Huawei P8 Launch Live Blog (10AM EDT)
by Ian Cutress on April 15, 2015 9:20 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Huawei
- Ascend
- HiSilicon
- Kirin
11:25AM EDT - Looks like that's a wrap. Product demos now.
11:24AM EDT - Looks like we're getting a P8 sample to take away
11:23AM EDT - P8 Max available in one month
11:23AM EDT - 649 Euro for 3GB/64GB
11:23AM EDT - 549 EUro for 3GB/32GB
11:23AM EDT - For P8 Max
11:22AM EDT - 1 month later available worldwide
11:22AM EDT - 30 countries after todays launch
11:22AM EDT - Two colors per storage size
11:22AM EDT - those were for the P8
11:21AM EDT - 599 Euro for 3GB DRAM and 64GB Storage
11:21AM EDT - 499 Euro for 3GB DRAM and 16GB Storage
11:21AM EDT - now pricing
11:21AM EDT - because a 6.8-inch phablet might be difficult to hold (!) for a call
11:20AM EDT - Pair the phone with a TalkBand B2 for hands free calling
11:20AM EDT - dot cover, similar to HTC
11:19AM EDT - magnetic leather case
11:19AM EDT - Gorilla Glass 4
11:18AM EDT - 6.8mm
11:18AM EDT - 83% screen to body ratio
11:18AM EDT - 7-layer heat conduction structure
11:17AM EDT - Patented cooling tech
11:17AM EDT - back panel is 5C cooler after 3 hours video streaming
11:16AM EDT - 2.23 days on normal use
11:16AM EDT - Li-Poly
11:16AM EDT - 4360 mAh battery
11:15AM EDT - customized UI for bigger display
11:15AM EDT - Auto adjusts brightness in 'sun view mode'
11:14AM EDT - 95.9% saturation
11:13AM EDT - 6.8-inch JDI IPS-Neo FHD display 1500:1
11:13AM EDT - Huawei P8 Max ! !
11:13AM EDT - video over
11:12AM EDT - the video had the big A53s in the CPU listed as A53X
11:12AM EDT - surprised they only just mentioned it now
11:12AM EDT - Full-HD
11:11AM EDT - Another video
11:11AM EDT - No mention of the rating or the nano coating
11:10AM EDT - or just an IP number
11:10AM EDT - Superhydrophobic*
11:10AM EDT - So superhydrophic ?!
11:10AM EDT - Spill resistant with nano coating
11:09AM EDT - The Yotaphone 2 actually puts the e-ink on the back, Huawei makes it an accessory
11:09AM EDT - Even when phone is in sleep mode
11:09AM EDT - accessory for back cover
11:08AM EDT - 4.3-inch
11:08AM EDT - Now an e-ink cover
11:08AM EDT - almost like keyless entry with cars
11:07AM EDT - In case your phone is not with you
11:07AM EDT - e.g. TalkBand B2
11:07AM EDT - Unlock via Bluetooth devices
11:06AM EDT - Say 'Hello Buddy' and the phone will make noise
11:05AM EDT - Wake up your phone with voice
11:05AM EDT - Voice Wake Up +
11:04AM EDT - Single Box Audio chamber
11:04AM EDT - Audio DSP Hi6402 + Smart PA
11:04AM EDT - Music+
11:02AM EDT - Super hands free mode, 2m range for group call
11:00AM EDT - 58% volume increase
11:00AM EDT - noise cancellation and helps hear in noisy environments
11:00AM EDT - Voice+
10:59AM EDT - call direct international without prefix
10:59AM EDT - 2600 mAh
10:59AM EDT - 1 day heavy use
10:58AM EDT - 1.5 days battery average use
10:57AM EDT - Can detect abnormal power use
10:57AM EDT - gains 2.3 days standby time
10:57AM EDT - blocks all abnormal power usage in apps
10:57AM EDT - App power consumption firewall
10:56AM EDT - 20% better efficiency
10:56AM EDT - Quad A53e/quad A53
10:55AM EDT - 80% higher CPU perf than P8
10:55AM EDT - 64-bit octa core
10:55AM EDT - Kirin 930/935
10:55AM EDT - 'It's a balance'
10:55AM EDT - 'People always want powerful smartphone, but lots of battery life'
10:54AM EDT - Draw with your knuckle on the screen to crop and create a screenshot
10:53AM EDT - it's a macro
10:53AM EDT - for screenshots
10:53AM EDT - use the knuckle to double click and crop
10:53AM EDT - New gesture called Rich Touch - Knuckle Sense Technology
10:53AM EDT - usability
10:52AM EDT - Now for 'useability'
10:52AM EDT - 2nd SIM slot also supports microSD up to 128GB
10:50AM EDT - Dual SIM, Dual 4G LTE
10:49AM EDT - Now talking multi-sim
10:49AM EDT - Faster to find networks when you land
10:48AM EDT - Roaming+
10:47AM EDT - Uses QoE and historical hostspot list
10:47AM EDT - Wi-Fi+
10:46AM EDT - Even works on high speed train at 300 km/h
10:46AM EDT - This combination increase connection rate
10:45AM EDT - 33.5 microsecond blanking time compared to 2800
10:45AM EDT - Tiny antennas and seemless switching
10:45AM EDT - Signal+
10:44AM EDT - Now onto Connectivity
10:44AM EDT - After April 27th, an Instagram P8 Light Painting Competion
10:44AM EDT - Comes through the ISP
