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Huawei, Samsung pack cameras into mid-range phones

Lauren Kate Rawlins
By Lauren Kate Rawlins, ITWeb digital and innovation contributor.
Johannesburg, 21 Sept 2018
The Huawei Mate 20 Lite.
The Huawei Mate 20 Lite.

Both Huawei and Samsung released mid-range smartphones in the South African market this week: the Huawei Mate 20 Lite and Samsung Galaxy A7.

The devices are priced under R10 000. The Mate 20 Lite will sell for R8 999 and the Galaxy A7 will be priced at R8 499. These devices are also the first, from both manufacturers, to each feature four cameras on a smartphone at this price point.

Huawei says its phone is aimed at those who don't want to pay a premium but still want a smartphone with premium features.

The Mate 20 Lite is the lighter version of the yet-to-be-released Mate 20 (the release date is set for 16 October in London). The Mate series forms part of Huawei's ultra-premium range aimed at power users.

The Samsung Galaxy A7 is part of the Galaxy A series, positioned in the upper mid-range Android market.

The Huawei Mate 20 Lite features two front-facing selfie cameras, one with 24MP and the other with 2MP. The cameras use artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance facial features through portrait lighting and can recognise eight categories, including sky, plants, flowers, beach, stage and night.

The cameras also feature new Qmoji which mirrors the user's facial expression, similar to Apple's Animoji feature.

The device's rear cameras also offer AI-bokeh effects, AI-assisted composition and slow-motion video at up to 480fps.

The 6.3-inch device is powered by the new Kirin 710 chipset and has a 3750mAh battery. It will be available from 5 October.

The Samsung Galaxy A7.
The Samsung Galaxy A7.

The Samsung Galaxy A7 has three rear cameras and one front-facing camera instead of two at the front and two at the back.

There is an 8MP 120-degree ultra-wide lens, which is the same viewing angle as the human eye and meant to capture the world exactly as the user sees it. A 24MP lens and a 5MP depth lens allow the user to control the depth of field in a photograph.

The A7 also has a 24MP front-facing camera and allows for augmented reality emoji which lets users turn themselves into cartoon characters.

The 6-inch device has a 3 300mAh battery and will be available locally in November.

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