Huawei leans heavily on the design of the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max with the Nova 8 SE and Nova 8 SE High Edition

The next Huawei Nova series is here, and it looks a lot like the iPhone 12 series from the back. Huawei has also borrowed the chassis design of Apple's latest smartphones, which will probably be aped a lot this year by other Android OEMs. Huawei has only released its new Nova smartphones in China for the time being, but we may see a broader release at some stage.

There are two versions of the Nova 8 SE, with Huawei calling the more powerful model the 'High Edition'. The two devices share many key specifications, but the High edition has a more powerful chipset and superior 5G connectivity. Specifically, the Nova 8 SE High Edition has a MediaTek Dimensity 800U, compared to the Dimensity 720 with which Huawei has equipped the regular model. The Nova 8 SE supports 5G on its primary SIM, while the High Edition can connect to 5G networks on both SIMs. 

Both models come with 8 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, a 3,800 mAh battery, along with a 6.53-inch OLED screen. The FHD+ panel also has a waterdrop notch for a 16 MP front-facing camera, which Huawei has complemented with a 64 MP primary camera, an 8 MP ultra-wide-angle sensor, a 2 MP macro camera and a 2 MP depth sensor.

The Nova 8 SE series supports 66 W charging via its USB Type-C port and has a 3.5 mm headphone jack, unlike many modern smartphones. The Nova 8 SE series will be available to order in China on November 11 from CNY 2,599 (~US$390). The High Edition starts at CNY 2,699 (~US$410), but both versions will come in four colours.