In 2019, the long-term goal of becoming the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer will be realized, Huawei was placed on the Commerce Department’s Entity List, where it currently is. This prevents Huawei from sourcing supplies from the once-thriving US supply chain, and as a result it is no longer allowed to use the Google Mobile Services version of Android. This forced Huawei to develop its own HarmonyOS operating system, now in version 3.1.
One year from the date it was entered into the entity list, The US Commerce Department added a new export rule that prevents foundries using American technology from supplying high-end silicon Huawei. The company received permission from the US to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon SoCs, but they have been modified to not work with 5G networks. And it uses the three-year-old Kirin 710A chip to power the upcoming Enjoy 60 mid-range.
Reuters reported that according to Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, the company had to replace 13,000 parts in its products that it could not get due to US trade sanctions. Ren had come up with this number in a speech he gave last month, which was published online Friday by a Chinese university. 13,000 parts were replaced with domestically purchased substitutes and it redesigned 4,000 circuit boards used in Huawei products. The company’s circuit board production has since stabilized, Ren said.
An alleged design sketch of the upcoming Huawei P60 Pro reveals a Dynamic Island notification system at the top of the screen
Reuters says it has not been able to independently verify Ren’s remarks, which the university claims were presented on February 24 before technology experts. The school, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, posted the minutes on its website late last week.
Despite the restrictions imposed on Huawei by the United States, the company continues to spend money on research and development. Last year, it spent $23.8 billion on R&D, which is why Ren said: “As our profitability improves, we will continue to increase R&D spending.”
This coming Thursday, March 23, Huawei is expected to unveil its latest flagship series, the P60 series, the foldable Mate X3 and the mid-range Enjoy 60.
