launch, which was held in London.
Moving up the social ladder
The move could, analysts argue, see Huawei move from being considered a fairly budget, low-cost smartphone manufacturer to a serious contender, and something to rival the likes of Samsung and Apple. Over in China, Apple’s share of the smartphone market has fallen recently, and although it’s ahead of Huawei, the latter company has enjoyed exponential growth in recent years.
Look out, Apple
I’m not one to talk of Apple’s impending doom as so many others are, but Huawei’s release of the P9 and P9 Plus could naturally spell bad news for Cupertino – especially given Apple’s performance in urban China (and Huawei’s growing prominence). Yet though Cupertino probably hoped to bring its dual-camera iPhone to the market before Huawei’s P9, today’s news isn’t so bad: it just means we have something to compare the iPhone 7 against. After all, nothing’s ever going to top that iPhone 4 leak.
Apple’s iPhone 7 is expected to launch in September; aside from the dual-camera system, there’ll be a brand new hardware design, and – fingers crossed – a port of the iPad Pro’s True Tone display. We’ll keep you posted with further information as we receive it.
