Huawei's Mate 70 Smartphone Demand

BEIJING (Reuters) – Huawei's supply chain team is working overtime to meet demand for its new Mate 70 smartphones, as the supplies initially prepared were insufficient, an executive told the state-owned Securities Times newspaper on Thursday.

He Gang, Huawei's consumer business group CEO, stated that reservations for the phone, which do not require customers to put down a deposit, have exceeded 6.7 million so far, describing the demand as "excessive."

Huawei launched the Mate 70 phone last week as a successor to the Mate 60, which made a notable impression in 2023 by demonstrating Huawei's capability to overcome years of U.S. sanctions and produce an advanced chip domestically.

However, analysts indicated that they observed less consumer enthusiasm for the Mate 70, suggesting that the smartphone might encounter supply bottlenecks related to chip production.

The Mate 70 series also marks the first major commercial rollout of HarmonyOS NEXT, a significant move in Huawei's endeavor for software independence following U.S. restrictions that limited access to Google services in 2019.

HarmonyOS NEXT is a version of Huawei's operating system that operates independently of Android, having begun testing this year, representing a complete break from Android code as the company aims to reduce reliance on U.S. technology.

He mentioned that refining the user experience of HarmonyOS NEXT could take another two to three months, adding that all new phones next year will be equipped with this operating system.