The Huawei Mate 30 was released today and, amid all of the questions about the smartphone’s operating system, there was one question on every loyal Huawei fans lips: what about the apps?
Huawei has traditionally run on the Android operating system but the current political climate has caused the Chinese smartphone company to change course.
Does the Huawei Mate 30 have Google apps?
The Huawei Mate 30 runs AOSP, which does not have access to the Play Store or Google Apps.
The US plastered an executive order on Huawei that “requires the transfer of hardware, software and technical services except those publicly available via open source licensing” meaning that the brand can not ship any future devices out with the full version of Android. including the Mate 30 range.
Related: Huawei Mate 30 Pro vs Huawei P30 Pro
During the event, Huawei CEO Richard Yu confirmed the Mate 30 range can not use Google apps as well as the Google Play Store. The event also saw the release of the Huawei Watch GT 2 and the Huawei Vision – neither of which uses Android.
Huawei instead intends to use Huawei Mobile Services to allow app developers to create applications to go on its own store. There may be some gaps that need filling though.
If you really want apps that are intended for the Google Play Store but aren’t yet available for Huawei’s storefront, you can sideload apps – this can be a hassle but it is doable.
Not sure where to start when it comes to finding Google app alternatives? Here are some suggestions for the apps you could download to replace the Google apps missing from Huawei’s new Mate 30 range.
Google Play Store alternatives
- Amazon App Store
- GetJar
- Aptoide
Google Assistant alternatives
- Lyra
- Microsoft Cortana
- Alexa
Gmail alternatives
- Outlook
- Spark
- Blue Mail
Google Photos alternatives
- Zyl
- Slidebox
- Piktures
YouTube alternatives
- NewPipe
- OGYouTube
- FlyTube
Google Maps alternatives
- Citymapper
- Maps.me
- OsmAnd
- Waze
Google Drive alternatives
- Dropbox
- Microsoft OneDrive
- Box
Google Docs alternatives
- Microsoft Word
- Quip
- OnlyOffice
- Paper by Dropbox
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
