Huawei P40 Pro vs Nova 9

68 out of 100

66 out of 100

Here we compared two smartphones: the 6.58-inch Huawei P40 Pro (with HiSilicon Kirin 990 5G) that was released on March 26, 2020, against the Huawei Nova 9, which is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G and came out 18 months after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Differences
Review
Specs
Benchmarks
Battery life
Camera
Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone

Reasons to consider the Huawei P40 Pro

Waterproof body (IP68 classification)
The rear camera has a 5x optical zoom
Shows 9% longer battery life (28:58 vs 26:35 hours)
Handles wireless charging up to 27W
Optical image stabilization
Slow-motion recording at 7680FPS
18% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (665K versus 562K)
13% higher pixel density (441 vs 392 PPI)
Ready for eSIM technology
Has a built-in infrared port

Reasons to consider the Huawei Nova 9

Higher display refresh rate – 120 Hz
Newer Bluetooth version (v5.2)
Supports higher wattage charging (66W versus 40W)
Delivers 22% higher peak brightness (608 against 500 nits)
More recent OS version: Android 11 versus 10
The phone is 1-year and 6-months newer
Weighs 34 grams less

Review

Evaluation of Huawei P40 Pro and Nova 9 crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Type	OLED	OLED
Size	6.58 inches	6.57 inches
Resolution	1200 x 2640 pixels	1080 x 2340 pixels
Aspect ratio	19.5:9	19.5:9
PPI	441 ppi	392 ppi
Refresh rate	90 Hz	120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	No	No
Max rated brightness	600 nits	430 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR	-	600 nits
HDR support	Yes, HDR10	Yes, HDR10
Screen protection	Tempered glass	Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio	91.6%	89.9%
Display features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display - DC Dimming	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display - DC Dimming

RGB color space	99.4%	100%
PWM	365 Hz	500 Hz
Response time	3 ms	2.8 ms
Contrast	∞ Infinity	∞ Infinity

Height	158.2 mm (6.23 inches)	160 mm (6.3 inches)
Width	72.6 mm (2.86 inches)	73.7 mm (2.9 inches)
Thickness	9 mm (0.35 inches)	7.77 mm (0.31 inches)
Weight	209 g (7.37 oz)	175 g (6.17 oz)
Waterproof	IP68	No
Rear material	Glass	Glass
Frame material	Metal	Plastic
Colors	Black, Silver	Black, Blue, Green, Purple
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-display	Yes, in-display

Chipset	HiSilicon Kirin 990 5G	Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
Max clock	2860 MHz	2400 MHz
CPU cores	8 (2 + 2 + 4)	8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 1.95 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2.36 GHz: Cortex-A76 - 2 cores at 2.86 GHz: Cortex-A76	- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Kryo 670 Silver (Cortex-A55) - 3 cores at 2.4 GHz: Kryo 670 Gold (Cortex-A78) - 1 core at 2.4 GHz: Kryo 670 Prime (Cortex-A78)
Lithography process	7 nanometers	6 nanometers
Graphics	Mali-G76 MP16	Adreno 642
GPU shading units	576	768
GPU clock	600 MHz	550 MHz
FLOPS	~691.2 GFLOPS	~844 GFLOPS

CPU	175509	190124
GPU	203583	139191
Memory	152160	119776
UX	128351	112808
Total score	665287	562314

Max surface temperature	34.2 °C	37.4 °C
Stability	55%	98%
Graphics test	19 FPS	14 FPS
Graphics score	3286	2491

Web score	-	6629
Video editing	-	5966
Photo editing	-	20468
Data manipulation	-	8290
Writing score	-	12840

RAM size	8 GB	8 GB
Memory type	LPDDR4X	LPDDR4X
Memory clock	2133 MHz	2133 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage size	256 GB	128, 256 GB
Storage type	UFS 3.0	UFS 2.1
Memory card	Nano Memory	No
Memory card max size	Up to 256 GB	-

Operating system	Android 10.0	Android 11
ROM	EMUI 11	EMUI 12
OS size	16.5 GB	10 GB

Capacity	4200 mAh	4300 mAh
Max charge power	40 W	66 W
Battery type	Li-Po	Li-Po
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes (27 W)	No
Reverse charging	Yes, (wireless)	Yes
Fast charging	Yes (70% in 40 min)	Yes (61% in 30 min)
Full charging time	1:15 hr	0:54 hr

Battery life tests
Web browsing	10:35 hr	08:44 hr
Watching video	15:03 hr	11:27 hr
Gaming	04:00 hr	04:56 hr
Standby	79 hr	93 hr

Main camera
Matrix	50 megapixels	50 megapixels
Image resolution	8192 x 6144	8192 x 6144
Zoom	Optical, 5x	Digital
Flash	Dual LED	LED
Stabilization	Optical	Digital
8K video recording	No	No
4K video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 30FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	7680 FPS (720p)	960 FPS (720p)
Angle of widest lens	120°	-
Lenses	4 (50 MP + 12 MP + 40 MP)	4 (50 MP + 8 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 50 MP - Aperture: f/1.9 - Focal length: 23 mm - Pixel size: 1.22 micron - Sensor: 1/1.28", Sony IMX700 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization	- 50 MP - Aperture: f/1.9 - Focal length: 23 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/1.56", Sony IMX766 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus
Telephoto lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/3.4 - Focal length: 125 mm - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization	-
Ultra-wide lens	- 40 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 18 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/1.54", Sony IMX650 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus	- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.2
Macro lens	-	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4
Depth lens	Yes	- 2 MP - Aperture: f/2.4
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode
Samples	Photo samples of Huawei P40 Pro from DxOMark	-

Selfie camera
Megapixels	32 megapixels	32 megapixels
Image resolution	6464 x 4864	6528 x 4896
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.0
Focal length	26 mm	-
Pixel size	0.8 microns	-
Sensor type	BSI CMOS	CMOS
Sensor size	1/2.8"	-
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS	2160p (4K) at 30 FPS

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5.1	5.2
Bluetooth features	LE, A2DP	LE, A2DP
USB type	USB Type-C	USB Type-C
USB version	3.1	2
USB features	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG
GPS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVIC	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVIC
NFC *	Yes	Yes
Infrared port	Yes	No

Number of SIM *	2	2
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
Multi SIM mode	Standby	Standby
eSIM support *	Yes	No
Hybrid slot	Yes	No
LTE Cat *	21	18
5G support	Yes	No

Speakers	Mono	Mono
Headphone audio jack	No	No
FM radio	No	No
Dolby Atmos	Yes	No

Category	Flagship	Mid-range
Announced	March 2020	September 2021
Release date	March 2020	September 2021
Sensors	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Face recognition sensor - Fingerprint	- Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint
Bundled charger	-	Yes, 66 W

Huawei P40 Pro vs Nova 9

Huawei P40 Pro vs Nova 9

Key differences

Review

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Display

Design and build

Performance

Benchmarks

Memory

Software

Battery

Camera

DxOMark camera tests

Connectivity

Sound

Other

Conclusion