Home IFTTT Pocket-lint What does Huawei's trade ban mean for your Huawei or Honor phone?

What does Huawei's trade ban mean for your Huawei or Honor phone?

July 01, 2019

In May it was announced that Google and other businesses that trade in the US have to change the way they deal with Huawei. The Chinese giant was blacklisted by the US in the latest skirmish of the ongoing trade war.

However, in a speech on 29 June, President Trump said he has agreed to allow US tech companies like Google and Qualcomm to once again start selling to Huawei following the restart of trade talks between the US and China. The caveat is that it's only for goods not connected to national security, so smartphone tech is OK to sell. 

Trump made the comments at a press conference at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan. The move seems to be a reaction to the fact US companies were also feeling the effect of the ban. 

However, we don't yet have an official reaction from Google or Huawei so the situation remains unchanged from their point of view. However, we'd say that there is a much stronger certainty of new Huawei phones having the official Google version of Android and upgrades being provided beyond Android Q. 

So what does the current situation mean for the Huawei device you have in your hand, and what does it mean for the one you might buy next? Let’s investigate.

The story so far

The order from the US Government was originally issued in May meant Huawei can’t buy tech from US firms without its endorsement. However, a reprieve was in place until 19 August to enable all companies to make plans for the future. 

The ruling meant that Huawei would only be able to use the openly available version of Android – which doesn’t include access to Google apps like Maps and YouTube, the Play Store or Google Assistant. It's been strongly indicated that, as a contingency, Huawei has been developing its own version of the Android software thought to be called Ark OS (or HongMeng OS in China). 

Google said at the time the ban was announced that it was “complying with the order and reviewing the implications” but clearly it wasn't an ideal situation for them either – it would always prefer other companies used Google apps because of the advertising revenue it makes.

The reprieve to the ban was already enabling Huawei to stockpile some components and make alternative arrangements in other areas. For example, it enabled Huawei to announce that it will be bringing Android Q to the P30, P20 and Mate 20 (plus more) as -- presumably - it was able to use the extra time to get them approved by Google.

Since the Google situation became apparent other suppliers such as ARM, the SD Card Association, Intel, Microsoft and Qualcomm said they will have to suspend trading with the Chinese giant, so there has been some hurried work behind the scenes trying to get partnerships signed off before the August cut-off - companies are probably still pressing ahead with this work in case of a change of heart by the Trump administration. 

As Huawei can and does develop its own phone hardware, the Qualcomm partnership could be seen as less of a problem but the withdrawal of ARM cooperation would have been massive since all of Huawei's smartphone platforms use ARM-based designs - as do almost all smartphones and tablets everywhere. 

Huawei's upcoming ARM-based Kirin 990 platform (probably set for launch at IFA 2019 in early September and surely destined for the Mate 30) has presumably already been signed off and is probably in production. 

Intel supplies the chips for Huawei’s laptop line, a market that it was hoping to make an impression on in the UK and Europe as well. It's highly possible that Huawei has been stockpiling these chips. 

On 7 June it was reported by the Financial Times that Google asked for an exemption from the Huawei ban and this could have influenced Trump's thinking. Google says it believes that an alternative Huawei operating system (the aforementioned Oak OS) using the open source version of Android could pose a potential security risk to the US. And, basically, Google would rather it was still in control. 

On 11 June the UK phone networks wrote a letter to the UK Government asking it to clarify its position on Huawei. It's notable that Vodafone has said Huawei isn't part of its core 5G network while Three stated it was using Nokia tech for 5G. 

What does it mean for existing Huawei devices?

Existing Huawei devices like the P30 Pro and Mate 20 Pro are unaffected in their current form. No apps will disappear and they can continue to use Google apps and get security updates. Because Honor is a subsidiary of Huawei, the same implications would apply to its handsets, too.

Google is clear on this point: "For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices".

For its part, Huawei says it “will continue to provide security updates and after sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products covering those which have been sold or are still in stock globally.”

Huawei can also "provide service and support, including software updates or patches, to existing Huawei handsets". This basically means Huawei can continue to trade in the US for these purposes. The license also extends to Huawei's networking equipment, enabling it to patch any security issues (it's unclear whether Huawei's networking equipment will be affected by the ban after August).

What wasn't clearer for a time was whether Huawei and Honor handsets would get feature updates. But we now know - as of 20 June - that these devices will get the upgrade to Android Q from the Fall/Autumn onwards:

  • P30 Pro
  • P30
  • Mate 20
  • Mate 20 Pro
  • Porsche Design Mate 20 RS
  • P30 lite
  • P smart 2019
  • P smart+ 2019
  • P smart Z
  • Mate 20 X
  • Mate 20 X (5G)
  • P20 Pro
  • P20
  • Mate 10 Pro
  • Porsche Design Mate 10
  • Mate 10

Under the Honor brand, the Honor 20 series will also get the Android Q update.

The company has also launched a website to answer regular queries and tweeted about its "commitment to fans".

What does it mean for future devices?

If the ban was to remain in place, the current implication is that future Huawei and Honor devices - stuff released after August - won’t have access to the Google Play Store and other key Google apps. That means the Mate 30 and Mate 30 Pro we’re expecting in October won’t have access to Google Play apps as things stand.

Still-being-released phones like the Mate 20 X 5G and Honor 20 series won't have an issue (indeed, as mentioned above, they'll also get Android Q). They’ll have been through the Google Play certification process already.

However, EE and Vodafone have confirmed they will not be stocking the Mate 20 X 5G at the launch of their 5G networks, while Three has so far been silent about what handsets it will have available despite Huawei previously mentioning Three during its own launch of the Mate 20 X 5G. Vodafone even postponed its 5G press launch around the time of the ban "due to the ongoing media agenda" - it's a hot potato.

What’s less clear is whether Huawei's statement covers the Mate X foldable phone. It’s already been announced but won’t be released until September we understand. It’s being manufactured as we speak probably, but we wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s “in stock” to use Huawei’s phrasing

There's no Mate X in the Android Q list above so it could well be that it either launches on Android Q if it's been certified (instead of being upgraded to it) or that it gets a completely different OS instead. 

Indeed, before Trump's latest statement we were fully expecting Mate 30 and later devices to have Huawei's upcoming Ark OS replacement for Google's version of Android. Huawei can still use the open source version of the Android operating system rather than one that’s gone through Google’s certification process. This is known as AOSP or Android Open Source Project. It's freely downloadable code and anybody can use it. 

We're expecting Huawei to use that code for Ark OS and giving it the same appearance as its existing EMUI skin - that would mean it would look extremely similar to the operating system on existing Huawei and Android phones.

We first heard about Ark OS back in March - it seems that Huawei first started work on it as much as seven years ago. It appears it will be known as HongMeng OS in China. 

30 May update: Added extra links and context about the ongoing situation.

11 June update: Added new developments from Google and UK operators.

20 June update: Added information about devices getting Android Q update

1 July update: Added information on Trump's G20 statement



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