Before iPhone 14: Huawei shows first mobile phone with satellite feature

Huawei has introduced the new Mate 50 and Mate 50 Pro. In addition to an absolute high-end camera, the new satellite communication feature in particular is making a name for itself.

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The Huawei Mate 50 can also send text messages without a cellular connection.
©Huawei
Just a day before the launch of the new iPhone, Huawei introduced the new Mate 50 and Mate 50 Pro – and with them the ability to send text messages via a direct satellite connection. A function that is also expected from the new iPhone.
Send messages via satellite connection
Thanks to the Chinese satellite network BeiDou, the Mate 50 is able to send text messages even when there is no regular mobile connection. However, this only applies to sending messages, receiving them via satellite is not possible. In any case, the function is intended more as an emergency measure to be able to send very urgent messages in any situation. Regular conversations will probably continue to be conducted over the cellular connection.
Top features – not sold in Germany
Otherwise, the Mate 50 offers everything you would expect from a premium smartphone: a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 with 8 GB of RAM, a 50-megapixel main camera with a variable aperture (f/1.4-f/4), a 13-megapixel -Ultra wide-angle camera (f/2.2) and a telephoto lens. The latter offers a 200x digital zoom with 64 megapixels in the Mate 50 Pro, while the standard Mate 50 “only” offers a 100x digital zoom with 12 megapixel resolution.

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The Mate 50 Pro should also convince with its camera.
©Huawei
The variable aperture of the main camera is particularly interesting: In smartphone cameras, it is actually common to install a fixed focal length. With a small smartphone sensor, however, adjusting the aperture should make little difference unless the effect is digitally enhanced – for example with an AI-controlled bokeh effect. The OLED display in the Mate 50 is 6.7 inches with a refresh rate of 90 Hertz, the Mate 50 Pro is slightly larger (6.74 inches) at 120 Hertz.
There will be no official sale in Europe, so the Mate 50 can only be purchased indirectly.