Huawei unveils nova 16s and nova 16s Pro – 7000 mAh batteries, 100W charging, and 200MP camera

Huawei nova 16s and nova 16s Pro are the global versions of the nova 16 and nova 16 Pro, which were previously released in China.

The new models feature 7000 mAh batteries, 100 W charging, OLED displays with refresh rates up to 120 Hz, and cameras equipped with telephoto lenses. The main change for the international market is the transition from HarmonyOS to Android with the EMUI 16 skin.

Design

The Huawei nova 16s features a 7.3 mm-thick body and weighs 199 grams. The smartphone is available in Breathing Crystal, Isle Blue, Sky White, and Starry Black.

The Huawei nova 16s Pro features a larger yet slightly thinner chassis, measuring 7.1 mm in thickness and weighing 218 grams. It features an aluminum frame, a matte glass back panel, and Kunlun Glass protective screen with a nanocrystalline coating. Huawei claims a tenfold increase in drop resistance for the glass compared to the standard nova 15. Isle Blue, Breathing Crystal, and Starry Black colors are now available. The white version, available on the Chinese nova 16 Pro, has not been released for the international market.

Huawei nova 16s Pro

The flagship model is equipped with a 6.84-inch LTPO OLED display featuring a resolution of 2856 × 1320 pixels and an adaptive refresh rate ranging from 1 to 120 Hz. The touch layer polling frequency is 300 Hz, and PWM is 2160 Hz. Dynamic peak brightness reaches 6000 nits when displaying content on 1% of the screen area.

Performance is handled by the 7nm Kirin 9010S. The smartphone is offered with a storage capacity of 256 or 512 GB. Unlike the Chinese version, the global model does not have a 1 TB storage variant.

The main feature of the nova 16s Pro is its camera. The main module features a 200-megapixel RYYB sensor with a 1/1.28-inch size, an f/1.8 aperture lens, and optical stabilization.

The second camera is a 50-megapixel RYYB periscope with an f/2.6 aperture, OIS, offering 3.7x optical zoom and up to 100x digital zoom. The third module features a 50-megapixel sensor, an ultra-wide-angle lens with a 118° field of view, and supports macro photography from a distance of 2.5 cm.

To achieve more accurate color reproduction, an additional 1.5-megapixel True-to-Colour multispectral sensor is used.

The front features a 50-megapixel camera with a 1/2.5-inch format sensor and a zoom range of 0.8-5x. Next to it is another True-to-Colour sensor, so the front cameras are placed in an elongated cutout in the display.

Huawei nova 16s

The base nova 16s features a 6.68-inch OLED display with a resolution of 2800 × 1280 pixels and a refresh rate up to 120 Hz. The touch layer polling frequency is 300 Hz, and PWM is 2160 Hz. Peak brightness reaches 5,500 nits.

One of the few hardware differences between the global and Chinese versions is the platform. The Chinese nova 16 is equipped with the Kirin 9010S, while the international nova 16s received the 7nm Kirin 8020. In terms of performance, these chips are comparable. Data storage options include 256 GB or 512 GB of memory.

The main camera features a 50-megapixel module with an f/1.9 aperture and a 50-megapixel RYYB periscope lens with an f/2.6 aperture and optical stabilization. The telephoto lens provides 3.3x optical zoom and up to 100x digital zoom.

It also features a 1.5-megapixel True-to-Colour multispectral sensor. The front camera has a resolution of 50 MP, an aperture of f/2.4, and is located in a circular cutout at the center of the screen.

Battery and Charging

Both smartphones are equipped with batteries of typical capacity 7000 mAh, with a nominal capacity of 6800 mAh. The maximum power of wired Huawei SuperCharge Turbo reaches 100 W.

For charging and data transfer, it uses a USB Type-C port with a USB 2.0 interface.

Other

The Huawei nova 16s and nova 16s Pro support 5G networks, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6.0, NFC, and satellite systems GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, QZSS, and NavIC. Both models have two nano-SIM slots and side-mounted fingerprint scanners.

The nova 16s Pro also features an enhanced cooling system with a vapor chamber and stereo speakers.

Software and AI

Unlike the Chinese nova 16 and nova 16 Pro, which run HarmonyOS 6.1, the international nova 16s and nova 16s Pro operate on Android with the EMUI 16 skin. The manufacturer has not yet disclosed the exact version of Android.

Huawei paid special attention to AI-based photo processing features. AI De-glare removes glare from photos taken through glass, AI Remove eliminates unwanted objects, and AI Best Expression combines multiple frames from a group photo by selecting the best facial expressions.

AI Composition and AI Move are also supported, enabling automatic adjustment of composition and object positioning in photographs. Some AI features will be available only in specific countries and regions.

Contactless gesture control is also supported. Users can scroll the interface with a hand gesture or make a fist to take a photo.

Prices and release date

Huawei has not yet announced prices for the nova 16s and nova 16s Pro on the international market. The timing of when smartphones will become available for sale will also depend on the region.