With Mate 70 launch, Huawei shuns Google Android
Chinese tech giant Huawei while unpacking Mate 70 smartphone announced to stop using Google Android, instead powering all its future phones by HarmonyOS Next
Beijing: Chinese tech giant Huawei while unpacking Mate 70 smartphone announced to stop using Google Android, instead powering all its future phones by HarmonyOS Next.
Fed up with the US restrictions, Huawei had in 2019 announced to build its own operating system (OS) called HarmonyOS to end the dependency on market leader Google's Android OS.
The company had launched in June 2021 its self-developed operating system "HarmonyOS 2.0" to power nearly 100 devices, including smartphones and TVs.
The operating system was initially based on code from the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) and the Linux kernel.The next iteration of HarmonyOS known as "HarmonyOS NEXT" was announced on August 4, 2023 and officially launched on October 22, 2024.
The new OS replaced the OpenHarmony multi-kernel system with its own HarmonyOS microkernel at its core and removing all Android code.
Huawei Mate 70
The Chinese conglomerate launched three days ago Mate 70 - the followup to the company's most significant device in years, the Mate 60, and its first smartphone to run on HarmonyOS Next.
Announced at a live-streamed event on Tuesday Nov 26, 2024, the new devices and software add to Huawei's campaign to reclaim China's premium tier from Apple Inc. and build an ecosystem without the involvement of major US tech providers.
The Huawei Mate 70 series consists of four different models –– Mate 70, Mate 70 Pro, Mate 70 Pro Plus, and Mate 70 RS - all versions to be available to buyers December 04, 2024 onwards.
To make the transition smoother, Huawei is said to be offering a choice between Android-based HarmonyOS 4.3 and HarmonyOS NEXT. However, starting early next year, all phones and tablets from Huawei will ship with HarmonyOS NEXT by default, the company said.
Specs and Price
The Mate 70 starts at 5,499 yuan (Rs 64,000, approximately), while the Mate 70 Pro and the Mate 70 Pro Plus are priced at 6,499 yuan (Rs 75,667, approximately) and 8,499 yuan (Rs 98,952, approximately), respectively.
On Tuesday, Huawei also showcased the Mate X6 featuring a 7.63-inch foldable display, slightly thinner and lighter than the Mate X5 and starts at 12,999 yuan (Rs 1,51,345, approximately).
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Shenzhen-based Huawei is expected to use its latest in-house Kirin chip for the new product line, though its performance increase may be less significant than Qualcomm Inc. and MediaTek Inc.'s top-end offerings, according to a note by Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Charles Shum and Sean Chen.
"That suggests the new Huawei phone may struggle to capture the attention of non-Huawei Android users," they wrote.
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