Huawei Pura 90 Plus Debuts First Kirin 9025 Phone from CNY 5,499
Huawei's Pura 90 Plus, launched in China on Oct. 28, is the first phone with the Kirin 9025, with a claimed gain of about 20% over the Kirin 9020. Prices start at CNY 5,499; sales open Oct. 31.
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The Huawei Pura 90 Plus, launched in China on Oct. 28 with the Kirin 9025 chip.
Image: Huawei
Source · Press image from the Huawei product page, used for news reporting.
Huawei launched the Pura 90 Plus in China on Oct. 28 with prices from CNY 5,499 and open sales starting Oct. 31, GSMArena reported. Gizchina reported that it is the first phone with Huawei's Kirin 9025 chip.
GSMArena describes the Kirin 9025 as an overhauled Kirin 9020, the chip in the Pura 80 series, with a claimed 20% increase in performance. Gizchina says Huawei claims a 19% overall boost over the previous generation from new hardware and software. Gizchina attributes the 19% figure to Huawei; GSMArena does not say who claimed the 20%. Neither cites an independent benchmark.
The phone has 12GB of RAM with 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of storage, Huawei's spec page says; Gizchina and My Mobile India report 16GB on the 1TB version, which Huawei's page does not show. It runs HarmonyOS 7 and has a 6.8-inch LTPO OLED screen at 2,848 × 1,276 pixels with a 1-120Hz refresh rate. The battery is rated 5,700mAh (typical value; Huawei lists 5,580mAh rated capacity) with 100W wired and 80W wireless charging, Huawei's spec page says. One outlet's headline gave 6,800mAh, which Huawei's figures do not support.
Pura 90 Plus Price and Sales Start
Prices are CNY 5,499, CNY 5,999 and CNY 6,999 for the 256GB, 512GB and 1TB versions, according to GSMArena, Gizchina and My Mobile India; Huawei's own page confirms the starting price of CNY 5,499. GSMArena converts the entry price to about $825 and the top price to about $1,050. Gizchina reports a discount of up to CNY 300 that brings the entry price to CNY 5,199, and My Mobile India says the Double 11 promotion runs until Nov. 30. Huawei has not announced a launch outside China.
The Pura 90 Plus starts at CNY 5,499 and reaches CNY 6,999 for the 1TB version, according to GSMArena, Gizchina and My Mobile India.
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Why the Kirin 9025 Matters for Huawei's Supply Chain
The Kirin 9025 continues Huawei's in-house phone silicon strategy under sanctions, keeping its flagship line on its own Kirin chips at a time of rising chip and memory costs. As Voltgrid reported, Huawei took a 15 billion yuan offshore loan this month as chip and memory costs climbed.
On Oct. 28 Huawei also split its mid-range line by storage, putting the Kirin 8020 in one version of the Enjoy 100 Pro Max and the Kirin 8020A in the others.
How to Read the Kirin 9025 Gain Claim
A phone chip's speed comes from its transistors, its design and the software that runs on it. The claimed Kirin 9025 gain mixes them: Gizchina says Huawei credits new hardware and software for a 19% overall boost, while GSMArena reports a claimed 20% over the Kirin 9020. Neither report names a benchmark, a test device or a baseline.
That matters because TechInsights, cited by Bloomberg, found the Kirin 9020 on the same SMIC 7nm-class process as the Kirin 9010, with a revised floorplan. If the 9025 stays on it, a gain of this size would come from design or software, not smaller transistors. Huawei's spec page lists only the chip's name, so benchmarks after the Oct. 31 sales start will show how much of the gain is real.
What Is Still Unconfirmed About the Kirin 9025
Huawei's spec page lists the chip by name only and gives no node, foundry, core or clock details. The performance uplift is unverified until teardowns and benchmarks arrive after the Oct. 31 sales start. Pre-launch leaks that the chip is a Kirin 9020 running at higher clocks remain unconfirmed.
