OnePlus 5T (2017) vs Huawei P30 lite (2019)
In our previous flagship vs midrange comparison, we looked at the LG G6 and the Redmi 7A. In this post we look at the older OnePlus 5T and compare it with the newer midrange Huawei P30 lite.
One Plus 5T (November 2017 – Older Flagship)
The OnePlus 5T is a flagship of a bygone era, with once powerful industry leading specifications. It has a powerful Snapdragon 835 – a champion just over a year and a half ago. It comes in a large, fancy box and even includes a magazine-like glossy guidebook. The phone has an anodised aluminium back that makes it stand-out a flagship. On the software side, it does run a commonplace Android 7.1.1 now two generations old (or does it? more on that later).
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| The OnePlus 5T -- Old but beautiful |
In terms of design it has a simple, yet powerfully elegant design with overt branding. It has a brilliant AMOLED display for vibrant colours and super deep blacks and in terms of security it has a fingerprint and face unlock that just works. The software experience is snappy and simplistic, oxygen OS is very close to the no frills stock Android experience.
Huawei P30 lite (April 2019 – Modern Midrange)
Let’s now compare these specs with the modern mid-ranger, the Huawei P30 lite.
The P30 light has an ever-so-slightly larger screen at 6.15”, but on the contrary only has an IPS LCD display. You might lose some of the colour vibrancy and those deep blacks. Both phones have a resolution close to the 1080p range. The 5T has a gorilla glass coating while you need to get your own tempered glass protection for the P30 lite.
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| Huawei P30 lite |
Let’s now look at software which is one area where the older flagship generally tends to fail. The P30 has the latest and greatest (as of now) Android 9.0, and the 5T has – yes, exactly the same, Android 9.0! This is a massive advantage for a phone that is almost two years old and could well be the game changer.
Let’s now look at the camera which both OnePlus and the Huawei P Series seems to prioritise. The OnePlus has two back cameras, one for main photos and one for portrait. The P30 lite also has main cameras for photos and portrait-mode (via a depth sensing camera) but in addition it also has an ultra-wide angle 13mm lens which is handy when you need to fit more people in a single picture. The P30 also has a superior 48MP main camera so images look much more sharp and crispier. The OnePlus camera must not be discounted though, it does take great images, especially with good lighting.
In term of font face design, the P30 does offer a newer look with a larger screen-to-bezel ratio. It also has a tear-drop design that was not mainstream during the OnePlus 5Ts time. The OnePlus 5T wins in the back design as the anodised aluminium gives a more premium build quality when compared to the glossy plastic-glass of the P30.
Here is the summary of both phones
5T Pros
- Better display
- 56% better performance
- Latest OS
- Can get at a lower price
- Slightly faster charging
P30 lite Pros
- Better camera set-up
- Nothing much really…
Kategat recommends the OnePlus 5T over the P30 lite for anyone seeking an affordable phone, except in the rare case where you take more mobile pictures that you spend on your phone.
Image of the P30 lite by Kārlis Dambrāns from Flickr. Licensed under the CC BY-NC 2.0 license.
