Huawei Pura 90 Ultra Leak: April 2026 Launch with Monster 1/1.28″ Camera and 7,300mAh Battery!

Launch Date: Rumored to debut in April 2026 ^[1] (Huawei skipped 2025 and is returning to its original spring launch window).
Huge Main Camera: Leaks say the Pura 90 Ultra will pack a 1/1.28-inch main sensor ^[2] – even larger than the Pura 80 Ultra’s 1-inch camera – promising extreme low-light and dynamic range.
Next-gen Chip: Likely the first 5nm Kirin chipset (e.g. Kirin 9020/9030) powering it ^[3], a major upgrade after years of only 7nm Kirins.
Flat Display: Reports suggest Huawei will switch from curved to a flat OLED (2.5D) screen on the Pura 90, following a design trend away from edges ^[4].
Massive Battery: One leak hints at an enormous ~7,300mAh battery ^[5] – a Huawei record (the Pura 80 Ultra had ~5,170mAh). With fast charging, this could ensure all-day use.
XMAGE Imaging (No Leica): Huawei has ended its Leica partnership (in 2022 ^[6]) and now brands its camera tech as XMAGE. The Pura line is central to this strategy, essentially making XMAGE “an anchor brand, like Leica once was, except entirely under Huawei’s control” ^[7].
Camera Credentials: The Pura 80 Ultra just topped DXOMARK’s charts (the highest-ever score) thanks to its 1″ sensor and advanced optics ^[8]. Huawei will aim to outdo even that with Pura 90.

Launch Timeline and Rumors

Huawei’s Pura series (formerly the P-series) was born in spring 2024, and insiders now say the Pura 90 will revert to that schedule. According to a HuaweiCentral leak, the Pura 90 lineup is likely to hit the market in April 2026 ^[9]. In context, Pura 80 models only arrived in June 2025 after delays for camera and chip tweaks ^[10], so moving back to April suggests Huawei is streamlining its roadmap. Tipsters (like Guo Jing) have sketched Huawei’s 2026 roadmap, and the Pura 90 is at the front of that plan ^[11]. The first Pura phone launched in April 2024 ^[12], so this would put the Pura 90 exactly two years later on the same calendar, reinforcing it as Huawei’s annual imaging flagship.

Anticipated Specifications and Design

Huawei’s Pura phones are camera-centric, and the latest leaks hint at huge hardware upgrades. One Chinese tipster reports the Pura 90 Ultra will use a new 1/1.28-inch main camera sensor ^[13]. This ultralarge sensor (likely paired with a high-megapixel 50MP module) surpasses the Pura 80 Ultra’s 1-inch 50MP RYYB camera, promising far better low-light performance and dynamic range. Another rumor says Huawei will finally equip the Pura 90 with a 5nm Kirin chipset (perhaps the rumored Kirin 9020/9030) ^[14], giving the phone a big boost in performance and AI processing over its 7nm predecessors. The display may also see a design tweak: industry sources note Huawei has increased production of flat (2.5D) OLED panels ^[15], so the Pura 90 could have a flat-screen design instead of the curved edges seen on Pura 80. Together, these specs (huge sensor + latest Kirin + flat 120Hz OLED) would match or exceed rival flagships on paper.

Battery and charging also get a jump. One leak suggests the Pura 90 Ultra will carry around 7,300mAh of battery ^[16] – a Huawei flagship record (the Mate 90 and Pura 90 lines are said to push battery to 7300mAh). Even with the large screen, this would ensure multi-day battery life. (For reference, the Pura 80 Ultra had a 5,170mAh cell and supported 100W wired/80W wireless charging ^[17].) In summary, the Pura 90 Ultra is shaping up as an all-around powerhouse: much bigger camera sensor, faster chip, possibly a new flat-edge design, and a gigantic battery, all by April 2026.

