Huawei has unveiled its new Mate 70 series, featuring the company’s latest self-developed operating system. This release underscores Huawei’s pursuit of technological independence despite ongoing U.S. sanctions.
In 2023, Huawei faced significant challenges after the U.S. imposed restrictions on its access to essential technology. However, the Chinese tech giant made a remarkable recovery with the release of its Mate 60 series, which featured a semiconductor, an advanced component that is difficult to produce in China.
For this year’s Mate 70 series, Richard Yu, head of Huawei’s consumer and auto businesses, did not reveal specific details regarding the chips used in the devices. However, he confirmed that the devices operate on HarmonyOS NEXT, Huawei’s fully self-developed mobile operating system, which the company aims to position as an alternative to Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS.
Additionally, Huawei announced that some of its older devices will receive this software upgrade over the coming months.
Originally, HarmonyOS was based on open-source Android code, but Huawei has confirmed that this is no longer the case. Will Wong, senior research manager at IDC, pointed out that this significant update is part of Huawei’s effort to attract developers to join its ecosystem.
In addition to the operating system, the Mate 70 series features advanced artificial intelligence capabilities, allowing users to interact with popular apps and edit photos. Chinese mobile companies have been intensifying efforts in this area to compete with Apple’s AI advancements.
The Mate 70 series includes three models: the Mate 70, Mate 70 Pro, and Mate 70 Pro+, with prices ranging from 5,499 yuan ($759) to 8,499 yuan. Despite the high cost, Huawei has already received three million reservations, even though the pre-orders began earlier this month and were limited to just one Chinese e-commerce website.
Along with the Mate 70 series, Huawei also introduced its latest foldable smartphone, the Mate X6, which runs on the new HarmonyOS NEXT as well.
