Huawei P40 Pro+ hits stores August 7 with 10x optical zoom but no Google apps

Huawei is expanding the P40 range with the somewhat awkwardly named P40 Pro+, a new top-end device with a little too much alliteration. In addition to being a bit of a tongue twister, the P40 Pro+ is notable as it's the first smartphone to feature two optical zoom lenses: there's a 3x telephoto lens and a 10x telephoto lens.

The 10x telephoto lens is also an industry first; until now, 5x magnification is the best we've seen in smartphone cameras. When combined with some software tricks, the camera is able to achieve 20x hybrid zoom and 100x digital zoom. While we've seen 100x digital zoom on the Galaxy S20 Ultra, the P40 Pro+ should theoretically be able to achieve better results at long ranges, thanks to higher magnification on the lens itself.

Of course, the P40 Pro+ is marred by the same problem we've seen on other modern Huawei devices: a complete lack of Google apps and services. This means the phone won't run the Play Store, Google Maps, YouTube, Gmail, and more.

There are a few different solutions to installing apps on a Google-less Huawei phone, such as Huawei's own app store, the Amazon app store, and APK mirrors, but there's also a question as to whether or not an app will work. Many Android apps rely on Google services to even run. For example, Uber and Uber Eats both use Google services for their maps. Without Google services, these apps won't run no matter how you get them on your phone. You can read more about what apps will work on a modern Huawei smartphone here.

Other than a different camera setup, the Huawei P40 Pro+ is almost identical to the P40 Pro. The other key difference is the P40 Pro+ has a ceramic back, while the P40 Pro back is glass.

Key specifications for the P40 Pro+ include a 6.58-inch Quad HD+ display at 90Hz, a Kirin 990 5G processor, 8GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, IP68 water-resistance, and a 4,200mAh battery. The phone's penta-camera rear-facing setup includes a 50MP primary lens, 40MP ultra-wide lens, 8MP 10x telephoto lens, 8MP 3x telephoto lens, and a Time-of-Flight sensor.

The P40 Pro+ will be available from August 7 for $2,099 outright through Mobileciti and the Huawei Store. Anyone who picks one up at launch will get a bonus Huawei Watch GT 2e at no extra cost.

Alex Choros

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Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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