Technology is, by definition, always new and exciting. But that also makes it the fastest-changing field in the world, capable of sending even those who follow it closely into a confusing spin. One way to handle this is to take a closer look at just one item. Of course, it helps if that item is one of the most technologically-advanced examples of its field.

We’re talking, of course, about Huawei’s P40 and P40 Pro. The newest flagship smartphones from Huawei pack in the sort of innovation that serious men on TV shows could only dream about back when the internet was fresh and new.

From the latest in internet connectivity options to built-in AI to the best mobile camera hardware on the planet, Huawei’s P40 series has it all. Let’s take a closer look.

Leica it a lot

Huawei goes all-in on the camera every year and with every flagship and this time it’s not different. The P40 Pro, specifically, comes fitted with the company’s Ultra Vision Leica Quad Camera. This comprises a 50MP Ultra Vision main sensor, a 40MP ultra-wide option, a 12MP 5x optical telephoto option and then the iconic ToF (time of flight) sensor. That main Ultra Vision sensor is the largest Huawei has ever fielded, gathering more light than ever before in a single shot. The result is less noise and better images in darker environments.

The front cameras are no slouches either, capable of 4K video as well as clear, sharp images, with a special focus on the human face. Because selfies.

All these camera smarts are helped along by other smarts – smart conferred by Huawei’s Kirin 990 5G processor, a new-generation image signal processor and Huawei’s NPU rocking some awfully slick smart skills.

Something smarter

Intelligence is never going to be overrated, especially when you look at the state of the world today. We could do with a whole lot of ‘smarter’ in a whole lot of areas. Thankfully, that’s what Huawei provides in the P40 series. Not only is the company’s NPU (neural processing unit) still at work doing the behind-the-scenes stuff everywhere from the camera interface to app and battery management, Huawei’s AI has expanded its area of influence.

Instead of simply selecting the best image settings for a given scene (without you having to do a thing), Huawei’s AI systems now feature something called Golden Snap. This is a smart system that selects the best image from a series of them, basing its choice on the subject’s position and the composition of the shot. Night photography has also been given a further boost, also thanks to the built-in intelligence the P40 series is toting along.

Hipster 5G – before it was cool

Not everyone will have easy access to 5G in the coming months, though South African mobile providers are working on getting the speedy connectivity tech into the hands of customers. When it finally does get to your area, you’ll be ready because you’re packing Huawei’s P40 or P40 Pro.

Both come with Huawei’s in-house Kirin 990 processor, a 5G chipset that’ll connect you to just about any network on the planet – as far back as 2G if you absolutely have to. But it also supports the full range of FDD/TDD bands so you’re looking at blazing internet speeds wherever they’re available. And, if you’re the type to rock two different SIM cards, the P40 series supports dual SIMs – one for 5G and the other for the now-ageing 4G standard.

Software that isn’t soft

There are a collection of new software features coming to the Huawei P40 series, with improvements to the EMUI interface across the board with EMUI 10.1. Check out Huawei’s video call options with MeeTime, work across multiple devices with the software’s new collaboration functions and even be secure in the P40 and P40 Pro’s on-device disk encryption. If it’s on your phone (and you’ve paid attention to your password security) then it’ll stay safe.