10:43AM EDT - 'Outshine the crew'
10:43AM EDT - Selfie mode can apply a filter for one face in a group
10:42AM EDT - From the master P8 you can select the different angles
10:42AM EDT - One is a P8
10:42AM EDT - Allows four cameras to take video at the same time
10:42AM EDT - Director Mode
10:40AM EDT - Video on the sparkling rain
10:39AM EDT - Instant preview in the light painting
10:39AM EDT - 'Star Track'
10:37AM EDT - 'Star Trek mode'
10:37AM EDT - Light Painting function
10:36AM EDT - 'Seemless and sleek'
10:36AM EDT - No bump on the camera from the back
10:35AM EDT - Some benchmark photo comparisons
10:34AM EDT - auto-scene recognition in each frame
10:34AM EDT - then combine
10:34AM EDT - four frames simultaneously
10:34AM EDT - multi-frame dynamic time exposure
10:33AM EDT - auto scene recognition makes it more vivid
10:33AM EDT - Better auto exposure, better auto white balance
10:32AM EDT - Chip says Altek
10:32AM EDT - 'DSLR-like ISP'
10:32AM EDT - less noise
10:32AM EDT - With a 4 color sensor, darker images are better and high contrast is better
10:31AM EDT - probably cant see on my image
10:31AM EDT - P8 image looks sharper
10:29AM EDT - OIS at 1.2 degrees
10:29AM EDT - OIS
10:29AM EDT - 4-color RGBW camera
10:29AM EDT - Our philsophy is to increase low light and high contrast images
10:28AM EDT - A Camera is more than megapixels
10:27AM EDT - What is a 'Groufie?!'
10:26AM EDT - Now onto the Camera next
10:26AM EDT - Richard the CEO back on stage
10:26AM EDT - Wide range of cases, including leather flip covers
10:25AM EDT - 'Expect P8 design quality cross all accessories'
10:25AM EDT - 'Unboxing is a surprise'
10:24AM EDT - styled themes
10:24AM EDT - 78.3% screen to body ratio
10:24AM EDT - 1500:1 contrast ratio
10:24AM EDT - 'Holistic' ?!?!
10:23AM EDT - four colors
10:23AM EDT - metallic texture
10:23AM EDT - Precision nano molding
10:23AM EDT - 810 minutes to create each chassis
10:22AM EDT - Full metal unibody
10:21AM EDT - 5.2 inches
10:21AM EDT - Chamfered edges
10:21AM EDT - User can user P8 intuitively
10:20AM EDT - 'One Thumb Operation'
10:19AM EDT - Excess elements are stripped away to be absolutely flat
10:18AM EDT - 'P8 consumers enjoy their life and want to have fun creating'
10:18AM EDT - 'P8 consumers want high fashion and the latest trends'
10:18AM EDT - 'P8 is modern and exceptional materials are an essential part of design'
10:17AM EDT - 'P8 is about premium'
10:17AM EDT - 'I like to explore what you can't see'
10:17AM EDT - 'Design is not just shape or style'
10:17AM EDT - 'In one word, P8 is a combination of sophisticated technology and design'
10:15AM EDT - another video
10:15AM EDT - 'Singularity is the idea that something grand and spectacular has a beginning'
10:14AM EDT - Head of Huawei Design, Joonsuuh Kim
10:14AM EDT - 'We want to create infinity for you'
10:14AM EDT - 'Sleek design, impressive camera'
10:13AM EDT - Now the P8
10:12AM EDT - Now P8 opening video
10:12AM EDT - P7 too
10:11AM EDT - sold in 100 countries
10:11AM EDT - 2013 came the P6
10:11AM EDT - 2012 released P1
10:10AM EDT - New P series, all about beauty
10:10AM EDT - 'We want to change the industry by Making it Possible'
10:10AM EDT - 'Launch an important flagship to start a new journey'
10:10AM EDT - 'We are the main telecoms supplier in many EU countries and the world'
10:09AM EDT - CEO of Huawei Consumer BUsiness Group, Richard Yu
10:09AM EDT - 'Biggest and newest surprise to date'
10:08AM EDT - 'Strength to strength, key player'
10:08AM EDT - Opening spiel
10:07AM EDT - nice high quality video
10:06AM EDT - This was outside the event
10:03AM EDT - The new Huawei logo for the new slogan
10:03AM EDT - Opening video
10:02AM EDT - Waiting for people to sit. Some people are kneeling at the front for pictures
09:42AM EDT - Now a P7 video
09:36AM EDT - Actually, I'm sure that was just the video test for the real thing
09:32AM EDT - They're showing videos of the P6 user testing
09:28AM EDT - We're 30 minutes from show time, but I have a front seat and the auditorium is filling up
09:28AM EDT - If some of the leaks are anything to go by, Kirin should be in the P8 too
09:28AM EDT - Huawei uses HiSilicon SoCs under the Kirin codename, which offer something different in the smartphone space from the usual offerings
09:27AM EDT - Just Ian to live blog today. The P8 should be the natural successor to the P7
