Huawei is confident it can break free from Android, by copying Apple

[nanoguy]

Cutting corners: Huawei hopes that by pushing new devices with Harmony OS 2.0 and updating many of the existing ones, it can break free from the shackles of US sanctions and migrate over 300 million users to the new operating system in a relatively short time frame. Whether or not they can succeed is anyone's guess, but the company seems confident it can thrive without Android and Google services.

Huawei has launched several new products powered by the homegrown Harmony OS 2.0. The company aims to show it can compete with Android by starting the transition with its higher end devices and completing it with existing models that can be updated over the air.

The first devices that will see the update to Harmony OS 2.0 are the Mate 40 series, Mate 30 series, and the exotic Mate X2 foldable phone. People with older phones like the Mate 10 and the P20 series are slated to receive the update the first half of next year. According to CEO Richard Yu, almost 100 models of Huawei tablets, phones, and watches will be able to run the operating system by the end of 2022, including the upcoming P50 smartphone that was teased during the Harmony OS livestream.

The company used the occasion of today's media event to unveil updated versions of its iPad clones. The latest lineup includes a new larger 12.6-inch MatePad Pro, a 10.8-inch MatePad Pro and the MatePad 11. In addition to running Harmony OS 2.0, the Pro versions also come equipped with Huawei's own Kirin 9000 chipsets, but notably the MatePad 11 uses a Snapdragon 865 SoC.

Huawei spent a lot of time talking about the new Harmony OS experience on the new MatePad lineup, but it can really be summed up as a strange imitation of Apple's iPadOS, from the overall look of the home screen down to the "Task Center." The company even added a feature called "FreeScript" that allows you to use the new M-Pencil to write directly into dialog boxes where your handwriting will get converted to typed text. You can also mirror the screen of a MateBook or Huawei phone onto a MatePad or MatePad Pro.

Not everything about the MatePads is a straight carbon copy of a design decision or software feature present in the iPad Pro though. For one, Huawei placed the webcam on the long edge, which is ideal for a lot of people who use their tablets in landscape mode when going into a video call. And while the latest iPad Pro features a Mini LED display, the new MatePad Pro tablets come with OLED screens.

Other notable features are support for 5G and Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, and Huawei promises up to 14 hours of battery life on the MatePad Pro. Even if it doesn't last that long, there's support for fast charging at up to 40 watts over cable and up to 27 watts on a wireless charger. If you're using accessories that support wireless charging, you can also charge them from a MatePad Pro.

Pricing was detailed for the Chinese market only, but it's possible they'll also arrive in Europe in the coming months. The 12.6-inch MatePad Pro and the 10.8-inch MatePad Pro will start shipping on June 10 and will start at 4,999 yuan ($780) and 3,799 yuan ($530), respectively, while the M-Pencil will set you back 599 yuan ($93). Pricing and availability for the MatePad 11 has yet to be announced.

The new Huawei Watch 3 and Watch 3 Pro are also the company's first smartwatches to run Harmony OS. On the hardware side, these borrow aesthetics from several competitors, but it's harder to find an exact watch that these would be a clone of.

You have a new rotating crown instead of the top button on the side of the stainless steel case, and you're greeted by a 1.43-inch AMOLED screen with a pixel density of 326 ppi and 1,000 nits max brightness. It's also surprisingly thin at just 12.15 mm thick, and weighs 54 grams. The Pro variant is 14 mm thick and weighs 63 grams.

The company is touting support for over 100 workout modes and support for blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) tracking, and at least in theory you should be able to stretch the battery life to 21 days if you turn off the 4G LTE connection and put the watch into a low-power mode. Realistically, you can expect around two days of battery life with normal use, but after that you'll need to pop it onto a Qi wireless charger.

The software side suffers from the same shortcomings as the other devices in the Huawei ecosystem -- you're limited to the Huawei App Gallery, which may not do the trick if you're outside of China. The company says it's working to bring more apps to Harmony OS, but that's not a guarantee and will probably be a deal breaker for many. For what it's worth, you can participate in video calls made via Huawei's MeeTime app.

The Huawei Watch 3 and Watch 3 Pro will start shipping on June 11 in China and will cost 2,600 yuan ($407) and 3,300 yuan ($517), respectively. The Watch 3 will also arrive in the UK on June 18 at a launch price of £349.99, followed by the Watch 3 Pro which will cost £499.99.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/89913-huawei-confident-can-break-free-android-copying-apple.html

 

[Watzupken]

I feel that the success of the OS, particularly the mobile segment, hinges heavily on how good the App Store is. Even if the OS looks and feels great, the omission of sought after apps will do it no good. So to be honest, this is really no different from them using the stock Android OS without Google services on it. In China, it is less of a problem, but this new OS did not solve any problem to begin with.

