Honor Confirms Google Apps Will Return To Phones With New 50 Series
The Honor 50 series will be able to ship with apps and services from Google, Honor officially announced today during the launch of the Honor 50 and Honor 50 Pro in China. In a statement, Honor said its phones will go through Google’s security review and that “Honor devices will therefore have the option of having Google Mobile Services (” GMS “) preinstalled on compatible devices, in accordance with licensing models. and governance of Google. “
“Consumers will be able to experience Honor smartphones and tablets equipped with GMS,” the company said. A spokesperson confirmed that the “Honor devices” mentioned in the statement include the newly announced Honor 50. The device will be available for pre-order in China on June 25 and will arrive in international markets such as France, Malaysia, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia. Arabia and UK at a later date at a price to be announced.
Honor has not been able to ship Google’s apps and services, including the Google Play Store, to its phones since its former parent company Huawei was placed on the U.S. Entity List, forcing Google to withdraw its Android license. What has changed with the 50 series is that Huawei sold Honor at the end of last year, allowing the company to work with Google again. Huawei, meanwhile, is still unable to use Google’s software and is positioning its own HarmonyOS as a replacement.
Reports on the return of Google software on Honor phones appeared last month, after the company’s German Twitter leaked the news in a now-deleted tweet.
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As for the devices themselves, what draws the most attention to the Honor 50 and Honor 50 Pro are their rear cameras, which are arranged in a pair of circular bumps. The phones have four rear cameras in total, including a 100-megapixel main camera, an 8-megapixel wide-angle camera, a 2-megapixel macro, and a 2-megapixel depth camera. Up front, the Honor 50 Pro has a pair of selfie cameras, combining a 32-megapixel camera with a 12-megapixel ultra-wide, while the Honor 50 has only one camera. of 32 megapixels.
Both phones have a 120Hz display, although the Honor 50 Pro is slightly larger at 6.72 inches compared to 6.57 for the standard Honor 50. Colors available include silver, bronze, green, and black. Internally, they are powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G processor. The 50 Pro has a 4000mAh battery that can be quickly charged up to 100W, while the regular 50 has a 4300mAh battery and supports 66W fast charging.
The return of Google’s software to Honor phones is unlikely to make much of a difference in China, where phones typically ship without the Play Store. But their absence made the Honor and Huawei phones quite difficult to recommend elsewhere. When the Honor 50 finally hits the West, that could all change.
In China, the Honor 50 will start at 2,699 yuan (around $ 422), while the Honor 50 Pro will start at 3,699 yuan (around $ 578). Along with the two flagship phones, Honor is also announcing the cheaper Honor 50 SE, which will start at 2,399 yuan (around $ 375).