Huawei Nepal: “Huawei is Here to Stay for the Long Haul and Won’t be Deterred by the Ban”

A few days ago, most of the media and tech bloggers were called for an informal press meet. It was more like a closed room meeting where Huawei Nepal officials were open to all sorts of questions we had regarding the recent ban on Huawei from the US.

US government blacklisted Huawei that prevents it from doing business with American companies. This followed with a quick announcement from Google that prevents future Huawei devices from using the Android OS and Google services. And, this has been the talking point throughout the world as this has affected consumers in over 170 countries. Among them, consumers in Nepal have also been affected greatly.

Thus, we sat down with Huawei officials and this is what they had to say regarding the ban and concerns of Huawei consumers in Nepal.

How will the existing Huawei phones get affected and will be there be future updates after 90 days grace period?

This has been the primary concern of most of the Huawei users in Nepal and people have been wary of updating their Huawei phones. Thus, regarding this matter, Country Director of Huawei in Nepal, Mr. Joyas Zhu said that existing phones will not be affected and will continue to receive security updates/ patches and feature upgrades on EMUI. However, OS upgrade to Android Q will depend on what happens next as the trade war between the US and China deepens.

Also, Mr. Joyas Zhu was very insistent on letting us know that existing consumers will not have problems with the user experience.

What’s the current status of Huawei’s market in Nepal?

Following the ban, it’s obvious that Huawei has seen a decline in its smartphone market. According to Pulkit Bhimsaria, director of Call Mobility, an authorized distributor of Huawei smartphones in Nepal, the company was selling up to 350 sets of Huawei smartphones daily before the ban. Since then, the number has dropped to 75-250 a day. Furthermore, he added that this has specifically affected the sales of their new P30 series.

Despite the drop in the sales volume, Huawei will not be dropping prices on its existing smartphones. Also, they will not be taking out any products off their selves. As it was earlier reported by Kathmandu Post that Huawei was taking of the products off its shelves.

Will Huawei launch new phones in Nepal?

After the ban, it will be difficult for Huawei to launch any new phones in Nepal. But, Huawei Nepal has already lined up some products for launch. We might see the reiterated version of the Y7 Pro 2019 with a fingerprint sensor and the Y9 Prime 2019 with Pop-Up camera. However, it is not quite sure about the later one making it to Nepal.

Specifically when asked about the launch of the new Mate series. Mr. Joyas Zhu said that it’s not quite sure and it may or may not happen. But, he added that if any new phones are launched by Huawei then those phones will not be affected by the Google ban.

Moving forward Mr. Joyas Zhu emphasized that Huawei is here to stay for the long haul and won’t be deterred by the ban.

Also, he told that we might see a new OS on future Huawei phones with better user experience as he laid down his personal opinion.

Well, the ban on Huawei is a grave set back and disappointment to the tech community. This is one of the companies at the forefront of mobile technology and currently the 2nd largest smartphone manufacturer. This is no doubt a setback and a sad situation for tech enthusiasts. And, we do hope for a quick fix of this situation.

Recently, Huawei has filed a motion for summary judgment, asking the court to overturn part of the National Defense Authorization Act. “Huawei is pressing on with its lawsuit against the United States, challenging the constitutionality of a US law banning federal agencies from buying its products” reports CNN.