Huawei P30 Lite vs Samsung Galaxy A50: Which Should You Choose?

Introduction

In March of 2019, Samsung launched its Galaxy A50. The P30 Lite, however, has seen the light of day one month later.

With this article, you'll be able to compare every feature of the P30 Lite and the Galaxy A50. Then, you can decide what model better suits your needs. Let's start.

If you have the time, click here to skip the spoilers and continue to the full comparison.

These phones have similar prices, but generally, the Galaxy A50 is more affordable. Remember that when you're comparing the two models.

You should be aware that the P30 Lite will stop receiving security updates in the meantime.

You'll also see down below a "Tek-Score" for every section that we analyze. We evaluate all quantifiable specifications to help you quickly identify how much they are far apart. You'll find a global score at the end, which can help you compare to other phones because you'll probably have other phones in mind.  ? 

We've based our rate on a study from Globalwebindex.com about what people want from their next smartphones. But you can customize how each section contributes to the global score according to what you value. Click here to skip everything but I suggest you keep reading to know more about them.

For additional information regarding our smartphone comparisons, check this FAQ.

Some features are underlined with a red or green progress bar. That's so you can see how they rival its direct competitors.  ? 

Here's our contestant panel: i  but we only include smartphones with price tags from -20% to +20%.

Some features are also shortcuts to the top 10 phones for that feature for every spending plan.

Price*			vs.
Device	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Release Date	2019, April	2019, March	0y.
OS Updates	2 years	3 years	1y.
Security Updates	2 years	4 years	2y.

*Reference: 100: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

Which One Has The Best Performance?

In terms of performance, Geekbench 5 scores the P30 Lite 8% ahead of its rival on the multi-core rankings. All in all, there's not much of a difference between the two.  ? 

Both smartphones are clearly under the average performance against similarly priced phones.

By the way, you can define both of them as low to mid-range.

Regarding their chipset, while the Samsung Galaxy A50 comes with the Exynos 9610 SoC, the Huawei P30 Lite has the Hisilicon Kirin 710 SoC.

Regarding the graphics chipset, the former features a Mali-G72 MP3, and the latter has a Mali-G51 MP4.

At least you'll get the Android 9 (Pie) on the P30 Lite, while the Galaxy A50 comes with Android 9 (Pie) and OneUI.

Performance*			vs.
Features	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
SoC	Hisilicon Kirin 710	Exynos 9610
Graphics	Mali-G51 MP4	Mali-G72 MP3
Geekbench 5 Score	1281	1186	-95
OS	Android 9 (Pie)	Android 9 (Pie) and OneUI
Tek-Score	4.1	4.0	-0.2

*Reference: 100: Apple iPhone 12.

Which Phone Has The Best Display?

The Galaxy A50 is the title-holder here, and you'd be able to tell the difference.

The P30 Lite has a 6.1-inch LCD screen, which is slightly smaller than the Galaxy A50's 6.4-inch AMOLED display. You'll likely have set your preferences already on the display type and size. Do you favor AMOLED screens?

If you're looking for the most high-resolution display, the Galaxy A50 is a winner here.

It's better to be safe than sorry, so you need to know about their glass protection. The Galaxy A50 features a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 display. The P30 Lite has an Aluminosilicate glass. I would've like to see a Gorilla Glass 5 or 6 from Samsung because this is 2013's tech.

To me, the Samsung Galaxy A50 has one significant advantage here, which is the Always-On-Display.

If you're looking for the brightest display, you can count on the P30 Lite to go up to 456 nits, and the Galaxy A50 can top at 550 nits.  ? 

Usually, devices in this price range average at 591 nits, but the P30 Lite stays at 135 nits below that.

Your next device must go over 500 nits, or else it will disappoint you when in direct sunlight or displaying HDR content.

Given the P30 Lite, 83% of its rivals have an AMOLED screen. At the same time, only 4% of them have over 60hz of refresh rate, and only 9% of them feature Gorilla Glass 6 or Victus.

Regarding the Galaxy A50, as a reference, 77% of its rivals have an AMOLED screen. In contrast, none of them have over 60hz of refresh rate, and only 5% of them feature Gorilla Glass 6 or Victus.

