Huawei has confirmed that it will launch its new smartphone operating system (OS) HarmonyOS in June.
The Chinese tech company told Global Times that the OS has been in use for the last two years on a number of Huawei watches, laptops and home appliances but it will now formally support smartphones.
Huawei expects the number of devices equipped with HarmonyOS to reach 300 million by the end of 2021, including more than 200 million Huawei devices.
According to TechRadar, HarmonyOS is related to, but not exactly the same as, the Huawei Mobile Services (HMS), replacements to Google’s apps that the company is working on in an effort to work pass the Huawei ban.
“These are apps that would go on its smartphones and there’s certainly a ticking clock element in Huawei resuscitating its phone division before people associate it too much with the ban from Google apps.”
“HarmonyOS (previously codenamed HongMeng) is a platform designed for a variety of devices. It started off on IoT devices such as smart displays or smart home equipment, then moved on to TVs, and is now coming to phones, tablets, and smartwatches too.”
Getting to Grips with Huawei Mobile Services (HMS)
The Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) ecosystem has long been touted as an Android alternative for consumers. It was first launched in 2019 as a collection of applications and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) pre-installed on Huawei devices.
HMS was developed in response to a ban on trade between Huawei and American company’s, like Android’s Google.
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