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Huawei’s new OS could debut on the Mate 30 Lite – but you won’t be able to buy it

The Huawei Mate 30 Lite could be the first phone to make use of the Chinese company’s new Android alternative operating system. However, it will be HongmengOS and not HarmonyOS as the change is only being made in China.

HongmengOS is the name of Huawei’s upcoming Android alternative in China. While the operating system will be referred to as HarmonyOS in the West. The Huawei Mate 30 Lite will retain Android outside of China.

Related: What is Huawei HarmonyOS?

According to a SlashLeaks contributor, the Huawei Mate 30 Lite – which is expected to debut in mid-September alongside the Mate 30 and Mate 30 Pro – will be the first phone to utilise Hongmeng OS.

HongmengOS (and its Western variant HarmonyOS) was finally announced earlier today at the Huawei Developer Conference. The conference revealed the operating system isn’t just Huawei’s alternative for Android but the name of its new cross-platform solution.

HongmengOS has been in development some time but seems to have been fast-tracked in light of the Huawei Android ban – as Huawei’s use of Google’s Android operating system continues to be on shaky ground.

Related: Huawei Android ban

We are set to learn more about HongmengOS when Honor reveals its new Vision smart screen over the weekend. The Honor Vision will be an interesting implementation of the OS – especially as a TV with a pop-up camera onboard.

While the phone largely takes a backseat in this story, the Huawei Mate 30 Lite is an interesting device. Rumours about the budget version of Huawei’s Mate range have been swirling over recent months.

A leak of a device which is reportedly the Huawei Mate 30 Lite showed off a quad-camera set up and specs that included a Kirin 810 processor, 6GB or 8GB of RAM and a 3900 mAh battery.

Here at Trusted Reviews, we were conflicted about the previous iteration of this phone – the Huawei Mate 20 Lite. Our review said: “A solid, long-lasting mid-range Android but competition from sister-brand Honor is strong.”

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