Mid-range flagships like the Honor 20 Pro are giving premium phones a run for their money

Phone sales have been trending downward for some time now. There are a number of reasons for this - many of which you can read about in this piece I published last week. The creeping cost of premium handsets is pretty high on that list, with flagships now routinely topping $1,000 from many of the big names.

The big smartphone makers have begun to react to this, with budget flagship alternatives like the iPhone XR, Galaxy S10e and Pixel 3a. A new crop of mid-range flagships, however, are giving them a run for their money and serving as an important reminder that a quality handset doesn't need to be priced in the four digits.

The Honor 20 Pro fits nicely in the latter camp, joining the likes of the recently announced OnePlus 7 Pro and Asus ZenFone 6 in demonstrating that premium specs can still be had for what was once considered a reasonable flagship price.

Of course, before we get into specifics of pricing with the newly announced handset, it bears mentioning whether Honor, a brand owned by Huawei, will actually ever make it to the States. That's all pretty complicated - like Donald Trump in a trade war with with China complicated. The pricing on the London-launched Pro version is a599, putting it at around $670.

The phone's got Huawei's latest and greatest Kirin 980 processor, coupled with a 6.26-inch display with hole-punch cutout and a quartet of rear-facing cameras. Those include a wide angle with 117-degree shots, 48-megapixel main, telephoto and a macro, which is an interesting addition to the standard array. The Pro's out at some point in the June or July time frame.

Huawei bans aside, it will be interesting to see how this new crop of more affordable premium devices impacts the rest of the big names up top.