HarmonyOS 2.0 is coming in 2021: Huawei smartphones soon without Android?

Manufacturer Huawei has announced that it will equip smartphones with its own operating system HarmonyOS 2.0 from next year. Users of a current Android device from the Chinese are now worried that they will soon no longer receive updates or that they will be forced to switch to the new software. Right?

Since the US government blacklisted Huawei in May 2019, the Chinese have no longer been able to equip new smartphones with Google services. However, this does not apply to devices that received a corresponding license before the ban. The Play Store, Gmail, Maps and other Google services work on them to this day without any problems. Smartphones will also continue to receive security updates or updates to the operating system. But now Huawei users are worried that the company wants to ban Google's Android from its smartphones in the coming year. But that's not true.

In fact, Huawei wants to switch from Android to its own operating system HarmonyOS from 2021, which is already being used on televisions and other devices from the "Internet of Things". But this does not affect the P30 Pro, the Mate 20 Pro or any other smartphone from the Chinese that was launched with a Google license. A company spokesman has confirmed to ntv.de that the update promise has not changed even after the announcement of HarmonyOS 2.0 for smartphones.

Android 10 could be the end of it

As with other Android devices, however, whether devices still receive software updates depends on their age. Huawei basically guarantees two major updates of the operating system and three years of security updates for its smartphones. Among other things, the P20 (Pro) recently received the update to Android 10, and more than a dozen other Huawei phones are still getting the update or have already received it. The same applies to the sister company Honor. At least the update for the 20 series has been set, and it looks good for the previous generation too.

Top devices like the P30 Pro or the Mate 20 Pro should also receive Android 11 – after all, this would be the promised second major operating system update. As for that, the company spokesman ntv.de could only confirm that work is being done on it. The main problem here is that in August the US government did not extend the exemption that at least allowed Google to support Huawei with the updates of licensed smartphones.

On twitter Huawei announced to a userthat this has no effect on existing devices, they continue to receive security and software updates. However, Huawei does not necessarily understand software updates to mean Android updates, but basically updates to its Android-based EMUI user interface. So it could be that the devices receive an update to EMUI 11, which is still Android 10 at its core. The German company spokesman also made a corresponding suggestion at the request of ntv.de.

HarmonyOS 2.0 for future smartphones

The HarmonyOS 2.0 for smartphones, which is now being presented at Huawei's developer conference, is certain to come. After all, the Chinese company cannot hope that if Trump is defeated in November, US President Biden will end the embargo. He would confirm the label of the China friend that the Trump camp tried to attach to him in the election campaign.

But for the time being there will only be a developer version of HarmonyOS 2.0 in December, the first simple smartphones with the operating system will not be available until April 2021, top devices probably not before 2022. Until then, Huawei will continue to work with the license-free version of Android without Google services. The ambitious plans for a uniform ecosystem across all device classes are not possible with this, however.

Chip problem even bigger

However, software may not be Huawei's biggest problem. This May, the US government imposed another embargo that denied the company access to chips based on US software or technology. Virtually all mobile processors are based on the ARM chip design. While this is a British company owned by the Japanese Softbank group, it uses US technology and has research and development facilities in the United States. Huawei's Kirin chips made by contract manufacturers are also based on the ARM design.

Although the Chinese company has set up stocks, it will soon no longer be competitive and other manufacturers can use more modern processors. The Mate 40 expected in autumn could be the last top smartphone from Huawei with a Kirin chip. According to Reuters, the Taiwanese manufacturer Mediatek has applied for a license in the USA to be allowed to manufacture processors for Huawei. However, there is little reason why the Trump administration should allow this to happen.

The Chinese probably don't have the software to design their own chips. According to "NZZ" it usually comes from three companies that are either based in the USA or have their roots there. Huawei should place its hopes on the Chinese company Unisoc, which can possibly implement a chip design without US technology. According to various rumors, Huawei could at best have processors manufactured with a completely outdated design.