 

[Godel]

I wonder which browser it comes with?

'Exclusive: Alibaba’s Huge Browser Business Is Harvesting The ‘Private’ Web Activity Of Millions Of Android And iPhone Users'

https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomas...one-users-private-web-habits/?sh=4181f8eb61f2

 

[Mr Majestyk]

Who gives a toss about Huawei any more. There is a solid reason they are in the situation they in now. This was not Trump, for over a decade security agencies all over the world have been raising concerns about Huawei's ties with the Chinese government and back doors in devices.

I would never have bought a Huawei phone in the first place. The last place on earth I'll be sending my money is to help the Chinese economy any more than the stupid west already has.

 

[Watzupken]

Who gives a toss about Huawei any more. There is a solid reason they are in the situation they in now. This was not Trump, for over a decade security agencies all over the world have been raising concerns about Huawei's ties with the Chinese government and back doors in devices.

I would never have bought a Huawei phone in the first place. The last place on earth I'll be sending my money is to help the Chinese economy any more than the stupid west already has.

The problem is, no matter what you do, you cannot avoid not sending your money to China. It doesn't need to be Huawei, when a lot of products are manufactured, or parts sourced from China.

 

[zulu53]

Who gives a toss about Huawei any more. There is a solid reason they are in the situation they in now. This was not Trump, for over a decade security agencies all over the world have been raising concerns about Huawei's ties with the Chinese government and back doors in devices.

I would never have bought a Huawei phone in the first place. The last place on earth I'll be sending my money is to help the Chinese economy any more than the stupid west already has.

On top of that they have been the #1 IT spy company for China, They have never come up with any IP of their own. Everything from hardware to software is a straight and often poorly disguised copy of US IP. Now that Google has cut support the software will always be at least one generation behind the West and who knows where they will get chips from (steal from Taiwan foundaries and smuggle to the mainland?).

 

[duckofdeath]

They'd have to get the industry onboard. Which won't happen.
Some sort of alliance will eventually "break Android free" from Google. I doubt it'll be led by a shady Chinese corporation.

 

[Wasteak]

I swear one day I'll read an article on this website that doesn't bring apple as the inventor of all things

 

[bviktor]

The problem is, no matter what you do, you cannot avoid not sending your money to China. It doesn't need to be Huawei, when a lot of products are manufactured, or parts sourced from China.

You can limit the scope though. The fewer Chinese stakeholders involved, the better.

 

[bviktor]

I swear one day I'll read an article on this website that doesn't bring apple as the inventor of all things

Where does this article say anything close to that?

 

[MaitieS]

Who is even going to use this ****? It is straight up downgrade of what we have now & it is even spying on you. Sure Google is spying too but at least they are still "democratic" country instead of China. Also we are too depended on Google product in the first place and not having Google Store there will be the biggest factor why it won't be that good.

 

[Watzupken]

Who is even going to use this ****? It is straight up downgrade of what we have now & it is even spying on you. Sure Google is spying too but at least they are still "democratic" country instead of China. Also we are too depended on Google product in the first place and not having Google Store there will be the biggest factor why it won't be that good.

The OS will do well only in domestic market since a lot if not all Google services are blocked if not dumbed down. Outside of China, there is little reason to go with this OS no matter how they try and copy Apple. They need more substance than just giving you nice interface for the OS to sell well. Like I said earlier, introducing HarmonyOS does not solve their problem when they were using Android without Google services. They are too proud to admit this, or just have to put on a brave front and hope that things will improve with a "new" OS.

 

[DrSuess]

I swear one day I'll read an article on this website that doesn't bring apple as the inventor of all things

I case you didn't know it, Apple is the inventor of all things was the first "Big Lie". Its been said so many times that many believe it to be true.

 

[DrSuess]

The OS will do well only in domestic market since a lot if not all Google services are blocked if not dumbed down.

They may do well also in 3rd world countries in South East Asia, and South America if they make a decent OS/headset and sell them at rock bottom prices.

 

[pmshah]

Even Apple did not create their own OS. They simply copied BSD and made changes to it over the time to suit their purpose. There are no licence fees to pay nor are there any requirements to reveal or share or place any new code in public domain. Huawei can do the same. Almost all Android apps will run out of the box or with only minor adaptations.

 

[TitanX]

The OS will do well only in domestic market since a lot if not all Google services are blocked if not dumbed down. Outside of China, there is little reason to go with this OS no matter how they try and copy Apple. They need more substance than just giving you nice interface for the OS to sell well. Like I said earlier, introducing HarmonyOS does not solve their problem when they were using Android without Google services. They are too proud to admit this, or just have to put on a brave front and hope that things will improve with a "new" OS.

