The Huawei Developer Conference 2023 has unveiled its main attraction – HarmonyOS 4 is here. Huawei’s new operating system brings a major visual redesign with new personalization options for smartphones, tablets and smartwatches. HarmonyOS now runs on over 700 million devices worldwide, powering smartphones, TVs and even cars.
Starting with the home screen, Huawei offers the ability to change system fonts, colors, clock and widget styles with multiple combinations and customization options. You can also set emoji wallpapers and home screens by choosing your favorite emoji. HarmonyOS 4 also includes an updated emoji pack with animated options. With Panorama Weather you get a daily forecast on your lock screen with real-time updates on weather changes.
The notification center has also been revised and now offers the option of splitting up incoming notifications. You can also pin your favorite app notifications and interact with them directly from the notification center without having to open the app.
Live Window is Huawei’s version of Apple’s Dynamic Island. Supported apps show real-time alerts and notifications in a pill-shaped icon in the corner of the display. With a single tap, you can expand the window to use the app. This feature is coming to smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches and works with several first-party Huawei apps, as well as more and more third-party apps.
In addition, there are new cards (widgets) in Huawei HarmonyOS 4 for more apps in different sizes that can be placed on the start screen. The Super Transfer Station transfers data between different apps. This is a system-wide copy feature that can batch and transfer multiple files, text, and images between apps and supported HarmonyOS devices.
HarmonyOS 4 also communicates with cars
In addition, the so-called continuity functions also ensure data exchange between smartphones or tablets and vehicles with HarmonyOS 4 infotainment systems. This allows you to transfer content and other apps to the display of your car.
Under the hood, HarmonyOS 4 brings an overhauled Ark Engine, which should offer 20% better performance with faster app launch and smoother animations while consuming less power. There are also several new security tweaks, including improved permission tracking options, app install warnings, and restricting access to personal information.
The HarmonyOS 4 public beta is already available for 34 Huawei phones, including the Mate 50 Pro, P60 Pro and Mate X3. Another 35 devices, including the P50 Pro, P40 Pro, Mate 40 Pro, Nova 9 and Nova 10, will join the beta program later.