Display Density (DPIs)*			vs.
Features	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Size	6.1	6.4	0.3
Screen Type	LCD	AMOLED
Resolution (px)	1080x2312	1080x2340	30240
Refresh Rate	60hz	60hz	0
Dots per Inch	418.33	402.69	-15.64
Always-On-Display	No	Yes
Notch	Teardrop	Teardrop
Peak Brightness	456 nits	550 nits	94
HDR	-	-
Sub Tek-Score	1.8	7.8	6.0
Protection	Aluminosilicate glass	Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Tek-Score	3.0	3.9	0.9

*Reference: 100: Sony Xperia 1 II.

Which Phone Has The Best Cameras?

Overall, I'm sure the Huawei P30 Lite has a better camera.

What about its shooters? Together, a whopping 48 Megapixels sensor, an aperture of f/1.8, a 27mm wide-angle lens, one flash LED, and HDR capabilities makes up the P30 Lite camera set. Adding to that, you'll still get the ability to record videos at up to 1080p.

It also features two auxiliary cameras. One has 8 Megapixels and an aperture of f/2.4 plus a 17mm ultra-wide-angle lens. And another shooter with 2 Megapixels that works as a depth sensor.

Did you know? When cropping a 48 Megapixels photo by zooming in, you can get the same shot you'd get on a 12 Megapixels shooter with 2x optical zoom.

You should be aware that the 48 MP shooter is market dependent, so when you buy, make sure that the smartphone is compatible with your carrier.

Its selfie camera features a 24 MP sensor with an f/2.0 aperture and a 26mm wide-angle lens.

Seems like DXOMARK will never review this shooter, but we don't need a crystal ball to guess the rate: 116*. If you also consider its wide-angle lens, the final rate goes up to 126** points.

PS: 83% of its rivals can record videos in 4K or more, and all of them have an ultra-wide-angle lens.

The Galaxy A50 features a 25 Megapixels (f/1.7) shooter and a 26mm wide-angle lens. You can also count on one flash LED and HDR capabilities. It also records videos at up to 1080 pixels. It also has a secondary dual-lens camera. One of them features an aperture of f/2.2 plus a 13mm ultra-wide-angle lens and 8 Megapixels, and the other 5 Megapixels that works as a depth sensor.

The selfie camera has 25 MP, an f/2.0 aperture, and a 25 mm wide-angle lens.

DXOMARK's gurus gave this shooter a score of 81. By considering its wide-angle lens, we get a score of 86 points. For an out-and-out review, check their article.

Finally, just so you know, 77% of its rivals can record videos in 4 or 8K, and all of them have an ultra-wide-angle lens. Still, only 23% of them come with a telephoto lens and come with Optical Image Stabilization.

Considering this score, we can classify the P30 Lite as a lower high-end and the Galaxy A50 as low to mid-range.

If you're a snapper-addict, you'll miss a telephoto lens, so just ignore these two and check the Galaxy Note 10 Lite or the Galaxy S20 FE instead.

*I do recommend DXOMARK's reviews. Unfortunately, there are lots of good cameras left out of their labs. So when I get my hands on one of them, I do my best to get a comparable score by evaluating hardware specs only (sensor size, Aperture, HDR, OIS, Lenses, and so on). You should give it a borderline margin of error of 2 points.  ? 

**Please take this with a grain of salt, especially for cameras with no zoom and with less than 40MP. They moved to a new camera test protocol, and they don't have enough reviews for me to refine the pre-update camera rates.

Picture Quality*			vs.
Primary Camera	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Megapixels	48	25	-23
Aperture	1.8	1.7	-0.1
Lens	27mm	26mm	-1
Lens Type	Wide-Angle	Wide-Angle
Flash	1	1	0
HDR	Yes	Yes
OIS	No	No
Video	1080	1080	0
Score	126	86	-40

*Reference: 100: Huawei Mate 40 Pro.

