Huawei moving on from Google

Huawei has indicated it’s looking forward to life without Google. Guo Ping, Huawei’s rotating chairman made his sentiments known in a meeting with the company’s staff.

A change in mindset

Ever since the United States made its position against Huawei, the Chinese company has been looking for a way to restore the status quo. Huawei had imagined a sustained effort at declaring its innocence while touting the impact of the US ban on global technology industry would make a difference. As recent decisions by the Trump administration has pointed out, though, America is not loosening its stnace.

For this reason, Huawei seems to have made a change in direction. Rather than wait for America to relent on its stance, the Chinese company is looking forward to a world where two systems exist side by side.

Huawei Mobile Services

Huawei now has about 600 users worldwide in its ecosystem. From smartphone users to consumer gadgets like TVs, Huawei now has a formidable market base to assert its own services. The Huawei Mobile Service is one such step.

In his statement to employees, Guo Ping indicated that Huawei helped make Google the market leader that it has become. With a large customer base such as Huawei’s, there is now a growing sentiment that it is time for the Chinese company to start out solo.

A huge gamble

As gambles go, Huawei’s move from the Android ecosystem is a huge one. While a large user base is promising for the tech company, it also represents a huge risk and an even bigger move to wean hundreds of millions of people off of a product they are used to.

As this Forbes article indicated, the software might be the least of problems Huawei would have to face. With access to American chips now removed by new US sanctions, Huawei would now have to start making its own parts to power its smartphones.

The challenge is not lost on the Chinese company, however. Guo Ping said in his remarks to employees that Huawei was taking the long road to success. “HMS must have a ‘Foolish Old Man Moving Mountain Spirit’,” the chairman told his audience. It remains to be seen if it would be a lonely old man moving the mountain when Huawei’s horde of America-made chipsets run out.

Image: Getty/AFP

Don’t buy Tecno Spark Series until you read this

Tecno phones are among the most popular phones in Africa. The Spark Series are budget phones with high-end features like better cameras for capturing beautiful images.

Tecno Spark Series

Transsion Holdings released different Tecno Spark series in different countries. Sometimes, the company released variants of the same version within months. Some Tecno Spark phones had slight upgrades in RAM while others supported a larger storage space.

Tecno Spark

The first Tecno Spark was released in June 2017. Known in other markets as the Tecno A7, this budget device had a 1GB RAM and 16GB space. With a 5MP front camera, it was perfect for selfie lovers even if it came at a smaller size of 5.5in. Tecno Spark had a battery capacity of 3000mAh and accommodated dual sim and run on Android 7.0 (Nougat).

Tecno Spark Pro came out in November 2017 with the same battery unit but with 8MP selfie camera. A larger Tecno Spark Plus (K9) was released in July 2017 with a larger battery of 3400mAh and a larger size.

Tecno Spark CM

The Spark CM came out in December 2017. It was slightly larger than the first generation with 5.7in. In addition to 2GB RAM and 3040mAh battery, it also offered 8MP selfie camera and 13MP main camera.

Tecno Spark 2

Tecno Spark 2 was released in June 2018 following the successes of the first edition of Spark Series. It was larger than its predecessor but came with similar memory and storage facilities: 1GB RAM and 16GB storage. Alternate versions had up to 2GB. Tecno Spark 2 also had 8MP selfie camera while maintaining a 13MP main camera.

Other versions are KA7, KA70.

Tecno Spark Go

Tecno Spark Go came out in August of 2019 with a larger screen size of 6.1in and a battery capacity of 3000mAh. It maintained the 8MP selfie camera of recent editions but run on Android 9.0 Pie.

The larger Tecno Spark Go Plus offered users a 4000mAh battery and 2GB RAM with 32GB storage. Tecno Spark Go Plus was released in January 2020.

Tecno Spark 3

The Tecno Spark 3 came out in the April of 2019 with a 2GB RAM. It had an 8 MP selfie camera and 13 MP rear camera. Spark 3 had li-ion battery capacity of 3500mAh and 2GB RAM and 16GB storage. Meanwhile, the Tecno Spark 3 Pro came with a 32GB internal storage space.

Tecno Spark 4

Released in September 2019, the Tecno Spark 4 and its variants succeeded the Spark 3 Series. With similar features as its predecessor, the Spark 4 came with a larger battery capacity of 4,000mAh. Some variants also had 3GB RAM with 32 to 64GB storage.

