You wouldn't want to put a case on this one – it's just too pretty

Huawei didn't just outrun both Apple and Samsung with the wider Pura X Max foldable; the sanctioned company also presented the Pura 90 lineup.

In it, the Pura 90 Pro Max – the bland name aside – shines bright. It's a proper flagship.

The whole world associates the "Pro Max" with Apple and the iPhone; I've never understood why reputable companies like Xiaomi and Huawei would "borrow" it – they can certainly come up with something cool of their own. Anyway.

Is Huawei even legal?

The Pura 90 Pro Max, being a Huawei phone, is on Google's page 2 for the vast (and I do mean vast) majority of US buyers. But despite all the sanctions and limitations, there are still a handful of aficionados who continue to use Huawei and buy recent models.

There are some reasons why one would want to do that – some say they don't want anything to do with Google and their services, and Huawei phones are a gift from above in that regard. Others swear by Huawei's recent cameras – and they're right to be extra hyped.

Here's another reason to spend some cash on a Huawei phone in 2026, even if you're already content with your boring daily driver.

Those colors!

If you care the most about a phone's design and not so much about getting the latest high-end chipset, the Pura 90 Pro Max should be on your radar.

Reason number 1:



Reason number 2:



Reason number 3:



There are two more variants (white and black) to choose from, but they are too ordinary compared to the above.

Now, some would say that these gradients are simply too much; I won't object to that, since I prefer muted colors like black or dark grey, or really dark blue.

But it's a fact that the above looks different from what we're used to.

How about specs?

The Pura 90 Pro Max is a large, hefty phone at 230.5 grams. The 6.9-inch OLED LTPO screen with 1.07 billion colors suggests the panel supports 10-bit colors. The refresh rate goes from 1 to 120Hz at 460 PPI density and a 300Hz touch sampling rate.

The protective Kunlun Glass, besides promising an anti-reflective experience, is said to deliver an improved scratch resistance "by 16 times", increased drop resistance "by 25 times" and anti-fingerprint coating "increased by 200%".

Under the hood, you won't find a Snapdragon, but the Kirin 9030S chipset. While recent Kirin chips have lagged behind their Qualcomm peers in benchmarks, in reality, you won't experience hiccups or nasty lags with them.

There's a 6,000mAh cell on board, which offers 100W wired, 18W wired reverse, 80W wireless, and reverse wireless charging speeds.

It even has eSIM. Not many phones from China have this.

What about the camera?

The main camera on the Huawei Pura 90 Pro Max has a resolution of 50 MP and a variable (f/1.4–f/4.0 with OIS) aperture. The ultra-wide camera utilizes a 40 MP sensor, while the dedicated telephoto uses a 200 MP sensor (f/2.6 and OIS).

On top of that, the phone takes advantage of a small (second-generation) multispectral sensor. This one is for accurate color reproduction.

Digital pets and other features

If your lower back hurts and you're getting excited when changing the sponge in the sink, that means you probably remember the Tamagotchi craze from the 1990s (here's a fun fact: 2050 is now closer than 1990).

The Pura 90 Pro Max comes with HarmonyOS 6.1 out of the box, which, in return, offers some virtual pets. If you tap on them, they'll play hide-and-seek, they'll entertain you and if you put your finger on the camera bump, they'll tell you what your heart rate is.

In terms of price, the phone (which will start selling in China on April 29), starts at 6,499 yuan for the 12 GB + 256 GB variant – that's approximately $950 when directly converted.

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