Head to head

Huawei nova 16 vs Huawei nova 16 SE

Full specification and price comparison for Pakistan, updated 10 Jun 2026.

The short answer

The Huawei nova 16 is the stronger phone of the two, scoring 93 against 79 on our combined specification score. It leads on performance, camera and battery & charging. The Huawei nova 16 is the cheaper of the two at PKR 124,999 against PKR 127,999.

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The verdict

Spec-derived

Huawei nova 16 takes it by 13.8 points on our weighted spec score.

Performance Huawei nova 16 leads

Gaming score where available, otherwise chipset tier plus usable RAM.

Camera Huawei nova 16 leads

Camera Score where available, otherwise sensor resolution and lens count. Megapixels alone do not measure image quality.

Battery & charging Huawei nova 16 leads

Cell capacity in mAh weighted with rated wired charging output.

Display Level

Pixel density, refresh rate and panel technology.

Memory & storage Huawei nova 16 leads

Highest advertised RAM and internal storage configuration.

Value for money Huawei nova 16 leads

Combined spec score divided by current Pakistani retail price.

What actually differs

  • Huawei nova 16 costs PKR 3,000 less.
  • Huawei nova 16 SE packs a 1,500 mAh larger battery.
  • Huawei nova 16 charges 34W faster.
  • Huawei nova 16 offers 4 GB more RAM.

Buy the Huawei nova 16 if…

you care most about performance, camera, battery & charging, memory & storage and value for money.

Full specification comparison

Specification Huawei nova 16 Huawei nova 16 SE
Price in Pakistan
Retail price PKR 124,999 Cheaper PKR 127,999
Design & build
Release date June 1, 2026 ( china) August 5, 2026 — China
Dimensions 159.6 × 75.5 × 7.3 mm Not officially confirmed
Weight 199 g Better 229 g
Water resistance Not listed IP65 (reported)
Display
Screen size 6.68 Inches 6.84 inches Better
Resolution 2800 × 1280 Pixels (FHD+) Better 1276 × 2776 pixels
Panel type OLED, 1 Billion Colors 120Hz HDR Vivid Support 2160Hz PWM Dimming LTPS OLED 120Hz Up to 8,000 nits (reported)
Protection Aluminosilicate Glass Kunlun Glass
Performance
Chipset HiSilicon Kirin 9010S processor Huawei Kirin 8020 (7nm)
CPU Octa-Core Octa-core 1 × high-performance core + 3 × performance cores + 4 × efficiency cores
GPU Maleoon 920 GPU Huawei Maleoon
Operating system HarmonyOS 6.1 HarmonyOS 6.1
Memory & storage
RAM 12GB Better 8GB
Internal storage 256GB / 512GB 128GB / 256GB / 512GB
Card slot No No
Camera
Main camera 50MP Wide Camera (f/1.9, PDAF) 50MP Periscope Telephoto Camera (f/2.6, OIS) 3.7x Optical Zoom Color Spectrum Sensor LED Flash, HDR, Panorama 50 MP f/1.9 RYYB, reported Huawei Red Maple multispectral sensor LED flash, HDR, panorama, AI photography
Selfie camera 50MP Selfie Camera HDR, Panorama Better 32 MP f/2.2 HDR, AI photography
Video recording 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps Up to 4K@30fps, reported
Battery & charging
Battery capacity Si/C Li-Ion 7000mAh (Non-removable) Li-Ion (non-removable) 8,500 mAh Better
Wired charging 100W Wired Fast Charging 5W Reverse Wired Charging Better 66W fast charging, reported
Connectivity & extras
SIM Dual Nano-SIM support Dual Nano-SIM
Wi-Fi Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6/7 Dual-band Wi-Fi Direct Wi-Fi 7
Bluetooth 6.0 A2DP LE Bluetooth 6.0
NFC Yes Yes
Sensors Side-mounted Fingerprint Sensor Accelerometer Gyroscope Compass Ambient Light Sensor Proximity Sensor Gravity Sensor Hall Sensor Fingerprint Side-mounted Accelerometer Gyroscope Proximity Ambient Light Compass Color Spectrum / Multispectral Sensor
USB USB Type-C 2.0 OTG Supported USB Type-C OTG

“Better” marks the higher (or, for price and weight, the lower) figure. It is a specification difference, not a judgement about real-world experience.

Questions people ask

Which is better, Huawei nova 16 or Huawei nova 16 SE?

Huawei nova 16 comes out ahead on our combined spec score, leading by 13.8 points. It wins on performance, camera, battery & charging, memory & storage and value for money. Huawei nova 16 SE can still be the better buy if your priorities sit elsewhere or if you find it at a lower street price.

What is the price of Huawei nova 16 and Huawei nova 16 SE in Pakistan?

Huawei nova 16 is listed at PKR 124,999 and Huawei nova 16 SE at PKR 127,999. That makes Huawei nova 16 cheaper by PKR 3,000. Retail prices move often, so treat these as indicative.

Which has the better camera, Huawei nova 16 or Huawei nova 16 SE?

Huawei nova 16 scores higher in our camera assessment. Both use comparable main sensors, so day to day results come down to processing.

Which phone has the better battery, Huawei nova 16 or Huawei nova 16 SE?

Huawei nova 16 leads on battery. Huawei nova 16 carries a 7000 mAh cell and Huawei nova 16 SE a 8500 mAh cell, with 100W and 66W wired charging respectively.

Which is better for gaming, Huawei nova 16 or Huawei nova 16 SE?

Huawei nova 16 is the stronger gaming phone here. Huawei nova 16 runs the HiSilicon Kirin 9010S processor while Huawei nova 16 SE runs the Huawei Kirin 8020 (7nm).

Related comparisons

Huawei nova 16 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 17 Pro Max Huawei nova 16 SE vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 17 Pro Max Huawei nova 16 vs Tecno Camon 19 Pro 5G Huawei nova 16 SE vs Tecno Camon 19 Pro 5G Huawei nova 16 vs Tecno Camon 30 5G Huawei nova 16 SE vs Tecno Camon 30 5G Huawei nova 16 vs Tecno Camon 40 Pro 4G Huawei nova 16 SE vs Tecno Camon 40 Pro 4G

Tools that use this data

Camera Score Tool Battery Score Tool Gaming Performance Checker AI Mobile Recommendation Tool All comparisons

Scores are calculated from the published hardware specification of each device using the same formula for every phone on WhatMobilePK — they are not paid placements and they are not laboratory test results. Prices are indicative Pakistani retail prices and change frequently.