Based on a new report, Huawei could ditch Android, and switch to its own OS. Just to be clear, Huawei has not confirmed anything just yet, this is based on a report by Nikkei Asia. Also, the report was careful not to mention anything about the global scale of this.
Before we get to that, however, let’s just say that Huawei talked about pushing HarmonyOS to global smartphones recently. The company’s global devices still ship with EMUI, which is based on Android. They do come without Google services, though.
Huawei seemingly plans to ditch Android in favor of its own OS
Having said that, based on this report, Huawei plans to include HarmonyOS Next exclusively, instead of Android OS. This new platform will reportedly include support for 4,000 apps at first, though that will grow to 5,000 within a year.
HarmonyOS Next is Huawei’s new platform that the company plans to include on its smart products, ranging from smartphones to smartwatches, and various other gadgets. It is expected to come pre-installed on the Huawei Mate 70 series later this year.
It is reported that HarmonyOS Next utilizes memory three times more efficiently and that it supports on-device AI. The biggest problem for Huawei is apps, of course. That was the problem for AppGallery too, Huawei’s Android app store.
The company has huge plans for HarmonyOS Next and its ecosystem of apps
Huawei actually has huge plans for HarmonyOS Next. It expects to expand from 4,000-5,000 apps all the way to 500,000 apps in a rather short time span. The exact timing was not mentioned, though.
For full transparency, HarmonyOS is based on Android. The same will not be the case with HarmonyOS Next, it would seem. Huawei really wants to utilize its very own OS.
We wonder what this means for the company’s global smartphones, though. It will be very different switching its global phones to HarmonyOS Next, compared to the ones sold in China. We hope that Huawei will provide some clarification in the near future. Why? Well, back in November, the company said that global phones won’t lose Android support. Then just last month, the company shared its wish to push HarmonyOS to global phones. It’s, of course, possible that the company will just rebrand EMUI to HarmonyOS.