HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra
You’ve probably seen the hype around flagship phones and wondered if any of it really matters. It’s easy to get lost in buzzwords and fancy specifications, especially when each brand wants to claim their device is the most premium, the smartest, or the most innovative. But after taking the HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra with me during a trip to Tokyo and Paris, I came away with some honest thoughts about what sets it apart—and what actually matters—and it always comes back to the camera.
Let’s start with the basics: the HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra is designed for people who care about capturing real moments, not just snapping lazy selfies or food photos. It’s packed with features, built to feel luxurious, and topped with the kind of hardware that’s supposed to handle every situation you throw at it. When you look at the phone, the first thing you notice is its pretty sunburst pattern and the option to pick Prestige Gold or Golden Black. It feels solid, premium, and yes, tough. The Pura80 Ultra uses 2nd-gen Crystal Armor Kunlun Glass. I’m clumsy, so knowing it’s much more scratch and drop resistant than most phones mattered more than I expected.
But beyond the finish, the real story (and the fun I had) is with the camera system. Right now, every phone brand talks about how good their cameras are. But for most flagship phones, the differences are often so subtle you don’t really care. With the HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra, it isn’t hype; it’s a real leap forward, especially if you like taking photos in all sorts of lighting and distances. There’s a new Switchable Dual Telephoto Camera tucked inside, and it uses a massive 1/1.28-inch sensor for both the 3.7x and 10x optical zoom. On paper, these numbers look impressive; in practice, they change how you take pictures.
Think about sightseeing in Tokyo and Paris: the city is big, busy, full of iconic and historic spots, and yes – even impulsive moments. There were times I wanted to snap something far away, like details on a temple’s architecture or someone performing in a bustling street, and the zoom delivered clear, bright images without falling apart or getting noisy. I’ve used other phones where zoom starts strong but quickly goes soft or pixelated. Here, the details stick, whether you zoom all the way in or shoot from across a crowd. I even tried the 100x digital zoom for curiosity, and while it’s not perfect, it’s way more usable than what most flagship phones manage.
Another thing you care about, especially for travel, is low-light and night shots. Tokyo’s neon-lit streets, alley bars and soft-lit shrines are beautiful but tricky. Paris’ impressive landscape and historic sites look grand and majestic to take photos of. The Pura80 Ultra’s 1-inch Ultra Lighting HDR Camera makes a real difference here. Most phones struggle with extremes like bright signs, shadowy walkways, bustling crosswalks with moving people. The Pura80 Ultra delivered images with deep shadows, controlled highlights, and true-to-life colors. It’s not magic, but the Triple Conversion Gain tech behind the camera does help: every time you take a picture, it records three exposures for highlights, shadows, and everything in between, so you get one final photo that’s balanced. Apparently, it offers up to sixteen stops of dynamic range, but what matters is you don’t lose details in tricky light.
I took a bunch of portraits for friends, against bright lanterns outside and city light backgrounds, and skin tones looked natural. No weird filters or over-processing; just solid, realistic results.
Using the phone every day in Tokyo, I noticed a bunch of hardware features that made the trip easier. The big 5,170mAh battery lasted through long sightseeing days, and the superfast charging meant I didn’t stress about dead batteries before heading out. The 6.8-inch X-True Display was sharp, bright and visible even in sunny places with over 3,000 nits peak brightness and smooth 120Hz refresh rates. It’s little things like that you appreciate when you’re outside all day.
What’s cool (and occasionally surprising) is how much the AI features help make the phone friendlier and more useful. If you’re taking a photo and someone random walks into frame, or there’s a weird sign, the built-in AI Remove feature quickly cleans up the picture. It’s not perfect, but more often than not, it works. AI Gesture Control lets me wave or pose for quick snaps without fumbling. Air Gestures also cover swiping or scrolling, which sounds gimmicky but helped a few times when my hands were dirty.
AI Messaging was handy for sorting through hundreds of notifications and texts, automatically highlighting what was useful and letting me skim or reply fast. AI Noise Cancellation saved a few calls in loud cafes. For controlling the phone, Smart Controls adapt as you go—switching modes, setting brightness, or launching apps as needed, without fiddling through menus. There’s also real-time privacy features baked in. At first, it’s not obvious, but it’s nice knowing your info is better protected as you travel and connect to random Wi-Fi.
It seems like the HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra is made for people who treat their phones as creative tools and not just as devices for social media or texting. At its core, it isn’t just another flagship fighting for attention. What’s critical is that you get a camera system that actually handles everything, backed by smart features and solid hardware. That said, I still wish some software felt snappier and that certain AI features could be tweaked for even better accuracy. Some gesture triggers took a couple of tries to get right, and bright sunlight can sometimes overwhelm the sensor, but these are small issues compared to what you gain.
After days in Tokyo and Paris, shooting everything from street food to city scapes, I didn’t feel like I needed another device. The Pura80 Ultra was enough. It captured memories how I wanted—with color, detail, and without the headache of missed shots. I came into this expecting a lot from the camera, and at the end, that’s what stood out most. If you care about photography, want features that actually help you, and enjoy a phone that keeps up with everything you do, the HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra is worth considering.
The HUAWEI Pura80 Ultra is now available in the Philippines for PhP89,999. You can buy one at HUAWEI Concept Stores at Cyberzone at SM Supermalls.
Giancarlo Viterbo is a Filipino Technology Journalist, blogger and Editor of gadgetpilipinas.net, He is also a Geek, Dad and a Husband. He knows a lot about washing the dishes, doing some errands and following instructions from his boss on his day job. Follow him on twitter: @gianviterbo and @gadgetpilipinas.
