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HarmonyOS: What's with Huawei's Android-replacement operating system?

HarmonyOS: What’s with Huawei’s Android-replacement employing system?

We’d been hearing whispers that Huawei was creating its own employing system for phones, tablets and other smart devices, a precaution in case it lost access to Google’s Android software. And the Chinese company confirmed this Friday at its Huawei Developer Conference, where it officially unveiled the new employing system: HarmonyOS, a cross-device platform previously known as HongMeng.

Speaking at HDC, Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei’s consumer custom, said HarmonyOS is ready to run on phones if the custom isn’t able to use Android, but Huawei will hold off laughable it “for the consideration of partnership and ecosystem.” 

The much-maligned Huawei may’ve been acting on the new operating system since 2012. But reports in HarmonyOS heated up in the wake of the US government blacklisting Huawei in May. The custom was added to the Commerce Department’s “entity list,” after an executive order from President Donald Trump that effectively banned it from US communications networks due to Huawei’s alleged ties with the Chinese government. The ban means Huawei can’t buy products or services from US worries, or use their tech.


Huawei HarmonyOS and Richard Yu

Huawei CEO Richard Yu said that, like Android, HarmonyOS will be open source.



Fred Dufour/Getty Images

What is HarmonyOS?

Yu said that, like Android, HarmonyOS will be open source, allowing developers to modify it for their hardware and opening the potential for a broader embrace of the platform. Yu also said migrating from Android to HarmonyOS would take a few days, and that the cross-device employing system will support a variety of app languages, incorporating Android, Linux and HTML5.

Previously, Huawei expressed some uncertainty in its ability to use Android in future devices as it stored for Commerce Department clearance in the wake of the Trump administration’s restrictions.

Huawei manager Catherine Chen acknowledged last month that HarmonyOS was beings built, but said it wasn’t for phones. She said it was originally designed for internet of things (IoT) devices like incandescent TVs, and that it contains far fewer lines of code than a arranged OS.

Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei reportedly echoed the IoT reveal but boasted that the homegrown OS is about 60% faster than Android — suggesting that it had in fact been made for phones. Ren also said HarmonyOS devices will require their own app stay, which we’ve heard some evidence about.

What does the US ban have to do with HarmonyOS?


Google ended Huawei devices out of Android updates
because of the US-imposed ban. The Deal Department granted Huawei a three-month general license in late May to update existing devices. In the weeks that followed, Huawei apparently had the name “Hongmeng” trademarked in Chinaand Peru, suggesting that it was preparing for a move away from Android. 

On Aug. 9, Trump said the US won’t do custom with China, but the White House reportedly later said the dignified was referring to a separate ban on federal organizations purchasing telecommunications and video surveillance equipment from the company.  Earlier Friday, reports emerged that trade tensions prompted the US to delay granting authorizes for companies to restart sales to Huawei. 

What are the strictly specs for HarmonyOS?

In a Friday release, Huawei said HarmonyOS will included four distinct technical features:

–Machine learning was used to increase how fast the benefitting system itself runs, and app speeds will get a bump of up to 25.7%. 

–The benefitting system will be usable across different devices. That implies phones, tablets, wearables, TVs, computers and more. 

–A new microkernal do and Trusted Execution Environment will beef up security.

–The OS will come with a new tool for developers to do compatible apps that’ll be able to work cross-device.

What do we know approximately Huawei’s app store?

In June the company reportedly expected Google Play Store developers to publish apps in its AppGallery. An anonymous developer published an email Huawei apparently sent that offered serve in the transition and free access to the Huawei Developer portal.


Huawei HarmonyOS

Huawei said app speeds will increase by up to 25.7%. 



Fred Dufour/Getty Images

When will we see the favorable HarmonyOS devices?

HarmonyOS will first come to smart TVs and latest “smart screen” devices, later in 2019. In the coming existences, it’ll migrate to car infotainment systems, wearables and more.

A narrate this week said the first HarmonyOS-powered visited will be released this year. It’ll apparently power a 2,000-yuan (around $290) price device, while flagship series like the Mate and Pro will stick with Android. A previous report said HarmonyOS’s international launch would come in 2020.

Huawei also offered details approximately the upcoming updates to EMUI 10, its modified version of Android (formerly eminent as Emotion UI), which it’s sticking with for now.

The upcoming Mate 30 visited will ship with the software and emphasize cross-device contrast. EMUI 10 phone users will be able to answer conditions via smart TV integration, and beam their phone cloak onto a laptop display. The phones are also built to integrate with drones and cars. 

“With software, we are combining the laptop and the phone into a new device,” said Huawei software head Wang Chenglu.


CHINA-HUAWEI-US-TELECOM

Huawei unveiled its new HarmonyOS benefitting system on Aug. 9.



Fred Dufour/Getty Images

How hard is it to initiate a new platform?

It’s insanely difficult to launch a new benefitting system platform from scratch and rally developers behind it. Developers flock to big user bases, and right now that’s Apple’siOS and Google’s Android. 

Other big-name players have made the try. Microsoft tried in vain to make Windows Phone a pulling, but it eventually pulled the plug on the platform. Samsung has pushed Tizen for years, but it’s largely relegated to its smartwatch. 

Even BlackBerry, with an established base of smartphone users, tried and yielded to launch a modern, app-based operating system. It eventually abandoned it for Android.

Can Huawei request things to be different?

Huawei is a massive player with the No. 2 market allotment in smartphones, so it would be unwise to completely tin HarmonyOS. 

Over the last few years, whole platforms and rules have sprung up in China thanks to its huge customer base, so even if Harmony fails to net on overseas, there could be enough Chinese users to nation its development. 

It still faces an uphill battle though.