Huawei P40 release date: Price, specs and everything else you need to know

The Huawei P40, P40 Pro and P40 Pro Plus are finally official. Huawei’s trio of next-gen flagships was revealed during a grand unveiling event on 26 March – which was livestreamed due to the COVID-19 outbreak – and we finally have all the important details.

Huawei has been the brand on everyone’s lips since the beginning of the trade dispute between China and the US . As a result of these sanctions, Huawei is forced to use Android without the full support of Google, which means that none of Google’s first-party applications – Maps, YouTube and Gmail for instance – aren’t preinstalled on the P40.

READ NEXT: Huawei P40 Pro first look

Regardless, there is still hope for Huawei’s P40 phones. The hardware that Huawei is packing this year is special enough that you might be tempted away from Google, and instead make do with the applications found on Huawei’s own App Gallery.

Still interested? Read on for everything you need to know about the Huawei P40 series of smartphones, including UK price, release date and specifications.

Preorder Huawei P40 Pro

Huawei P40: Everything you need to know

Huawei P40 features and specs: What’s inside?

Naturally, there are only a few subtle hardware differences between the three P40 phones. Rather than going into lengthy detail over the course of multiple long-winded paragraphs, I figured it would be best to outline all of the important specifications in one easy-to-read table:

Huawei P40

Huawei P40 Pro

Huawei P40 Pro Plus

Processor

2.86GHz Kirin 990

2.86GHz Kirin 990

2.86GHz Kirin 990

Storage

128GB or 256GB (Nano Memory compatible)

128GB or 256GB or 512GB (Nano Memory compatible)

256GB or 512GB (Nano Memory compatible)

RAM

8GB

8GB

8GB

Rear camera

Triple: 50MP main, 8MP 3x telephoto, 16MP ultra-wide

Quad: 50MP main, 12MP 5x telephoto, 40MP ultra-wide, ToF

Penta: 50MP main, 8MP 10x telephoto, 8MP 3x telephoto, 40MP ultra-wide, ToF

Selfie camera

32MP

32MP

32MP

Battery

3,800mAh

4,200mAh

4,200mAh

Display

6.1in 2,340 x 1,080 OLED

6.58in 90Hz 2,640 x 1,200 OLED

6.58in 90Hz 2,640 x 1,200 OLED

Waterproofing

IP53

IP68

IP68

Clearly, the Huawei P40 represents a couple of firsts for the company. Most notably, it’s the first Huawei smartphone with a 90Hz screen (on the P40 Pro and Pro Plus) and the first with a penta-camera arrangement (if you splurge on the most expensive P40 Pro Plus).

All three phones are powered by Huawei’s most up-to-date silicon, the Kirin 990 . This is a 5G-capable mobile chipset with a blazingly fast clock speed of 2.86GHz. Depending on which phone you decide to go for, this is backed up by 8GB of RAM and up to 512GB of expandable storage (via Nano Memory card).

All of the P40’s are fitted with a fancy 50MP camera. On the regular P40, this is complemented by an 8MP 3x telephoto zoom lens, along with a 16MP wide-angle unit. On the P40 Pro, the 50MP camera works with a 12MP 5x telephoto, 40MP wide-angle camera and a time of flight (ToF) sensor. The P40 Pro also uses that 50MP camera, but includes an 8MP 10x telephoto camera, an 8MP 3x telephoto unit, 40MP wide camera and a ToF sensor.

A silky-smooth 90Hz OLED screen is shared by the two more expensive phones, and the P40’s is smaller and lower resolution at 6.1in across, with a resolution of 2,340 x 1,080. The P40 and P40 Pro Plus measure 6.58in across the diagonal, with a resolution of 2,640 x 1,200. Not one of the phones has a headphone jack, but they do have IP-rated water and dust resistance

The only other noticeable difference is in the design of the phones. Both the P40 and p40 Pro Plus have a new “quad curve” screen that wraps around all four edges of the device. The Huawei P40 isn’t quite as special, with a completely flat screen and harsh edges.

Huawei P40 release date: When can you buy one?

Despite the COVID-19 threat looming large across the industry – and delaying the production of many smartphones – the Huawei P40 series of phones are coming much sooner than expected. You can preorder now (with a free pair of Huawei FreeBuds 3 headphones) ahead of the global release date of 7 April 2020.

Preorder Huawei P40 Pro

Huawei P40 price: How much will they cost?

The Huawei P40 costs £700 in the UK. If you wanted to upgrade to the flashier model, you'll have to fork out an extra £200 – the Huawei P40 Pro costs £900.

But, where's the P40 Pro Plus? Well, it's starting to look like Huawei's top-end flagship won't be available in the UK. We know it's priced at a hefty €1,399 overseas, and I'll update this article if we hear any more information.