Huawei has now officially launched HarmonyOS Next, the new mobile operating system that joins the ranks of Android OS, iOS, and still little known KaiOS. And from the statistics on ground, it looks like the world finally has a viable alternative to iOS and Android OS.
We all woke up one morning, five years ago, to the news that the United States had banned Chinese firm Huawei from having access to US technology and services. It meant, among other things, that Huawei could not use newer versions of Android OS and was stuck with releasing modifications of older versions. It also meant that Huawei devices could not use Google Mobile Services and apps like YouTube, Gmail, Maps, etc.
The company took a hit as its smartphones suddenly lost appeal to hundreds of millions of people who used these services and apps. One of the moves it had to make was sell off its subsidiary brand Honor in 2020. But this Chinese company did not fold; it dug in and began the grueling work of developing an alternative. Eventually, all it took for Huawei to develop a viable, thriving alternative to Google’s mobile operating system was 5 years.
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Quick facts about HarmonyOS Next
- HarmonyOS Next is a new mobile operating system that is not built on Android Open Source which Huawei had relied on since the US sanctions.
- HarmonyOS Next is built on the Open harmony open-source core, meaning that other phone brands can license OpenHarmony for use, similar to what obtains with Android Open-Source Project.
- HarmonyOS Next will power the next generation of Huawei’s smartphones, tablets, wearable devices, smart home devices, and automobiles.
- Huawei developed its own Mobile Services for it.
- The HarmonyOS Next’s app store now has 15,000 apps and services.
- Over 1 million devices around the world currently run previous versions of HarmonyOS.
- Some existing HarmonyOS smartphones will be updated to HarmonyOS Next. Some of them include Huawei Pocket 2, Huawei MatePad Pro 11 (2024), Huawei Pura 70, Huawei Pura 70 Pro, Huawei Pura 70 Pro+, and Huawei Pura 70 Ultra.
The Story in a nutshell
After the US sanctions were imposed on Huawei, at first the company released new devices running older versions of Android OS which it already had licenses for. Of course, they could only do this for so long. So, Huawei also started work on a fork of Android built on Android Open-Source Project (AOSP). Being open source, anyone can use AOSP without a license, so the US sanctions could not touch this move.
The name of that fork of Android became HarmonyOS and it has thrived heavily mostly in China where Google services are not a thing anyway. But Huawei was not done: its ultimate goal was to wean itself completely off dependence on the US and Google, and so it began to develop its own mobile operating system that would replicate HarmonyOS without the dependence on Android Open-Source Project.
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HarmonyOS Next is the product of that effort. It is the dawn of a new day. For years now, the smartphone mobile space has been a duopoly of American software – iOS and Android OS. European mobile development had died much earlier with the demise of Symbian OS. Other potential competitors like PalmOS, all the various iterations of Windows Phone/Mobile, and BlackBerry had all fallen by the way as well. And they were all American still.
HarmonyOS Next is the first major attempt by a non-American company to create a mobile operating system. Of course, BlackBerry OS and BB10 were not strictly American, but Canada and America are like 5 and 5.5; barely any difference. Where others have failed, HarmonyOS has succeeded so far, and that is because China has always been not dependent on Google’s almighty ecosystem.
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If you are not hooked on Google’s services too, you will find HarmonyOS Next attractive, and you should give it a try.
HarmonyOS NEXT Roadmap
The new mobile operating system will be rolled out to some existing Huawei smartphones and devices over several months, as follows:
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October 8, 2024
Before this official launch, a first batch of devices have been updated with a public beta version. These devices include:
- Huawei Mate 60 series
- Huawei Mate X5 series
- Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2-inch series
October 22, 2024
Starting today, Huawei is rolling out the public HarmonyOS NEXT beta for the following devices:
- Huawei Pura 70 series
- Huawei Pocket 2
- Huawei MatePad Pro 11-inch 2024 Edition
2025
In 2025, the following devices will receive the HarmonyOS update:
- Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design
- Huawei Nova Flip
- Huawei Nova 13 series
- Huawei Nova 12 series
- Huawei MatePad pro 12.2
- Huawei MatePad Air 12-inch
- Huawei MatePad 11.5 series
Which smartphones will launch with HarmonyOS Next first?
Huawei has not announced yet which smartphone(s) will be launched with the new operating system out of the box, but I am certain that we will not have to wait for long. Stay tuned.
The 3rd mobile operating system is here
Huawei says that more devices will be added to the HarmonyOS Next update roadmap. The above update roadmap is for China only, though. Huawei says it will announce a global rollout soon, so keep glued to Mobility Nigeria, as I am personally very interested in this and will be following up on it and sharing more info here.
Why? I am excited about having a 3rd mobile operating system that is a viable alternative to iOS and Android OS. Their duopoly has been extremely limiting and boring, if I may say so. Perhaps Huawei and licensees of HarmonyOS Next will provide innovation in a different way or a different direction and inject some excitement into the world of smartphones again.
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Author: Mister Mobility
Master storyteller and founder of Mobility Nigeria, Mister Mobility, has used and reviewed hundreds of mobile phones since 2001.
Master storyteller and founder of Mobility Nigeria, Mister Mobility, has used and reviewed hundreds of mobile phones since 2001.
The world sure needs a Third Force in the smartphone world..
Just like with the Nigerian political landscape
The “Next” Moniker is A TOTAL DEPARTURE from ability to run current Android apps.
It doesn’t, unlike the earlier iteration…
A total rewrite ….
That’s where the problem lies ..
It would need volunteers, and those would likely be JUST the Chinese demography…. because of patriotism
Google, Facebook, Microsoft and other major (and minor) app makers would need a good reason / incentive to commit resources (time and effort) into making apps for a brand new OS ..
Apps won’t be written unless they are sure it is worthwhile. People won’t bite unless apps exist… a conundrum!… a vicious cycle
……………………………………..
A phone without apps that people are already used to is just a brick .. a decirative item
I can imagine myself switching to an OS without some very vitally useful apps that I already use, for eons. .
Maybe as a second phone ..
Then, maybe, I could gradually / finally migrate.. But there must be compelling demonstrable reasons to switch.
EyeBeeKay,
Valid point there.
That said, a lot of people are becoming jaded with social media, though. All those apps are mostly becoming useless and unattractive.
For example, I have been off Twitter since June and I don’t feel like I am missing anything. Facebook looks more like a marketplace + advertising billboard now more than a social networking platform.
If I got a Huawei phone running HarmonyOS Next today, I wouldn’t miss those apps. That’s just me sha.
The rest of the world just might disagree with me.