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Huawei announces plans for global EMUI 10.1 rollout
The new EMUI version was unveiled along with the P40 series
Huawei's latest iteration of its custom skin on top of Android, EMUI 10.1, was first introduced along with the P40 series in March. Back then, we didn't know when the software would make the jump to other phones internationally, even though some handsets received the update in the form of a beta. That's now changing — Huawei has announced that it will start rolling out EMUI 10.1 across its lineup starting this month.
Back in November last year, there were reports that EMUI10 (based on Android 10) was rolling out to some of Huawei's flagship phones in global markets such as Europe. It turns out that related only to beta versions of the firmware, and the official word from Huawei is that the stable rollout is only now beginning.
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Despite being a big player in the smartphone industry who pumps out almost as many phones as Samsung, Huawei has proven itself to be quite nimble when it comes to major Android software updates. After starting its Android 10 beta program faster than most other companies in September, it's beginning to roll out the stable version of EMUI 10 for its P30 and Mate 20 series of phones to users on the old continent.
At I/O, Google announced that Android Q Beta 3 would not only be available on its recent Pixel phones, but also 15 phones from other OEMs. Included among those 15 phones is the Mate 20 Pro, indicating that Huawei isn't slacking when it comes to the 10th version of Android. The company has just announced which of its phones will be updated to Q first.
This year has been a tumultuous one for Huawei. The company launched one good smartphone after the other, whether on the low end of the spectrum with the Nova series, or in the high-end market with its P20 and Mate 20 series. It also faced stiff regulatory opposition and found itself caught in the midst of a political/economical war between the US and China. From seeing its deals to enter the US market vanish with AT&T and Verizon to having its CFO arrested in Canada, the rollercoaster of Huawei's 2018 hasn't slowed down. But the company is ending its year on a high note and with one number worth celebrating: it shipped over 200 million smartphones in 2018.
Huawei's EMUI 9.0 update, which was announced a few months ago, has begun rolling out. The update, which moves phones from Oreo to Pie, boasts of a simplified UI, new gesture navigation, and HiVision 'AI' features. The Mate 20 was the only Huawei phone with EMUI 9.0 so far, though other phones have been able to run a beta with Android Pie.
Netflix is a mega-popular streaming app on phones, so naturally, people want the video to look good. Sadly, not all phones have certification for Netflix HD or HDR. There have been a few instances where popular phones can't even stream in HD because of DRM incompatibilities. If you predicate your buying decisions on Netflix support, there are some new phones to consider today.
Huawei's Mate 20 Pro might take the company's ultimate flagship title this generation, but the slightly lower-end Mate 20 is still a phone worth considering with its own strengths. It swaps a 1440p OLED display for a 1080p IPS panel, drops camera resolutions, and loses both the in-display fingerprint sensor and laser-based facial recognition. Still, for 20% less you get plenty of phone, arguably a more attractive design, and one of the best cameras in the world of Android.
Augmented Reality may not yet be the game-changer some of its proponents would hope it to be, but little by little it's been coming into its own. AR's been in the spotlight this month thanks to the launch of the Pixel 3 and Google's re-branding of its AR Stickers app as Playground, but that's just the half of it — we've also seen a number of new devices join the list of official AR Core-supporting hardware.
Despite being frozen out of the US market due to political opposition, Huawei still managed to surpass Apple this summer to become the world’s second largest phone maker behind Samsung. The Chinese manufacturer was the first to market with triple rear cameras in the P20 Pro this Spring, and many lauded its photos as the best produced by any smartphone.
Huawei's EMUI Android skin used to be a real mess, but it's gotten much better over the last few years. EMUI 9 is the latest version, which Huawei pre-announced a few months ago. Now, we have all the details, and it's shipping on the Mate 20. EMUI 9.0 is based on Android 9 Pie, so some of the new features won't be a surprise. Others are pure Huawei.
It was only this March that Huawei released the Porsche Design Mate 10 RS, but the mobile company has already raced to the finish line with a successor: the Mate 20 RS. It's quite similar to the newly announced Mate 20 Pro, except a bit swankier with its leather back panel and improved memory/storage options.
During a live-streamed event in London today, Huawei announced its new flagship series of Mate 20 phones. While we were fully expecting the Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro, the company surprised us somewhat with a "one more thing" type announcement: the Mate 20 X.
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Huawei announced at an event in London today its latest goodies, including the Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro. Both are powerhouse devices, each sporting the Kirin 980 CPU, up to six gigs of RAM, and four cameras, as well as the requisite-in-2018 big screens and tiny bezels.
Official images of Huawei’s Mate 20 Pro have leaked with German website WinFuture publishing the pics and full details for the device. While this is our first look at Huawei's new flagship, we've already had a sneak peek at its smaller sibling, the regular Mate 20, as well as the upcoming Huawei Freebuds 2 Pro wireless earbuds which we expect Huawei to release with its new phones.
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We're expecting Huawei to unveil the premium Mate 20 phones in a few weeks after showing off the Mate 20 Lite during IFA. The Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro will reportedly have a cool bonus if you also buy the upcoming Freebuds 2 Pro true wireless earbuds. Just set the earbuds on your phone, and they'll charge up.
While this past year hasn't been entirely smooth sailing for telecom equipment and device manufacturer Huawei, there have been some major highlights. Among them: the critical success of the Huawei P20, an Android device reviewers were surprisingly passionate about, which is rare in this smartphone-fatigued modern era. Along with the Mate series, Huawei's P series represents the company's premium-tier efforts. Now, a series of credible renders have emerged that reveal the alleged Mate 20, Huawei's next shot at impressing the Android set.