People in the west are fed with the idea that "Made in China" is evil. Your ignorance has blinded you. Just look at the reality, 99% of Made in China goods are American or Western brands. Although the actual goods is assembled in China, but research, design and development is NOT done in China. Except brands like Huawei or Xiaomi of course. The Chinese factories simple receive work orders and put the stuff together according to the engineering specifications. Those Chinese workers make less than 6% on the sales of "made in China" goods. Large portion of the revenue goes to local marketing and the brands that owned by the west. I can guarantee that none of you would want to, or would send your kids to take those jobs on an assembly line. You can hate China all you like. But painting evil on "Made in China" is just stupid.

The biggest problem in the US right now is that the wealth that large corporations make doesn't get distributed fairly, or the taxation system is heavily influenced by large corporations, wealth gap is extreme. Blaming the problem of how to cut a pie fairly at your own house on Made in China is just a scapegoat the powerful use to continue being powerful.

 

[Reehahs]

It would be pretty funny if Huawei end up doing Apple better than Appel themselves. It would be like when Charlie Chaplin lost in Charlie Chaplin Look-A-Like contest.

 

[pmshah]

People in the west are fed with the idea that "Made in China" is evil. Your ignorance has blinded you. Just look at the reality, 99% of Made in China goods are American or Western brands. Although the actual goods is assembled in China, but research, design and development is NOT done in China. Except brands like Huawei or Xiaomi of course. The Chinese factories simple receive work orders and put the stuff together according to the engineering specifications. Those Chinese workers make less than 6% on the sales of "made in China" goods. Large portion of the revenue goes to local marketing and the brands that owned by the west. I can guarantee that none of you would want to, or would send your kids to take those jobs on an assembly line. You can hate China all you like. But painting evil on "Made in China" is just stupid.

The biggest problem in the US right now is that the wealth that large corporations make doesn't get distributed fairly, or the taxation system is heavily influenced by large corporations, wealth gap is extreme. Blaming the problem of how to cut a pie fairly at your own house on Made in China is just a scapegoat the powerful use to continue being powerful.

You really don't have a clue about the economics now do you ?

Will give you a simple example. Lets say I own a factory in China and mbuild stuff for American companies. When I sell the goods I get paid in US$ because that is the preferred currency in 70+ % of international trade. Lets say I get that amount in my bank account. Now What do I do or can do with it? In reality it is with the Bank in its name. The bank has to convert it to local currency so that I can in turn for local labour, inputs, taxes utilities or what ever. Where does the bank get this from? It does not have it in it vaults nor can it simply print this currency which can lead to massive inflaation and devaluation of local currency. They have to sell it to some entity that is sitting on sufficient amount to cover me requirement. So what kind of profits are they making that they are left with billions of surplus dollars to buy US bonds? Or I and others like me are being short changed and the govt is skimming off the top in huge amounts. I can't do $hit with US$ denominated IOU, not from my bank nor from the govt. Only way this can be managed is by MASSIVE creative accounting and that too by the govt.

I remember in the mid 60s, after the Chinese debacle overseen by Nehru, we had massive influx of foreign remittances to individuals from their relatives settled abroad. This was to help the country with hard currency to beef up defence equipment and pay for it in hard currency. The government / RBI did not have spare Indian currency to give out and nor could they simply print more notes because of the inflation problem. So they had to literally SELL to traders and individuals, of course at a premium. The idea was that the pretty high import duty on imports + US$500 allowed to individuals under special FTS scheme to travel abroad would yield enough surplus to help the govt meet its obligations without printing currency.

So how do you think China managed to gobble up a number of very lucrative companies when the stock markets crashed across the western world immediately following the massive lockdown under pandemic. How do you think they managed to trap a number of smaller countries in their debt traps and got ports and bases from them?

You better believe it. China is EVIL.

 

[Satman1w]

for over a decade security agencies all over the world have been raising concerns about Huawei's ties with the Chinese government and back doors in devices.

Fortunately, Microsoft, Google, Cisco and others do not have government ties at all !!!
How naive you are...
This is how Americans see the free market... it is free while our industry is strongest...

 

[TitanX]

You really don't have a clue about the economics now do you ?