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37 Comments
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xype - Wednesday, April 15, 2015 - link
Another rather unimaginative case design—you have to wonder whether Apple is really the only company that can actually design hardware that’s even remotely halfway-original.Having said that, the chinese manufacturers are definitely out-Samsuning Samsung, and since Samsung doesn’t have a wide ecosystem to differentiate themselves, they’ll be having a hard time selling against Huawei or Xiaomi in the markets where either of these two companies compete.
Now, I _am_ an Apple user, I love my iPhones and my MacBooks and iPads and it works great for me. And I _do_ find the (often) shameless copying of design language pretty lame and sad. Lame because the companies communicate "We can’t do anything original" and sad because even a copy has to be engineered and designed by _someone_ and those someones are clearly competent, otherwise the companies wouldn’t be able to build those handsets. The sad part is that I would love to see those people be able to design original hardware, because that would make the market even more competitive, imo.
But! If these phones are well made and durable and fast and have good camers, then people should be able to get their hands on them. I’d rather have someone use a really well made "copy" of an iPhone than a badly done one, and the chinese manufacturers are entering the market big time, which makes me assume Samsung will be in for a spanking.
And I bet the chinese manufacturers are already working full steam on creating whole ecosystems and will be copying the way Apple works on a much deeper level. It seems like they understand design better than their south korean counterparts, and the customers will benefit from that more.
Finally some real competition.
Refuge - Wednesday, April 15, 2015 - link
Wait... So you are telling me that the iPhone 6 has a more imaginative case design? I hope you are referring to an accessory that I've not seen yet that is really cool.Because they are both thin rectangles with big bright screens. If it werent for the individual labels I don't think I'd be able to tell it apart from the Huawei P8.
Oh that's right, Apple invented the rectangle, silly me how could I forget?
xype - Thursday, April 16, 2015 - link
Stop being retarded. If Motorola can make a phone that doesn’t look like an iPhone—down to the available colors—why can’t anyone else? You’re all talking like there is only 1 possible shape, button arrangement, color scheme, speaker hole arragngement/design, etc that a phone can have.menting - Wednesday, April 15, 2015 - link
wait, what? are you kidding? "Hardware that's even remotely halfway-original"? The only thing that's really original on the iPhone anymore is the 1 button for everything design. And the only reason it's original is because that idea is pretty stupid.xype - Thursday, April 16, 2015 - link
Stop being retarded. If nokia can make a phone that doesn’t look like an iPhone—down to the available colors—why can’t anyone else? You’re all talking like there is only 1 possible shape, button arrangement, color scheme, speaker hole arragngement/design, etc that a phone can have.Penti - Thursday, April 16, 2015 - link
This is about as original as the Lumia 930.Ethos Evoss - Saturday, April 18, 2015 - link
@xype SUT UP with your word ''retarded'' you even don't know what that means ..Peichen - Thursday, April 16, 2015 - link
You know how to make Samsung original? Stop copying Apple's gold color, speaker grill, true tone flash and physical-home-button with Touch ID. I mean come on, who else made integrated battery in a phone before Apple? Who else uses Nano-SIM before iPhone? Look at Nokia and Window, original hardware and original software.Fujikoma - Wednesday, April 15, 2015 - link
I'm sure if Apple came out with a television, Apple users would brag about the superior rectangular design that everyone else was copying.xype - Thursday, April 16, 2015 - link
Stop being retarded. If LG can make a phone that doesn’t look like an iPhone—down to the available colors—why can’t anyone else? You’re all talking like there is only 1 possible shape, button arrangement, color scheme, speaker hole arragngement/design, etc that a phone can have.