Huawei Mate 70-series design and pricing spilled in new leak

A new leaked image shows 4 devices placed face-down on or near their retail boxes, partially occluded in plastic sheaths. Nevertheless, the details that can be ascertained might mark them out as potential successors to each member of the Huawei Mate 60 series.

Should that be the case, gone is the elegant approach to the big round camera hump trend in favor of a much starker look made up of 2 dark concentric rings around a large and pale central circle that may or may not be a new and particularly massive flash module.

Either way, it seems to have kicked the XMAGE logo from its central position as in the 60 series into a Mate X5-like accent along the bottom instead. There seem to be 3 actual lenses per smartphone, each found in the outer ring. 

That design applies to all of the handsets shown, with the exception of one in which the same camera housing becomes octagonal instead. Accordingly, it is tipped to succeed the Mate 60 RS, although it will apparently be called the 70 RS Ultimate instead.

It is also now slated to be the most expensive at 10,999 yuan (~$1,541) for a 16GB RAM/512GB internal storage SKU, while the next most premium Mate 70 Pro+ starts at 8,999 yuan (~$1,260).

The Mate 70 Pro might cost at least 6,999 yuan (~$980), whereas the vanilla Mate 70 is tipped to start at 5,999 yuan (~$840). Accordingly, each upcoming Huawei flagship is now projected to cost at least as much as their respective predecessor. 

Then again, their series is now also said to start with 256GB of internal storage rather than 128GB across the board this time, and to come with camera upgrades in terms of both hardware and AI. 

Huawei might be advised to make such a move, as the Mate 70 series is thought to lag behind other next-gen flagship smartphone OEMs by debuting in November 2024 with Kirin silicon that may be a couple of generations behind cutting-edge platforms such as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4.