Huawei will use TomTom maps in upcoming smartphones

After Huawei was banned from doing business with US companies, the Chinese smartphone maker has revealed its own Harmony OS (called Hongmeng OS in China). One of the biggest use cases for a smartphone is the map feature. Since Google will not support future Huawei devices with Google services, the Chinese smartphone maker has struck a deal with TomTom for maps and navigation on its upcoming smartphones. The report comes from Reuters which says “Dutch navigation and digital mapping company TomTom on Friday said it has closed a deal with China’s Huawei Technologies for the use of its maps and services in smartphone apps”. The report goes on to say “TomTom spokesman Remco Meerstra said the deal had been closed some time ago but had not been made public by the company.” No details of the deal are known, such as which smartphones the app will be supported on, when will the app release, etc. 

To refresh your memory, Huawei was forced to develop its own operating system for smartphones. This was because it was blacklisted in the U.S. last year over concerns of national security. Because of the ban, Huawei can't do business with U.S. based companies, in this case, Google. 

Huawei officially announced its Harmony OS at the Huawei Developer Conference 2019. The new operating system is called Hongmeng OS in China. The company says its new operating system is based on microkernel tech, and it can be used in everything: smartphones, wearables, smart speakers, and more. Further, Harmony OS will be released as an open-source platform. Huawei showcased the Honor Vision TV as well and you can find out more about their upcoming TV here. The TV is expected to launch in India as well. 

In other Huawei news, the company is expected to launch the Huawei P40 series in March 2020. Rumours are abuzz highlighting the features on offer. You can read more about the rumoured specs here.

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