Huawei has once again redefined smartphone photography, announcing that the newly launched HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra is officially the highest-scoring device in DXOMARK history. Securing an unprecedented overall score of 175 – a commanding six points ahead of its nearest competitor – the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra sets new benchmarks with three remarkable achievements: a record-breaking 180 Photo Score, a joint-highest Video Score of 166, and the top telephoto performance ever measured by DXOMARK.
This milestone affirms Huawei’s relentless pursuit of photographic excellence, transforming “exceptional” into “unmatched”. Since its global release in July, and now released in South Africa, the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra has resonated with professional photographers and enthusiasts worldwide, with pioneering technologies that seamlessly bridge laboratory-fuelled innovation and real-world artistry. As the flagship of Huawei’s imaging legacy, the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra redefines what’s possible in smartphone photography.
Photography Redefined: The 180-Score Excellence
DXOMARK’s unprecedented 180 Photo Score reflects the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra’s mastery of light and detail. The 1-inch Ultra Lighting HDR Camera achieves an industry-leading 16EV dynamic range, transforming even the most challenging lighting into beautifully balanced shots. Imagine bonfire dancers framed by translucent flames glowing with golden warmth, while shadowed faces retain intricate, eyelash-sharp detail in a single exposure. Or picture portraits taken at dusk where people and subjects shine with natural clarity against skies that blend into soft watercolour gradients, made possible by intelligent multi-zone exposure mapping.
The 180-score is also witnessed in its portrait photography abilities. Advanced AI segmentation ensures pinpoint precision, rendering stray strands of hair, delicate earrings, and intricate accessories with flawless clarity against creamy bokeh backgrounds. Even in candlelit settings, facial textures retain lifelike depth and skin tones glow with natural warmth. The variable aperture (f/1.6–f/4.0) adds creative flexibility, intelligently narrowing for group shots to keep everyone in sharp focus from foreground to background, delivering professional-grade results.
The HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra elevates long-range photography with the industry’s first Switchable Dual Telephoto Camera, earning DXOMARK’s highest telephoto score. By merging 3.7x medium and 9.4x super-telephoto lenses into a single optical unit, it delivers unmatched versatility. Architectural carvings half a kilometre away are rendered with DSLR-grade precision, while performers’ intense expressions remain crystal clear from the back rows of a stadium. Beyond 10x+ magnification — a range where many competitors falter — the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra captures Himalayan snowcaps with their wind-carved ridges or the reflective glint of a leopard’s eyes at twilight, all while maintaining exceptional colour accuracy and exposure consistency through advanced optical design and algorithms.
Video Mastery: The 166-Score Benchmark in Motion
Matching the highest industry benchmark with a 166 Video Score — a 10-point improvement over its predecessor — the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra excels in dynamic extremes. Its 16EV Ultra Lighting HDR Camera delivers “layered imaging with accurate light and shadow restoration”, transforming backlit portraits into perfectly balanced compositions where subjects glow against graded skies. Bonfire scenes reveal transparent flame layers alongside detailed shadows, producing rich, immersive visuals. Combined with advanced stabilisation that predicts motion like a cinematic guide, it allows creators to capture fluid hand-held footage — from stage performances to urban storytelling — with effortless realism.
The dual-telephoto system extends its excellence to video. Wildlife documentarians can track eagles in flight at 9.4x magnification, capturing the tremor of every feather while advanced stabilisation eliminates handheld shake. At concerts, videographers can isolate a drummer’s stick-work from the back rows of an arena, with AI motion tracking maintaining focus through spotlight and pyrotechnic effects. This cinematic versatility ensures vibrant, professional-grade footage across any scenario.
The HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra’s exceptional photo and video performance is powered by the Ultra Chroma XMAGE camera, which uses 1.5 million multi-spectral channels for near-perfect colour accuracy. Skin tones radiate natural warmth against neon-lit streets or golden-hour horizons, while environmental hues retain their atmospheric richness. This unparalleled colour science underpins its historic Photography and Video Scores, reproducing emerald forests, crimson silks, and azure skies exactly as they are seen by the human eye. Even the most complex lighting scenarios yield to its intelligence, ensuring authentic reproduction in every frame.
Redefining the Possible
Beyond its imaging supremacy, HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra honours Huawei’s tradition of bold design. The evolved Forward Symbol Design, now detailed with sunburst motifs and golden accents, brings a refined horological-inspired luxury to Prestige Gold and Prestige Black finishes. Practical elegance is delivered through Second-Gen Crystal Armor Kunlun Glass, offering 25x greater drop resistance than conventional glass, while the AI Smart Controls Button offers intuitive interaction that feels like a natural extension of the creator’s hand. Even EMUI 15’s interactive themes add delightful touches, with playful lockscreen emojis.
Since its July debut, the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra has ignited enthusiasm across global markets. Gizmochina’s “Gizmochina Picks” recognised it as the “Camera Master”, reflecting its rapid adoption by professionals and enthusiasts who demand uncompromised imaging excellence. The HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra has become more than a tool – it’s a creative companion. This global resonance stems from Huawei’s core philosophy that technology should liberate creativity, never constrain it.
Through deep hardware-software integration and advances across every aspect of imaging, the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra demonstrates Huawei’s profound technical heritage while delivering unprecedented all-scenario imaging experiences. By enhancing every strength – telephoto versatility, colour science, and light mastery – it has expanded photography’s frontier for everyone who dreams in frames.
DXOMARK is an established image authority that scores and ranks cameras and camera equipment. Widely trusted by experts, its tests are backed by millions of scientific measurements and perceptual analyses.
To read more about DXOMARK’s review of the HUAWEI Pura 80 Ultra, visit https://www.dxomark.com/huawei-pura-80-ultra-camera-test/?mp.
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