Extra Camera(s)	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50	vs.
Megapixels	8	8	0
Aperture	2.4	2.2	-0.2
Lens	17mm	13mm	-4
Lens Type	Wide-Angle	Ultra-wide-Angle
Megapixels	2	5	3
Aperture	2.4	2.2	-0.2
Score	10	5	-5

Selfie Camera	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50	vs.
Megapixels	24	25	1
Aperture	2.0	2.0	0.0
Lens	26mm	25mm	-1

	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50	vs.
Tek-Score	7.4	5.1	-2.4

Who has the best frame?

If you're still undecided about them, the P30 Lite is a better choice, based on its glass build and nicer looks. But the Galaxy A50 is also pretty decent.

The P30 Lite is 5.99 inches (152 mm) tall and 2.84 inches (72 mm) long. The Galaxy A50 is 6 mm taller and 2 mm larger (about 0.24 by 0.08 inches).

These two have about the same thickness: 7 mm (0.28 inches).

The P30 Lite has a full glass body, while its rival has a plastic back. It weighs 159 g. (5.61 oz), while its rival is 7 g. (0.28 oz) heavier. But because screen size also matters, the P30 Lite has a "weight to screen size" score of 7.6, showing it's one of the lightest phones for its screen size. The Galaxy A50, on the other hand, has 7.7, which suggests exceptional work from Samsung.  ? 

If you like having color options, you can buy the P30 Lite in Peacock Blue, Pearl White, and Midnight Black. The Galaxy A50, in its turn, comes in Black, Blue, White, and Coral.

If you favor big phones, you should pick the Samsung Galaxy A50. Otherwise, the other one is more or less the same here.

Do you value a fingerprint scanner? They all have one.

If you'd rather have a water-resistant device, you should check out the competition, like the Galaxy S20 FE.

Looks*			vs.
Body	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Size	152 x 72 x 7 mm (5.36 x 2.54 x 0.25 in)	158 x 74 x 7 mm (5.57 x 2.61 x 0.25 in)	5236
Weight	159 g. (5.61 oz)	166 g. (5.86 oz)	7
Build	Front and back glass	Front glass
Colors	Peacock Blue, Pearl White, and Midnight Black	Black, Blue, White, and Coral
Screen To Body Ratio	84.11%	86.00%	1.88
Disp.Size To Weight Score	7.6	7.7	0.1
Looks	8.5/10	6.4/10	-2.1
Waterproof	-	-
Biometrics	Fingerprint	Under Display Fingerprint
Tek-Score	3.5	2.8	-0.7

*100% = 4+ colors + front and back glass + S2BR: 86+%.

Which has the best battery?

The P30 Lite does have a battery capacity of 3340 mAh versus the 4000 mAh of the Galaxy A50. But by GSMArena's standards, you shouldn't expect any real contrast here.

This is what the P30 Lite delivers if you do a complete charge:  ? 

• After 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, you should have 82% of the battery left for the rest of the day.
• By talking for 1 hour, browsing the web for 3 hours, and playing videos for 1 hour, you'll still have 68% left for the rest of the day.
• If you do 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 3 hours of video playback, this is where your battery will be: 66%.

And this is what you'll get out of the Galaxy A50:

• For 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 1 hour of video playback, you'll end up with 82% of the battery charge.
• By talking for 1 hour, browsing the web for 3 hours, and playing videos for 1 hour, you'll probably have 66% left for the rest of the day.
• If you do 1 hour of talking, 1 hour of web browsing, and 3 hours of video playback, you'll still get 70% to spend doing other things.

The P30 Lite features quick-charging at up to 18w, but the Galaxy A50 does it too, at 15w.

There's no wireless charging on any of them. If that's a bummer, consider getting the Galaxy S20 FE. It even supports reverse wireless charging too.

Battery*			vs.
Features	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Capacity (mAh)	3340	4000	660
1h Talk + 1h Web + 1h Video	82% left	82% left	0
1h Talk + 3h Web + 1h Video	68% left	66% left	-2
1h Talk + 1h Web + 3h Video	66% left	70% left	4
Bat. To Phone Size Score  ?	6.0	4.3	-1.6
Sub Tek-Score	7.2	7.3	0.1
Fast Charging	18w	15w	-3
Wireless Charging	No	No	0
Tek-Score	6.2	6.2	0.0

*Reference: 90: Samsung Galaxy A31.

