Huawei nova 15 vs Huawei nova 15 Max
Verdict
The Huawei nova 15 scores higher in 4 of 5 sections (design & durability, camera, connectivity & features and battery), while the Huawei nova 15 Max is not clearly ahead in any section; they are even on display.
The biggest difference is design & durability: 70 vs 31 points.
The Huawei nova 15 Max is the newer model, announced 5 months after the Huawei nova 15.
- nova 15 leads in 13 fields
- nova 15 Max leads in 2 fields
- 22 ties
37 scored fields compared
Score by section
| Section scores | nova 15 | nova 15 Max |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | ||
| Performance | 62 | – |
| Camera | 59 | 32 |
| Battery | 77 | 69 |
| Display | 91 | 90 |
| Design & durability | 70 | 31 |
| Connectivity & features | 65 | 43 |
Full specifications
Performance
- Chipset performance index
- nova 15: 50/100
- nova 15 Max: Unknown
- Chipset
- nova 15: Kirin 8020
- nova 15 Max: Unknown
- RAM (max)
- nova 15: 12 GB(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 8 GB
- Storage (max)
- nova 15: 512 GB(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 256 GB
Camera
- Main camera resolution
- nova 15: 50 MP
- nova 15 Max: 50 MP
- Main sensor size
- nova 15: 1/1.56″
- nova 15 Max: 1/1.56″
- Optical stabilization (OIS)
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Ultra-wide camera
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Telephoto camera
- nova 15: Yes(Better)
- nova 15 Max: No
- Periscope lens
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Optical zoom
- nova 15: 3×(Better)
- nova 15 Max: No
- Video recording
- nova 15: 4K 30 fps
- nova 15 Max: 4K 30 fps
- Front camera
- nova 15: 50 MP(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 8 MP
- Front camera 4K video
- nova 15: Yes
- nova 15 Max: Yes
Battery
- Battery capacity
- nova 15: 6000 mAh
- nova 15 Max: 8500 mAh(Better)
- Wired charging
- nova 15: 100 W(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 40 W
- Wireless charging
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Reverse charging
- nova 15: Yes
- nova 15 Max: Yes
- Reverse charging type
- nova 15: Wired
- nova 15 Max: Wired
Display
- Screen size
- nova 15: 6.7″
- nova 15 Max: 6.84″
- Panel type
- nova 15: LTPO OLED(Better)
- nova 15 Max: OLED
- Refresh rate
- nova 15: 120 Hz
- nova 15 Max: 120 Hz
- Pixel density
- nova 15: 395 ppi
- nova 15 Max: 444 ppi(Better)
- Peak brightness
- nova 15: Unknown
- nova 15 Max: 4000 nits
- Resolution
- nova 15: 1084x2412
- nova 15 Max: 1272x2756
- Screen protection
- nova 15: Aluminosilicate glass
- nova 15 Max: Unknown
Design & durability
- Weight
- nova 15: 196 g(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 232 g
- Thickness
- nova 15: 7.2 mm(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 8 mm
- Dust & water resistance
- nova 15: IP65–IP67(Better)
- nova 15 Max: None
- Back material
- nova 15: Aluminum(Better)
- nova 15 Max: Plastic
- Frame material
- nova 15: Plastic
- nova 15 Max: Plastic
Connectivity & features
- 5G
- nova 15: Yes(Better)
- nova 15 Max: No
- Wi-Fi
- nova 15: Wi-Fi 7
- nova 15 Max: Wi-Fi 7
- Bluetooth
- nova 15: 6.0(Better)
- nova 15 Max: 5.2
- USB speed
- nova 15: USB 2.0
- nova 15 Max: USB 2.0
- USB port
- nova 15: USB-C 2.0
- nova 15 Max: USB-C 2.0
- DisplayPort output
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- NFC
- nova 15: Yes
- nova 15 Max: Yes
- eSIM
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Ultra-wideband (UWB)
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Satellite connectivity
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Stereo speakers
- nova 15: Yes
- nova 15 Max: Yes
- 3.5 mm headphone jack
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Fingerprint reader
- nova 15: Side-mounted
- nova 15 Max: Side-mounted
- 3D face unlock
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Infrared blaster
- nova 15: Yes
- nova 15 Max: Yes
- FM radio
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- microSD slot
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
- Card slot
- nova 15: No
- nova 15 Max: No
General
- Operating system
- nova 15: HarmonyOS 6.0
- nova 15 Max: EMUI 14.2
- Launch price
- nova 15: About 330 EUR
- nova 15 Max: About 280 EUR
- Year
- nova 15: 2025
- nova 15 Max: 2026
Show raw spec textHide raw spec text
Original text from the source spec sheet, for reference.
