Interested EMUI users can expect Huawei’s EMUI 10 rollout to begin reportedly next month. The Chinese manufacturer confirmed the update to its Android “skin” by way of Huawei’s Chinese website, where the Huawei Developer Conference keynote includes a slot devoted to the upcoming EMUI update, titled “Linking things to the future — Huawei EMUI 10.0 released.”
The fact that Huawei is titling a slot in its keynote with “EMUI 10.0 released” in it is an indication that it intends to release the upcoming Android skin update for its current users. And the release of EMUI 10.0 also indicates that Huawei will, in fact, release the upcoming Android Q update for its user base, something of a shocker considering Huawei’s current political situation with the US and Google (Google, of course, being a US company).
Huawei has been on the US Entity List since mid-May, when President Trump signed an Executive Order barring American companies from doing business with the Shenzhen-based corporation. After a few days, Google revoked Huawei’s Android license, though the government gave a three-month delay in its execution, a delay that won’t end until August 19th. American high-tech businesses have been feeling the financial heat from the ban, especially silicon chipset makers such as Qualcomm and Intel, who find Huawei, the second-largest handset maker globally, to be one of their biggest clients.
After hearing the pleas of chipset makers (despite the actions of Intel and Micron to do business with Huawei overseas with legal loopholes), President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met at the Osaka G20 summit to come to something of a restart in negotiations. Trump is allowing high-tech companies to sell to Huawei again, though Huawei says it’s fine with using Chinese chipset makers and isn’t reliant upon the US for chips for its mobile devices.
Now, President Trump has overturned the idea that no new selling licenses would be granted, despite the fact that Huawei is on the Entity List and companies on the Entity List are often not given the opportunity to buy from new American businesses. Trump says he’ll consider things on a case-by-case basis, with no specific idea of just what constitutes a national security risk. Huawei has remained on the Entity List and is still considered a national security risk, despite all these olive branch occasions.
Huawei made an announcement last month regarding the rollout of Google’s Android Q system update to the following devices: P30 Pro, P30, P30 Lite, Mate 20 X (5G), Mate 20 Pro, Mate 20, P Smart Z, P Smart+ 2019, P Smart 2019, P20 Pro, P20, Mate 10 Pro, PORSCHE DESIGN Mate 10, PORSCHE DESIGN Mate 20 RS, Mate 20 X, Mate 10, and Mate 20 Lite. Sine EMUI is Huawei’s own Android perspective, it cannot roll out Android 10.0 Q without rolling out the EMUI 10 update as well.
With Huawei giving Android Q to existing handsets though, there’s little doubt that Huawei will get Android Q. Even the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, dropped from Google’s Android Q Beta Program, returned to the Beta Program some time ago and will receive Google’s next sweet treat (unnamed, at least to the tech world at this point).
While this is good news for Huawei smartphone users, there is a bit of bitter news to aid the sweet: the upcoming Mate 30 flagship series is being tested on Huawei’s Hongmeng OS instead of Android Q, so the Android Q and EMUI release may apply only to existing smartphones instead of new ones. The Mate 30’s Hongmeng OS testing may be the closest we get to an explanation regarding just how much Huawei can use Android Q.
Android Q brings a ton of new features, such as iOS-like multitasking gestures, power button long press to make emergency phone calls, a systemwide dark mode, battery time remaining in notification shade, extended display support for foldables and larger displays, “notched” page layouts, simplified volume sliders, more secure Wi-Fi, a Google Screen Recorder, and more.