HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro has a variable aperture camera lens designed by Jose Antunes – ProVideo Coalition

The lens aperture of smartphone cameras is not usually adjustable, but the new HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro shows that it is possible to be different: its main camera has an f/1.4 variable aperture lens.

When the partnership with Leica ended, which had been helping HUAWEI bring more photography to its smartphones since 2016, some asked what the company would do next: well, the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is the answer. This is the first smartphone to offer a camera with a lens that has an “adjustable 10-size physical aperture,” as HUAWEI puts it.

The lens variant has a name, Ultra Aperture XMAGE Camera, and allows adjustment of the aperture on the lens, according to HUAWEI, “10 different aperture sizes”, allowing you to adjust the blur and depth of field in your latest masterpiece. Before you get too excited about the idea, it’s important to note that the physical variation of aperture only occurs between f/1.4 and f/4. So if you’re thinking of having absolute control over exposure, with values ​​like f/16 or f/22… you’ll have to wait a little longer.

Still, this is a step forward, and one that shows HUAWEI’s research and development in photography continues. In fact, it seems to have come a long way, as this new option shows. So far, the Xperia PRO-I is the only recent smartphone that offers more than one aperture, and what it does is go from f/2.0 to f/4.0 with no intermediate value. The HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro offers a total of 10 bezels; That means it gives you 1/3 each time you adjust it. HUAWEI doesn’t explain this on their website, but the full scale will look something like this: f/1.4, f/1.6, f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.2, f/2.5, f/2.8, f/3.2 , Aperture 3.5, aperture 4.

An aperture that you can adjust

This variable aperture is applied to the 50MP Ultra Aperture Camera (F1.4~F4.0 aperture, OIS), which is the main camera of the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro. While the slight changes in aperture don’t make a huge difference in terms of exposure or even depth of field, the fact that the company found a way to implement variable aperture on such a small system is a huge step forward for photography – and the video, I think – with smartphones. The second good thing about the Ultra Aperture XMAGE Camera is that Pro mode lets you adjust the aperture.

While the announcement of the use of a variable aperture in the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro may surprise some, the fact is that according to the website “Huaweicentral” last year a Huawei patent was described for an aperture camera module and an electronic device six-blade camera- Aperture technology has been registered, indicating the development now announced.

In addition to the main camera – 50 MP wide-angle, f/1.4-f/4.0, 24 mm, which is the star of the new smartphone, the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro also has a 13 MP ultra wide-angle lens, f/2.2, 13 mm and a 64- MP telephoto camera, f/3.5, 90mm (periscope telephoto lens). The autofocus uses both phase focus and contrast focus and in terms of image stabilization, OIS and AIS are used. As usual with smartphones, the cameras offer different zoom modes, which HUAWEI calls Digital Zoom, Optical Zoom, Hybrid Zoom.

A breakthrough for a mobile imaging system

Super Night Mode, Professional Portrait, Super Macro are also included, and the company says the “50MP Ultra Aperture Camera captures 24% more light⁠ thanks to the ultra-large F1.4 aperture and RYYB sensor that seamlessly integrates with the XD Fusion Pro image engine work together to keep brightness and contrast pristine. Super Night Mode takes you deep under the cover of darkness, capturing captivating details that bring the night to life.”

When it comes to portraits, HUAWEI says the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro allows you to capture “stunning portraits that show off personality to the fullest,” adding that “the larger aperture works together with a state-of-the-art submillimeter segmentation algorithm, to produce pro-level blur and stunning bokeh effects. The smaller aperture allows you to focus more, making it ideal for group shots.”

Launched by HUAWEI last July after ending its partnership with Leica, HUAWEI’s XMAGE imaging technology for mobile cameras is “the condensation of our past innovations in imaging and our commitment to exploring the imaging field in the future. Breaking new heights in moving images, so stay tuned.” According to He Gang, President of Handset Business, Huawei Consumer Business Group, XMAGE technology represents “a breakthrough for a mobile imaging system,” something the HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro fully embodies as the first smartphone with vari-iris lenses. It’s a small step, from f/1.4 to f/4, but it points in the right direction.

The HUAWEI Mate 50 Pro is not available in many markets, but the path that its technology opens up will undoubtedly be followed by other brands, so there may be more smartphones with adjustable aperture cameras, bringing the smartphone closer to the camera would, since we had to deal with fixed apertures so far.