Will give you a simple example. Lets say I own a factory in China and mbuild stuff for American companies. When I sell the goods I get paid in US$ because that is the preferred currency in 70+ % of international trade. Lets say I get that amount in my bank account. Now What do I do or can do with it? In reality it is with the Bank in its name. The bank has to convert it to local currency so that I can in turn for local labour, inputs, taxes utilities or what ever. Where does the bank get this from? It does not have it in it vaults nor can it simply print this currency which can lead to massive inflaation and devaluation of local currency. They have to sell it to some entity that is sitting on sufficient amount to cover me requirement. So what kind of profits are they making that they are left with billions of surplus dollars to buy US bonds? Or I and others like me are being short changed and the govt is skimming off the top in huge amounts. I can't do $hit with US$ denominated IOU, not from my bank nor from the govt. Only way this can be managed is by MASSIVE creative accounting and that too by the govt.

I remember in the mid 60s, after the Chinese debacle overseen by Nehru, we had massive influx of foreign remittances to individuals from their relatives settled abroad. This was to help the country with hard currency to beef up defence equipment and pay for it in hard currency. The government / RBI did not have spare Indian currency to give out and nor could they simply print more notes because of the inflation problem. So they had to literally SELL to traders and individuals, of course at a premium. The idea was that the pretty high import duty on imports + US$500 allowed to individuals under special FTS scheme to travel abroad would yield enough surplus to help the govt meet its obligations without printing currency.

So how do you think China managed to gobble up a number of very lucrative companies when the stock markets crashed across the western world immediately following the massive lockdown under pandemic. How do you think they managed to trap a number of smaller countries in their debt traps and got ports and bases from them?

You better believe it. China is EVIL.

Thanks for the global economy lesson. Although I am still not sure about the mentioned entity which China sells its US dollars to in order to convert the USD to RMB, then pay the factory owner. But that doesn’t take away the fact that it is still the cheap labour earnings. The majority portion of money on the sales still go to the western big corporations, such as Apple. Not mentioning that the middle class Chinese like to buy American products too (made in China of course lol). What I am trying to say is in the US-China trade the US corporations are the biggest beneficiaries. The problem is at home. The poor people who don’t work at Apple would never receive the wealth from the global trade.
I am not saying China is a good guy. Purchasing massive US bonds seems a strategic move.

 

[pmshah]

"The majority portion of money on the sales still go to the western big corporations, such as Apple" This is where you are making a mistake. The figure you are referring to is the "final sale figure", what the end user pays. That is the difference between what Apple pays Foxconn and what they get from sales. The question is, even if the Chinese manufacturers are earning huge profits between their cost and their throwaway selling price to US corporations how does it end up in the coffers of Chinese government such that they can buy trillions worth of US paper? Only way this can happen is if CCP owns a VERY large portion of these profit making companies. In any case there is also a whole lot of creative accounting involved. Just read up on billions and billions of dollars worth of infrastructure projects being executed in smaller countries on loan basis which leads to debt traps and having to hand over possession of strategically located ports and huge tracts of land to China to build their own naval and military bases. Colombo in Sri Lanka is just one example. Look on the African east coast for more such locations. Look at all the fishing encroachments they do in other countries' waters. How long before the Chinese naval vessels accompany these shipping trawlers for protection if anybody tries stern action?

Look at the ownership kind of control they seek in South China Sea and Malacca Straits. Think about the plan and reason behind wanting to build a Panama / Suez style canal across narrow southern part of Thailand. It is nothing but pure evil design for creating the next hegemony covering the whole globe.

There are only a few persons you can blame for all that suffering. Bill Clinton for granting MFN (most favoured nation) status to China as quid pro quo against huge & hidden donations to his re-election campaign AND the unlimited avarice of US corporation to transfer technology just to improve on their bottom lines with low labour cost manufacturing.

 

[TitanX]

"The majority portion of money on the sales still go to the western big corporations, such as Apple" This is where you are making a mistake. The figure you are referring to is the "final sale figure", what the end user pays. That is the difference between what Apple pays Foxconn and what they get from sales. The question is, even if the Chinese manufacturers are earning huge profits between their cost and their throwaway selling price to US corporations how does it end up in the coffers of Chinese government such that they can buy trillions worth of US paper? Only way this can happen is if CCP owns a VERY large portion of these profit making companies. In any case there is also a whole lot of creative accounting involved. Just read up on billions and billions of dollars worth of infrastructure projects being executed in smaller countries on loan basis which leads to debt traps and having to hand over possession of strategically located ports and huge tracts of land to China to build their own naval and military bases. Colombo in Sri Lanka is just one example. Look on the African east coast for more such locations. Look at all the fishing encroachments they do in other countries' waters. How long before the Chinese naval vessels accompany these shipping trawlers for protection if anybody tries stern action?