Variants: Spark 4 Lite (December 2019) and Spark 4 Air.

Tecno Spark Power

The Tecno Spark Power was released in November 2019. It was a large device, with a 6.35in display. It had a 13MP selfie camera, 4GB RAM, and 64GB storage. It also had a long-lasting battery of 6000mAh.

A larger more powerful Tecno Spark Power 2 launched in June 2020. It spotted a 7in display and 16MP selfie camera.

Tecno Spark 5

Tecno Spark 5 came out in May 2020 with a 5000mAh battery capacity and 8MP selfie camera. It has 2GB RAM and 32GB storage running on Android 10. It has a display size of 6.6in.

Tecno Spark 5 Pro spots a 4GB RAM and 64GB storage.

The Tecno Spark 5 Air has a 7in display. It has a 2GB RAM, 5000mAh battery, and 8MP selfie camera. It has a 32GB of storage.

Why are Tecno and Infinix phones so popular in Africa?

From humble beginnings, Transsion Holdings has come to surpass Samsung and Apple as Africa’s favourite smartphone maker. The company sells more phones in Africa than either. How did Tecno, iTel, and Infinix become so popular in Africa?

Tecno phones are perfect for dumsor and expensive networks

Tecno, iTel, and Infinix phones have long-lasting batteries. This is especially important in parts of sub-Saharan Africa that suffer irregular power supply.

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Airtime can be expensive depending on which network you are calling. Where users had to switch sim cards in order to take advantage of same-net charges, Transsion’s dual sim technology made it easier to use different sims without opening up the phone; it also saved them from buying an extra smartphone. With poor network coverage within some cities, having multiple sims became a huge advantage.

Cameras made for dark skin

Transsion Holdings went a step further by building phones that optimized users’ eyes, nose, and skin colour. These micro-adjustments made it easy for African complexions to stand out even in darker environments, thereby drawing a lot of fans from the young demographic.

This feature has been incorporated into pro-selfie smartphones like Tecno’s CAMON series. The iTel S brand and Infinix S series were both designed for similar purposes.

Feature phones

Making cheaper phones allowed Transsion to appeal to a larger audience.

Transsion Holdings’ phones are cheaper

Meanwhile, the Chinese company builds a lot of feature phones. Feature phones are inexpensive low-end smartphones that support popular apps like WhatsApp.

There is a small market for high-end smartphones (Quartz)

Including Swahili, Hausa, and Amharic letters to the keyboards made the phones more appealing to the local populace. At to this the research centres built on the continent, and Transsion holdings is primed for more success in Africa.

Transsion Holdings assembly plant in Ethiopia

Have you tried a Tecno phone before?

Why Huawei nova 7i has no Google products

The Huawei nova 7i was released in February 2020. It was previously released in Europe as P40 Lite and in China as Huawei nova 6 SE. Despite its HiSilicon Kirin 810 processor and 6.4-inch display, users will realise the lack of Google Mobile Services. But why?

The US-China trade war

Due to the US-China trade war, American companies are not allowed to sell technology to Huawei and other Chinese companies without permission. The US has a blacklist of companies it believes are a national security risk because they have strong links with the Chinese government.

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The Trump administration says Huawei is backed by the Chinese military. And so, the Trump administration is encouraging allies to stop using Huawei in the rollout of 5G technology.

No Android?

Google licenses Android to smartphone manufacturers like Huawei, Samsung, and Nokia. This means their devices come with the Google Mobile Services.

While older Huawei smartphones are allowed to keep Google Mobile Services, newer versions that came after the ban couldn’t use the service. That means Huawei nova 7i and recent devices will not come with your favourite Google products.

The Huawei AppGallery

Huawei’s AppGallery is the equivalent of the Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store. The only apps you will get on newer Huawei devices are apps downloaded from the AppGallery. That means app developers will have to submit their apps to the gallery.

Can you install YouTube on Huawei nova 7i?

Though there are many links online about how to do that, neither Huawei nor Google encourage that. You can still access YouTube and Gmail by visiting the website through the browser.

Huawei nova 71 features

The Huawei nova 7i comes with an 8 GB RAM and 128 GB storage. Selfie camera has 12 MP, rear camera holds 48 MP wide lens + 8 MP ultra wide + 2 MP Micro + 2 MP Bokeh lens.

Will you buy a Huawei smartphone without Google products?