Huawei will launch the P40 Series smartphones on March 26 during an online event. While Huawei had already announced the date of the launch, it had previously planned to hold an event in Paris, France, but this has now been canceled in favor of a livestream. The decision to do so follows Oppo’s virtual launch event for the Find X2, plus the cancellation of Mobile World Congress and other major tech events around the world, in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus, officially called COVID-19.
We're excited to bring you the next chapter of #VisionaryPhotography at our upcoming online launch – stay tuned and we’ll see you on March 26th! #HUAWEIP40 pic.twitter.com/vSsR3K7mCP
— Huawei Mobile (@HuaweiMobile) March 10, 2020
If the P30 Pro’s 2019 launch event, also held in Paris, was anything to go by, the P40’s reveal would have been an extravagant gathering of many hundreds of media members, partners, guests, and Huawei staff from all over the world. On March 8 at an emergency meeting held by French President Emmanuel Macron, it was agreed that public gatherings of more than 1,000 people would be banned. Previously, the ban had been on gatherings of more than 5,000 people. It’s possible this also impacted Huawei’s decision.
Huawei’s P Series phones have set the standard for mobile photography for several years now, so we’re excited to see what it has planned for the P40, along with what colors and materials it will use to make the phone stand out. The online event has been teased with the hashtag “#VisionaryPhotography,” which fits in with some of the hints that were given by Huawei during a small, early briefing on the phone.
The company talked about the introduction of its second generation periscope zoom feature, and made comparisons between the camera’s ability and the eye of an eagle, emphasizing clarity and resolution. The teaser image shows what looks like a prominent camera bump on the back of the phone, which closely matches our own experiences recently. Digital Trends has already had its hands on a Huawei P40 prototype, and blindly held a P40 Pro, too.
The P40 Series will be revealed by Huawei Business Group Chairman and CEO Richard Yu online on March 26 at 1 p.m. UK time, which is 6 a.m. PT or 9 a.m. ET. We will provide you with wall-to-wall coverage on the day.
