With Google not offering their licensed Android version to be used on the upcoming Huawei Mate 30, this flagship is in a pickle and it might resort to using the open-source version of Android. It was expected that the company would use HarmonyOS, its inhouse operating system but according to MyDriver, Ren Zhengei, Huawei founder and CO said that the company has not yet considered how to get HarmonyOS to run on smartphones. He admits that building a smartphone ecosystem for the operating system will take a while. However, the operating system is ready for smart screens such as the Vision TV and smartwatches.
Among other Huawei announcements made at the IFA 2019 in Berlin, Richard Yu, the head of Huawei’s consumer group added that while the operating could be used for smartphones, it’s not the company’s priority. He notes that the company is working on how to let Google apps be installed on the open-source version of Android.
The Huawei Mate 30 lacking Google’s official Android version means that its users won’t have access to important Google apps that include the Play Store, Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Maps(Huawei is working on their own alternative, Map Kit) and Google Search.
It was earlier reported that ProtonMail would be included as the phone’s encrypted email app.
The Huawei Mate X is the same pickle too.
These phones shipping without Google’s apps and services are going to hurt Huawei especially on sales outside China. The Huawei Mate 30 and the Mate 30 Pro are scheduled to be unveiled on September 19th and we’ll know what operating system the company will opt for to run its flagship devices.
Just as it was revealed late last month in a New York press event where Huawei said that they might turn to Harmony OS for its future devices, Richard Yu added that for the Huawei P40 series, they might consider going with Harmony OS.
