Huawei has no Plans of Launching a Harmony OS-powered Smartphone this Year

Since the launch of Huawei’s Android alternative, HarmonyOS, there have been rumours making rounds that their in-house OS will power Huawei Mate 30 Lite. Huawei has come out clarifying on the matter.

The Chinese tech giant states they have no plans of rolling out a HarmonyOS powered smartphone this year. Which means, the Mate 30 flagship series will run on Android. Remember Huawei’s temporary trade license in the US has been extended for another 90 days, this may be the primary reason behind the change of plans.

Huawei’s Senior Vice President, Vincent Yang stated the company intends to “maintain one standard and one ecosystem.” Besides, he says HarmonyOS would only serve as an alternative in case the company cannot use Android OS anymore.

Huawei P30 Pro will run on Android out-of-the-box but still the company states they will be ready to switch in case the on-going sanctions in the US turn to the worst – a permanent ban. And that would only happen in the last mean when it is certain the company would be shut out of Android, according to Yang.

Huawei’s HarmonyOS or HongMeng OS in other markets was launched earlier this month at the company’s Annual Developer Conference. A few days later, Huawei’s sub-brand Honor launched two new smart TVs powered by the OS.

Some analysts say the company may be sceptical of deploying their OS in smartphones because it is still new and there is virtually no support. Besides, a HarmonyOS powered smartphone will be a deal-breaker for many in other markets that have heavily relied on Google’s services.

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