Huawei confirms that the Honor Smart TV will be the first device to use the new Harmony OS. As of the trade ban, Huawei is now finding ways to thrive without their partners in the US like Google. The Smart TV is slated only for domestic release in China so far.
According to Honor president George Zhao, the Honor Vision TV will work as a TV but also as a central unit for its user’s smart devices. The Harmony OS TV could potentially compete with smart speakers that could handle many devices at the same time. Similar to Apple and Google, Huawei also has its own line of smart watches, speakers, and 5G modem which could make up the smart TV’s new support.
Honor’s new display is equipped with SoCs and chipsets from Huawei’s semiconductor company HiSilicon. Owners will be able to use their phones or tablets to search for programs to watch. They can also sync what they’re typing out on their phones, and they can project files on the display. The more expensive Pro model has a 1080p pop-up camera for video calls with AI capabilities, including facial recognition, body tracking and posture detection, as well.
Honor Vision will be available in two versions, both of which are 55-inch screen swith 4K HDR capability. The Pro version has twice the storage (32GB) of the standard one and is priced at RMB3,799 (US$680), RMB1,000 (US$142) more expensive than its basic sibling. Pre-orders are now open in China and a wide release is expected on August 15th, but there’s no word yet on whether it’ll ever be available outside Huawei’s home country.