Huawei’s Imaging Strategy (XMAGE vs Leica)

Huawei has clearly positioned the Pura series as its imaging flagship, especially now that it no longer co-brands cameras with Leica. The Leica partnership officially ended in mid-2022 ^[18] (Leica moved to Xiaomi), and Huawei’s smartphones now carry its own XMAGE camera branding. Industry analysts note that Huawei is treating XMAGE as its new hallmark: “Huawei’s XMAGE platform…is now being positioned as an anchor brand, like Leica once was, except entirely under Huawei’s control,” one report explained ^[19]. In practice, that means Pura models will showcase Huawei’s best optics and computational photography. For example, the Pura 80 Ultra introduced an innovative dual telephoto module with 3.7x and 9.4x optical lenses ^[20], and it used Huawei’s new XD-Engine processing. At a launch event, a Huawei executive even described the Pura series as “standing at the intersection of high-end imaging and high fashion,” aiming to appeal to both professional photographers and style-conscious users ^[21]. In short, Huawei’s strategy is to make Pura phones the showcase for XMAGE – big sensors, advanced zoom hardware, and powerful AI photo editing – rather than relying on outside camera partners.

Competition with Other Flagships

Meanwhile, the camera phone stakes are extremely high across the industry. Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max now use a 48MP fusion camera system on each lens, with a 4x (optical-equivalent) telephoto and new computational tricks ^[22] ^[23]. Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra is rumored to largely carry over the S25 Ultra hardware – a 200MP main sensor and dual telephoto (5x and 3x) ^[24] – meaning Samsung isn’t moving the needle on zoom for now. And Chinese rivals are pushing Leica tech: for 2026, Xiaomi’s 17-series Ultra model is expected to pack four Leica-tuned cameras (three 50MP sensors plus one 200MP sensor) ^[25], possibly with a revolutionary periscope lens system. In this landscape, Huawei needs a unique angle. The Pura 90 will likely compete by doubling down on sheer sensor size and Huawei’s XMAGE processing pipeline – not via Leica badges. If it delivers on the rumors (huge sensor, dual-tele zoom, etc.), the Pura 90 could at least match or exceed the pure imaging specs of its rivals, even if it still lags in Google services on the software side.

Expert Commentary and Outlook

Previewing the Pura 80 Ultra, reviewers already praised its camera prowess. Android Authority’s Andy Walker called the Pura 80 Ultra “my favorite camera phone”, noting that its 50MP one-inch sensor captured more detail than Samsung’s S25 Ultra in side-by-side tests ^[26] ^[27]. He specifically wrote that the Pura 80 Ultra’s primary camera “gives it a huge photography boost over even the best in the business” ^[28]. Of course, Huawei’s limitations (no Google Play, using HarmonyOS) were pointed out as drawbacks ^[29]. But from a hardware standpoint, the Pura 80 Ultra set a new bar, and Huawei will hope the Pura 90 pushes it even higher.

Pricing for the Pura 90 Ultra should be at the top end. In 2025 the Pura 80 Ultra launched at about €1,499 (roughly $1,600) globally ^[30]. It’s safe to expect the Pura 90 Ultra to command a similar or higher price, given the flagship specs.

In summary, the Huawei Pura 90 series (formerly the P-series) appears on track to be an all-new camera powerhouse. Leaks of a giant sensor and big battery confirm Huawei’s strategy: target enthusiasts who value pure imaging performance. As one analyst noted, Huawei is essentially betting on XMAGE to carry the brand forward ^[31]. If the rumors are true, the Pura 90 Ultra could indeed “take photography to new heights” on paper ^[32]. We’ll have to wait for an official launch in 2026 to see how it stacks up against Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, and others in the ultimate flagships showdown.

Sources: Huawei Central ^[33] ^[34] ^[35] ^[36] ^[37] ^[38] ^[39] ^[40] ^[41] ^[42] ^[43] ^[44] ^[45] (Reliable tech news and leaks)

Huawei Pura 90 Ultra: Release Date, Specs & Features Revealed!

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References

Huawei Pura 90 Ultra Leak: April 2026 Launch with Monster 1/1.28″ Camera and 7,300mAh Battery

Launch Timeline and Rumors

Anticipated Specifications and Design

Huawei’s Imaging Strategy (XMAGE vs Leica)

Competition with Other Flagships

Expert Commentary and Outlook

References

Mateusz Brzeziński

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