Look at the ownership kind of control they seek in South China Sea and Malacca Straits. Think about the plan and reason behind wanting to build a Panama / Suez style canal across narrow southern part of Thailand. It is nothing but pure evil design for creating the next hegemony covering the whole globe.

There are only a few persons you can blame for all that suffering. Bill Clinton for granting MFN (most favoured nation) status to China as quid pro quo against huge & hidden donations to his re-election campaign AND the unlimited avarice of US corporation to transfer technology just to improve on their bottom lines with low labour cost manufacturing.

What China does with their money has nothing to do with our discussion. It is evil or not that is another topic. Of course they want to take control over their trading routes, overtake the US navy in the south China sea - their door step, and lure the south african countries into debt to secure natural resources or strategic ports in Sri Lanka....
But let's go back to Made in China. ok? If you think China, the country that makes more money on an iPhone than Apple, you are hugely mistaking. Apple's profit margin on an iPhone is more than 60%. About 16% is paid to manufacturing - to Foxcon. Foxcon then pays a Chinese worker less than $1000 per month. The Chinese government makes money on corporate tax from Foxcon and Apple. And Foxcon is not even a Chinese company, its owned by a Taiwanese businessman. I pick Apple because Apple is a perfect example of US corporations benefit hugely from US-China trade. There are thousands more companies like Apple. On the other hand, China benefits by being a bottom tier manufacturing hub. You simply don't believe that a bottom tier manufacturing hub country could get so rich, and does what China is doing. hahaha. It is because the trade deficit. We people in North America like to buy too much. The Chinese government doesn't throw their hard earned money on wars. They spend wisely. Apple, the richest company on earth, has enough cash to buy a small to medium size country, has their cash sitting in a off-shore account, pays minimum tax in US, other than treating their employees very well, does almost nothing in improving US living standard or lifting people out of poverty. And this is a domestic problem created by greedy capitalists. Blaming China for this is just not right. Again, I am not saying China is a saint. only on this particular matter.

 

[Cabuzzi]

What China does with their money has nothing to do with our discussion. It is evil or not that is another topic. Of course they want to take control over their trading routes, overtake the US navy in the south China sea - their door step, and lure the south african countries into debt to secure natural resources or strategic ports in Sri Lanka....
But let's go back to Made in China. ok? If you think China, the country that makes more money on an iPhone than Apple, you are hugely mistaking. Apple's profit margin on an iPhone is more than 60%. About 16% is paid to manufacturing - to Foxcon. Foxcon then pays a Chinese worker less than $1000 per month. The Chinese government makes money on corporate tax from Foxcon and Apple. And Foxcon is not even a Chinese company, its owned by a Taiwanese businessman. I pick Apple because Apple is a perfect example of US corporations benefit hugely from US-China trade. There are thousands more companies like Apple. On the other hand, China benefits by being a bottom tier manufacturing hub. You simply don't believe that a bottom tier manufacturing hub country could get so rich, and does what China is doing. hahaha. It is because the trade deficit. We people in North America like to buy too much. The Chinese government doesn't throw their hard earned money on wars. They spend wisely. Apple, the richest company on earth, has enough cash to buy a small to medium size country, has their cash sitting in a off-shore account, pays minimum tax in US, other than treating their employees very well, does almost nothing in improving US living standard or lifting people out of poverty. And this is a domestic problem created by greedy capitalists. Blaming China for this is just not right. Again, I am not saying China is a saint. only on this particular matter.

Greedy corporations? You obviously don't understand capitalism. My 401k is compromised of a wide assortment of corporate stock. If you want to be wealthy in America, invest in industry and profit. Stop waiting on your government to force wealth redistribution and discourage hard work/entrepreneurship through socialist/communist means. Why do you think China is stealing technology instead of creating it? It's because no one wants to innovate when their own government punishes their success.

 

[TitanX]

Greedy corporations? You obviously don't understand capitalism. My 401k is compromised of a wide assortment of corporate stock. If you want to be wealthy in America, invest in industry and profit. Stop waiting on your government to force wealth redistribution and discourage hard work/entrepreneurship through socialist/communist means. Why do you think China is stealing technology instead of creating it? It's because no one wants to innovate when their own government punishes their success.

What are you talking about? Taking two words out of context. I wasn't talking about how capitalism works. But I can see you have certainly realized that hard work doesn't bring your wealth, not any more in this country, purchase right stocks, mutual funds does lol. As a small part of the reason, the big/greedy corporations have created "made in china". It has worked so well for them. On a higher level, these corporations were allowed to enter the Chinese market in exchange of technologies transfers. If you believe that these corporations were naive and didn't understand the deals, you are fooled. They just didn't think China could catch up so quickly.