Huawei once ranked among the world's leading smartphone makers and gave us some solid smartphones. Then came the US sanctions, almost crushing Huawei's global smartphone business. The company, however, didn't give up and has continued to push out some good smartphones.
Among the main problems it faced was that it could no longer use Google Mobile Services. As a workaround, it developed its in-house operating system called HarmonyOS. The company is currently preparing to launch the upcoming version of the OS called HarmonyOS Next. Thanks to a new report, we now know when the upcoming OS could launch.
Huawei Could Launch HarmonyOS Next In September This Year
Huawei’s HarmonyOS has been out for some time and is presently running on all its smartphones in China. The company is now working on the upcoming version of the operating system, HarmonyOS Next, which will completely bid adieu to Android. We've heard about the OS already and it was said to launch sometime later this year.
A new report (via Android Headlines) now tells us that Huawei could release HarmonyOS Next in September. In the same month, the company is also expected to unveil the Mate 70 lineup of smartphones, so it is possible the OS will launch alongside these smartphones.
Previously, we learned that Huawei also wants to bring HarmonyOS to global markets and is aiming for the third spot in the list of most popular smartphone operating systems. Android and iOS dominate so much of the market that Tizen OS, sitting third on the list, enjoys only a 0.37% market presence. Huawei's goal to top that 0.37% share sounds achievable.
All Your Useful Apps Could Soon Come To HarmonyOS Next
Since HarmonyOS Next will ditch Android, it will take a larger effort from Huawei to convince users to purchase their smartphones – especially in global markets. But before that, it needs to convince developers to make apps for HarmonyOS Next.
Interestingly, Huawei says over 4,000 apps have already been developed for the OS, and around a thousand more will be added by the end of this year. It is identifying the important apps most people use and prioritizing them first. Additionally, Huawei believes it could reach the 500,000 apps milestone in a relatively short time.
Could We Finally See a Real Competitor to Google's Android and Apple’s iOS?
Android and iOS have been dominating the smartphone market for over a decade, and we've seen no other player come even close. Huawei could surely take up the third spot, but inching closer to the major two smartphone OSes would be really tough.
In China, HarmonyOS is soon said to take the second spot from Apple, but the story there is different. Users there never relied on Google's services, like Maps, Play Store, YouTube, etc., and hence, transitioning to HarmonyOS or HarmonyOS Next won't be much of a hassle for them.
But for global users like us, who've become so accustomed to these services, living without them would definitely be a big problem. It will be interesting to see how Huawei tackles this situation.