Which has more storage?

The P30 Lite, for sure.

The P30 Lite comes equipped with 128GB of integrated storage and 4GB of RAM. It isn't an issue because if it's too short for you, you can buy a MicroSD card.

On the Galaxy A50, you'll find 64GB of internal storage and 4GB of RAM. You can count on the MicroSD card to save the day.

Storage shouldn't be an issue on any of these phones. However, if videos or big games are your things, 64 GB will be a problem sooner than later.

Storage*			vs.
Features	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
RAM (GB)	4GB	4GB	0
Internal (GB)	128GB	64GB	-64
Micro SD	microSDXC (shared SIM slot)	microSDXC (dedicated slot)
Tek-Score	7.5	6.3	-1.3

*Internal Storage + 256GB Memory Card (Max: 512GB).

Which is the most connectivity-friendly?

The Galaxy A50, because it has Bluetooth 5.0.

Each one has its Bluetooth version: The P30 Lite has 4.2, and the Galaxy A50 has 5.0. With Bluetooth 5, you can get a better range, better speed, and 2 simultaneous connections. Both devices feature the standard NFC module. You should note that the NFC on both of them is version-dependent.

The 3.5mm headphone jack is here to stay, at least for these two.

They both run on LTE networks. If you'd rather have a smartphone with 5G, you may want to check the Galaxy S20 FE.

Connectivity			vs.
Features	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Network	LTE	LTE
Bluetooth	4.2	5.0
NFC	Yes (market dependent)	Yes (market dependent)
3.5mm jack	Yes	Yes
Tek-Score	6.9	8.5	1.5

Which is more affordable?

The Samsung Galaxy A50 may not be the cheapest phone, but it's cheaper nonetheless. But if you do search for any deals and price drops, things can get interesting. On the other hand, you'll likely find the P30 Lite at a higher price range, but I think that you can find some additional value in it. At least, it should be easier to sell it in the future.

If you still aren't sure about any of them, let's check how much value you can expect.

Here are the best prices that we've found:

Reference: $280

$170.74!

$370.00

Check now

Check now

Huawei P30 Lite

Reference: $265

$349.99

$294.99

Check now

$276.00

Samsung Galaxy A50

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How much of a "phone" can your money buy?
That's how much "score" you can get with $100 based on the global score that you'll see in the next section (higher is better).

Have you found better prices elsewhere? The formula is simple: score/price*100.

Also, don't forget to check the latest deals from these four stores, and the state of the art on mobile technology, if you don't want to overpay on your next smartphone.

Related articles:

Best smartphone deals

The Best Unbiased Smartphones For All Budgets

Smartphone Specs Statistics: The State Of The Art (Q1 2021)

So, what about that global rate? We'll get there. First, let me mention the average at their price range. The P30 Lite class is at 5.6, and the Galaxy A50 5.4.

Verdict: What Makes the Huawei P30 Lite Stand Out?

As you can see, they both are great phones.

I do like the A50 because of its battery and the Always-On display. But my oh my, the P30 Lite sure does look great on my hands.

Pros	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
#1	Cameras	AMOLED
#2	Fast Charging	Always-On-Display
#3	MicroSD Slot	Fast Charging
#4	3.5mm Jack	MicroSD Slot
#5		3.5mm Jack

Cons	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
#1	AMOLED	Wireless Charging
#2	Always-On-Display	Glass Protection
#3	Wireless Charging

Relative Score*			vs.
Global Score	P30 Lite	Galaxy A50
Gaming Score	3.8	4.3	0.6
Tek-Score	5.63	5.17	-0.46
Your Score

Scroll the sliders down below to get your own personalized score. Let's suppose you value performance and battery life, and you don't really care about anything else. Then, just set the "Performance" and the "Battery" sliders up to 5 (5+5=10), and then the other sliders down to 0. You'll know what's the best phone for you.

*Reference: 100: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

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