Huawei is geared up to launch its new Mate30 series of smartphones in Munich in just a couple of days but not many residents of Central Europe will ever get the chance to use the devices at all. That’s based on a recent report citing company insiders, who say that the region is off the table for Huawei.
The insider explicitly says that a total of three models of the device to be included in that. That means smartphone users in Central Europe won’t have access to the Huawei Mate30, Mate30 Pro, or Mate30 Lite. While not confirmed, that would be despite the company moving forward to launch the gadgets in the region.
Most of Huawei’s European sales take place in that portion of Europe but Eastern Europe may be out of the question as well.
The cost of a trade war
The reason given for Huawei’s decision comes back to the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China. The company has, until its troubles started, maintained its position as the second-largest smartphone OEM globally without any help from the U.S. market.
That was the case until U.S. President Donald Trump placed the company on an ‘entity’ list that effectively banned U.S. companies from interacting with the OEM. But without access to Google services and apps, the company insiders claim, the company’s phones are “practically useless” in Europe.
The remarks may have implications for the gadgets themselves too.
Huawei’s Mate30 and Mate30 Pro have been the subject of waves of leaks in the leadup to the September 19 launch. The flagship devices had been predicted to operate on Android 10 out-of-the-box, driven by a new in-house Kirin 990 64-bit octa-core processor. That may not be possible while the trade war rages on, possibly forcing Huawei to utilize its own operating system and software instead.
At various junctures, the ban against Huawei has been eased but Huawei has not appeared entirely innocent either. Waves of widely reported scandals and apparent confirmations about suspicions against the company have been expounded by statements the company itself have released. In one instance, the company claimed that there a trade deal could not be reached that doesn’t involve Huawei.
Countries in Central Europe may still see the Huawei Mate30?
The latest news about Huawei’s upcoming flagship smartphones does not bode well for fans of the brand in Europe. But it arguably looks grimmer for Huawei. The company is still reportedly considering selling some of its devices in select countries within the two regions. The insiders imply any releases in those countries would have to be determined after launch rather than planned in advance.
That’s a far cry away from where the company was last year. In 2018, the company was on track to meet its goals to conquer the global smartphone market. Its trajectory would have seen it bypassing Samsung at some point in 2020 by most estimations.
Huawei’s focus moving forward will be on finalizing the build-out of its own app and mobile ecosystem. That may or may not remain the case even if conditions change, allowing Huawei easier access to U.S. companies again.