| — | nova 15 | nova 15 Max |
|---|---|---|
| Network | ||
| Technology | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / CDMA2000 / LTE / 5G | GSM / HSPA / LTE |
| 2G bands | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 CDMA 800 | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 |
| 3G bands | HSDPA 800 / 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 CDMA2000 1x | HSDPA 800 / 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 |
| 4G bands | LTE | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 26, 28, 38, 40, 41, 66 |
| 5G bands | SA/NSA | – |
| Speed | HSPA, LTE, 5G | HSPA, LTE |
| Launch | ||
| Announced | 2025, December 22 | 2026, May 07 |
| Status | Available. Released 2025, December 22 | Available. Released 2026, May 15 |
| Body | ||
| Dimensions | 161.9 x 75.5 x 7.2 mm (6.37 x 2.97 x 0.28 in) | 163.3 x 78 x 8 mm (6.43 x 3.07 x 0.31 in) |
| Weight | 196 g (6.91 oz) | 232 g (8.18 oz) |
| Build | Glass front, plastic frame, aluminum back | Glass front, plastic frame, plastic back |
| SIM | Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM IP65 dust tight and water resistant (low pressure water jets) | · Nano-SIM · Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM |
| Display | ||
| Type | LTPO OLED, 1B colors, HDR Vivid, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM | OLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, 2160Hz PWM, 4000 nits (peak) |
| Size | 6.7 inches, 108.3 cm2 (~88.6% screen-to-body ratio) | 6.84 inches, 114.8 cm2 (~90.2% screen-to-body ratio) |
| Resolution | 1084 x 2412 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~395 ppi density) | 1272 x 2756 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio (~444 ppi density) |
| Protection | Aluminosilicate glass | – |
| Platform | ||
| OS | HarmonyOS 6.0 | EMUI 14.2 |
| Chipset | Kirin 8020 | – |
| Memory | ||
| Card slot | No | No |
| Internal | 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM | 256GB 8GB RAM |
| Main Camera | ||
| Dual | 50 MP, f/1.9, 23mm (wide), 1/1.56", Dual Pixel PDAF 12 MP, f/2.4, 69mm (telephoto), PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom | 50 MP, f/1.9, (wide), 1/1.56", dual-pixel PDAF Auxiliary lens |
| Features | Color spectrum sensor, LED flash, panorama, HDR | LED flash, panorama, HDR |
| Video | 4K, 1080p, gyro-EIS, HDR Vivid | 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS |
| Selfie camera | ||
| Single | 50 MP, f/2.4, (ultrawide), 1/2.5" | 8 MP, f/2.0, (wide) |
| Features | HDR, panorama | – |
| Video | 4K, 1080p, gyro-EIS, HDR Vivid | 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps |
| Sound | ||
| Loudspeaker | Yes, with stereo speakers | Yes, with stereo speakers |
| 3.5mm jack | No | No |
| Comms | ||
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6/7, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6/7, dual-band |
| Bluetooth | 6.0, A2DP, LE, L2HC (320-960 kbps HD audio) | 5.2, A2DP, LE, L2HC (320-960 kbps HD audio) |
| Positioning | GPS (L1+L5), BDS (B1I+B1c+B2a), GALILEO (E1+E5a), QZSS (L1+L5), GLONASS, NavIC | GPS, GALILEO, GLONASS, BDS, QZSS |
| NFC | Yes | Yes |
| Infrared port | Yes | Yes |
| Radio | No | No |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, OTG | USB Type-C 2.0, OTG |
| Features | ||
| Sensors | Fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, gyro, compass Virtual proximity sensing | Fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, gyro, compass Virtual proximity sensing |
| Battery | ||
| Type | Si/C Li-Ion 6000 mAh | 8500 mAh |
| Charging | 100W wired, SCP, UFCS, PD, PPS, QC 5W reverse wired | 40W wired 5W reverse wired |
| Misc | ||
| Colors | Black, White, Purple, Green | Blush Gold, Lake Cyan, Golden Black |
| Models | PSN-AL00 | CHZ-LX1 |
| Price | About 330 EUR | About 280 EUR |