Huawei P Smart Z vs P30 Lite vs Honor 20 Lite vs Huawei P smart 2019 vs Honor 10 Lite

Huawei’s exponential growth and rise to prominence in the mobile industry can be attributed to many factors. Their consistent innovation within the industry is arguably the most significant selling point, regularly churning out some of the best flagship phones of the year, such as the P30 Pro. Then there is the use of the Honor brand to deliver flagship phones at affordable prices, without diluting Huawei’s premium flagships.

The accumulation of all that is the relentless release cycle. Huawei release two flagships a year, then Honor, and the mid-end of the market feels like they release a phone every month.

Some people may criticise this approach, I have no strong feelings about it; however more choice for the consumer is always a good thing. At the very least it helps drive down prices.

With the announcement of the new Huawei P Smart Z this represents the third mid-range phone from the two companies in the past month, and the fifth in the past 6-ish, with the Honor 10 Lite coming out in November, and the Huawei P smart 2019 in December. Oh and then there was the Huawei Mate 20 lite and Honor 8X back in September.

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Chipset

So, what makes all these phones different? While technology progresses fast, it is not quite as quick as this release schedule. Fundamentally, they all use the same chipset, the Kirin 710 which is a competent octa-core CPU featuring four Cortex-A73 big cores operating at up to 2.2 GHz along with four Cortex-A53 little cores operating at up to 1.7 GHz. It is then partnered with the Mali G51 (4 core) IGP and supports up to 6 GiB of dual-channel LPDDR4 memory.

Memory and Storage

Each phone has slightly different memory variations, some with 3GB ram, many with 4GB. Then a variation of 64GB and 128GB storage. There are higher options, but these models don’t appear to be easily available in the UK market.

Camera

Looking at each option, the biggest variance between the models is the camera configuration and screen design. Over the course of the last few months, the cameras have been improved considerably, with the Huawei P30 lite achieving peak camera specs with its 48 MP, 8MP ultra-wide, and 2 MP depth sensor, a configuration you might expect on a £600 phone, not £329. At this point, I will also remind you that £400 will buy you the Pixel 3a with a single 12MP camera and a chipset that performs about the same.

Display

With the cameras varying a little per model, next thing that changes slightly is the screen design; the Mate 20 Lite has a notch, this was then reduced down to a dewdrop which was used from most of the other phones until the latest P Smart Z which introduces a pop-up camera.

The actual display and dimensions of all the phones don’t vary much. I think Huawei R&D/Marketing has found that 6.15 through to  6.59 inch is the sweet spot for screen sizes, and the P Smart Z is the one that pushes that figure up a little, and the P30 Lite down a little.

In fact, my comparison of the Huawei P smart 2019 vs Honor 10 Lite showed almost no differences at all.

Battery

Battery and charging options also vary a little, most of the phones sit at around 3400mAh, and several options use the older microUSB standard. However, it looks like Huawei are slowing moving to USB-C for their mid-range options, with the P30 lite and P Smart Z both using it. The Huawei P Smart Z also comes with an impressive 4000mAh battery.

Price

For me, the important bit. In terms of day to day performance, all these phones are going to perform about the same, but there is a £160 price difference between the cheapest and most expensive option.

The P30 Lite with its exceptional camera configuration has launched at £329.99, it doesn’t look like the best value phone, but if you factor in that fantastic camera, you could offset the price of this against buying a phone and point and shoot camera separately.

If you don’t need or can’t afford a phone with that camera spec, the P Smart 2019 is just £189. Alternatively, if that pop-up camera tickles your fancy, the Huawei P Smart Z should be around £250, it has a better camera config and battery than the P Smart 2019, so I would say it is just about worth the extra £60.

The Honor 10 Lite, which is almost the same as the P Smart 2019 can be had for an absolute bargain £169.99 and is the cheapest Kirin 710 option I can find.

Overall

Overall, all the phones are great with so many options you have granular control of price and specification which I think is great for the consumer, though I appreciate it can be a little confusing.

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James Smythe( Editor-in-chief )

I am James, a UK-based tech enthusiast and the Editor and Owner of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Passionate about all things technology, my expertise spans from computers and networking to mobile, wearables, and smart home devices.

As a fitness fanatic who loves running and cycling, I also have a keen interest in fitness-related technology, and I take every opportunity to cover this niche on my blog. My diverse interests allow me to bring a unique perspective to tech blogging, merging lifestyle, fitness, and the latest tech trends.

In my academic pursuits, I earned a BSc in Information Systems Design from UCLAN, before advancing my learning with a Master’s Degree in Computing. This advanced study also included Cisco CCNA accreditation, further demonstrating my commitment to understanding and staying ahead of the technology curve.

I’m proud to share that Vuelio has consistently ranked Mighty Gadget as one of the top technology blogs in the UK. With my dedication to technology and drive to share my insights, I aim to continue providing my readers with engaging and informative content.