Huawei Technologies has introduced the Mate 70 smartphone series, strengthening its position in the premium smartphone market while highlighting its strategic push towards software independence. The launch event, held Tuesday in Shenzhen, China, comes as the U.S. considers imposing new export controls that could blacklist up to 200 Chinese chip companies.
The Mate 70, succeeding last year’s Mate 60, represents Huawei’s latest effort to reestablish itself as a leader in high-end smartphones, directly challenging Apple’s dominance in China. Prices for the Mate 70 start at 5,499 yuan ($758), undercutting Apple’s iPhone 16, which begins at 5,999 yuan in the region.
Innovation and Performance Boosts
Richard Yu, chairman of Huawei’s consumer business group, called the Mate 70 “the most powerful Mate phone ever.” The device introduces features such as a satellite paging system, an improved processor, and Huawei’s proprietary HarmonyOS NEXT operating system. Huawei claims these upgrades deliver a 40% performance improvement over earlier models.
The Mate 70 series is the first to fully commercialize HarmonyOS NEXT, a system entirely free of Android code. This marks Huawei’s boldest step yet in distancing itself from U.S. technology, a necessity since 2019, when U.S. export restrictions severed its access to Google services.
HarmonyOS Ecosystem Expansion
HarmonyOS NEXT is poised to play a pivotal role in Huawei’s long-term strategy. The company reports securing over 15,000 applications for the platform, with plans to expand to 100,000 apps in the near future. While the Mate 70 offers both HarmonyOS 4.3 (maintaining Android compatibility) and HarmonyOS NEXT 5.0, all Huawei devices launching next year will exclusively use the Android-free version.
This dual-operating system approach suggests Huawei is balancing its push for software independence with practical considerations, ensuring users retain access to a broader app ecosystem as HarmonyOS NEXT evolves.
Advanced Chipset Technology
Teardowns of the Mate 70 and earlier models have revealed the inclusion of advanced chips manufactured by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), a sign of China’s growing semiconductor capabilities despite ongoing export curbs. Huawei has not officially confirmed the use of SMIC’s chips, and production constraints may limit the availability of these advanced components to high-end Mate 70 variants.
Opinion: Bold Move or Pragmatic Play?
Huawei’s decision to launch the Mate 70 series amid escalating U.S.-China tech tensions feels like a calculated effort to assert dominance in its home market while showcasing resilience against external pressures. The company’s HarmonyOS NEXT reflects bold innovation, but the simultaneous offering of an Android-compatible version may hint at lingering uncertainty. Huawei appears to be taking cautious steps to ensure it doesn’t alienate consumers reliant on Android apps, which raises questions about how confident the company truly is in its software independence. While this dual strategy might be practical in the short term, it could undermine its messaging around technological autonomy.
Market Recovery and Patriotism
The Mate 70’s release builds on Huawei’s resurgence in the Chinese smartphone market. In the third quarter of 2024, Huawei shipped over 10 million units for the fourth consecutive quarter, earning it the position of China’s second-largest smartphone vendor, according to Canalys. This marks a significant recovery from mid-2022, when quarterly shipments dropped to just 4.1 million units.
Industry analysts expect the Mate 70 series to sustain this momentum, with shipments projected to exceed 10 million units, according to Counterpoint Research.
As U.S.-China tech tensions continue, Huawei’s latest smartphone signals its resilience and ability to innovate despite external pressures. By emphasizing its self-developed technology and appealing to patriotic sentiments, Huawei aims to secure its place at the forefront of the Chinese smartphone market.
Featured image courtesy of Asharq Al-Awsat
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