Chinese technology giant Huawei launched its new smartphone, the Mate 60 Pro, saying it is the most powerful it has ever produced, without detailing specifications. Tests indicated that it uses a more advanced chip, with the speed to support a 5G connection.
Newspapers such as the Taiwanese Digitimes, a reference in technology coverage, state that it “indeed contains an SoC [chip que integra vários componentes] qualified for 5G” and even follows the market trend of offering satellite connection. Caixin magazine, from Beijing, also confirmed.
One test in particular, reverse engineering carried out on video by Chinese technology influencer Lou Bin, from the Wekihome channel, showed that the Mate 60 Pro reached 5G speed. He had purchased two devices at the Huawei store in Shenzhen, the only one selling beyond online platforms.
“It definitely has solid 5G speeds,” says Lou. “It really is a historic moment. Huawei did it, everyone knows it’s not easy.”
He pointed out that the equipment seeks self-sufficiency from top to bottom: battery and accessories are all manufactured by Huawei itself, plus Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and power management ICs (integrated circuits) from its subsidiary HiSilicon and audio solutions from AAC Technologies, too. from Shenzhen.
The launch was scheduled for September 12th, but was brought forward by two weeks, to this Wednesday (30th), apparently, to coincide with the visit to China by the US Secretary of Commerce, Gina Raimondo. It appeared online when she was on the bullet train from Beijing to Shanghai.
Raimondo heads the department that has sanctioned Huawei the most over the last four years. The company was banned from using 5G chips from the Taiwanese TSMC, which was its supplier and also from Apple, from May 2019. It overtook the Korean Samsung and led in global smartphone sales.
Other actions taken against Huawei included the ban on the use of Google tools and the Android system itself, hence the development of its HarmonyOS, which was updated along with the Mate 60 Pro. Also the house arrest for almost three years of financial director Meng Wanzhou, Canada.
The newspaper Global Times, linked to the Chinese CP, ironized in an editorial the “coincidence” of the launch with the visit. Citing Raimondo by name, he published that “the Chinese people no longer expect major adjustments from the US, but if they ease their extreme restraint against China, we will certainly welcome it.”
With the price set at 6,999 yuan, around R$4,770, the Mate 60 Pro has a maximum download speed, according to tests reproduced online, between 500 and 800 megabits per second (Mbps), above the ceiling of 300 Mbps and the Typical speed of 100 Mbps for 4G.
Note from investment manager Sanford C. Bernstein stated that it is not clear which company has been manufacturing the Kirin 9000S chips, developed by Huawei itself for 5G, but which is believed to be Chinese. Most likely they were produced by SMIC in Shanghai.
The technology used for manufacturing would be N+2, which SMIC itself has already described as being several years behind TSMC, which supplies its most advanced chips for Apple’s iPhone. The competitiveness of the Mate 60 Pro would also be affected, abroad, by not being able to use Android
On the other hand, a note from Shanghai-based investment company HuaJin Securities predicted a positive impact on the country’s technology supply chain and suggested that the Mate 60 Pro would serve as a catalyst for more advanced smartphones of Chinese origin.
