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Huawei's 'new' P30 Pro ships with Android 10 despite US trade ban

Amid a ban on US companies supplying it tech, Huawei touts a new P30 Pro running on Android 10.
Written by Liam Tung, Contributing Writer

Beleaguered Chinese tech giant has taken the wraps of a sort-of new P30 Pro that will ship with Google's latest mobile OS Android 10. 

In a show of defiance against the current ban on US companies like Google and Microsoft from supplying tech to Huawei, the company's consumer business CEO, Richard Yu, took the wraps off a new P30 Pro – a high-end 6.47-inch display smartphone with four-camera module launched earlier this year

SEE: IT pro's guide to the evolution and impact of 5G technology (free PDF)

Notably, the device will ship with EMUI10, Huawei's variation of Android 10, which Google unveiled last week. Yu announced the new P30 Pro at the IFA conference in Berlin on Friday.

Technically, not much has changed from the one released earlier this year except the colors. There's now blue and lavender, and the same rear that's glossy at the top and matte at the bottom. 

The new P30 Pro has a 40-megapixel main rear camera, which Yu boasted outperformed the Galaxy Note 10 Plus, currently rated by camera benchmarking outfit DXOMark as having the best camera on the market.   

"Today I bring you the new P30 Pro with a new unique design," said Yu in front of a screen displaying the message that it will ship with Android 10.

The P30 Pro arrives ahead of the launch of the flagship Mate 30 Pro on September 19, which could be the first Huawei phone to ship without Android and other drawcard Google apps. 

Google last month revealed that its license exempting it from the export restrictions imposed on Huawei by the Department of Commerce's Entity List still prevented it from supplying software for new products. 

SEE MORE: Microsoft's top lawyer: Trump's Huawei ban makes no sense

Therefore, the 5G Mate 30 Pro may ship without core Google services. Huawei has been developing a backup OS called Harmony in the event Google cannot provide its software for Huawei devices. 

The department last month extended the period for exceptions a further 90 days following its initial ban on Huawei in May. 

Yu also unveiled the Kirin 990 5G system on chip promising peak download speeds of 2.3Gpbs and uploads speeds of 1.25Gbps. 

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Huawei's consumer business CEO, Richard Yu, unveiled the new P30 Pro in front of a screen saying it will ship with Android 10. 

Image: Huawei

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