Huawei is going to the competition! The Chinese behemoth took the upper hand from US-led sanctions for several years but now, in the latest stages of the war, Huawei has been able to rise up and prove its worth.
After all, they released the Mate Pro 60 last year and it made US officials sweat at night. After all, Huawei is heavily sanctioned by the US so this 5G phone doesn’t need to be physical.
Huawei, however, will soon be behind Apple. This is why, in my humble opinion, this does not bother Huawei at all!
Rumors now suggest that SMIC (the third largest in the world after TSMC and Samsung) and Huawei can produce 5nm chips using old UV lithography technology.
To better understand why Huawei is important and what it means, we need to go back in time.
But first, let’s get some things straight and explain this tricky technical term! You need this for this article!
For chips, chip foundries and UV machines
Photo credit – SMIC
Smartphone chips, often called processors or SoC (System on a Chip), are the brains of a smartphone. They handle everything, from running software to connecting to the Internet. Smaller and more complex chips, with billions of transistors (tiny electrical switches) packed into a tiny piece of silicon. The smaller the transistors, the more they can fit on the chip, which makes them more powerful and efficient. This is why newer phones often have better performance and battery life – they have newer chips and more transistors.
Chip foundries are special factories where chips are made. They use advanced technology to print these tiny transistors on silicon wafers. One of the most important tools in chip manufacturing is ultraviolet (UV) lithography. The machine uses UV light to place patterns on silicon wafers. Think of it like using a stencil and a torch to draw small movements on silicon. The more precise the machine, the smaller the transistors can be made.
The term “nm nodes” refers to the size of the transistors on the chip, measured in nanometers (nm). A nanometer is one billionth of a meter, which is very small. Most of today’s chips are at the 5nm node, meaning that the transistors are only 5 nanometers. This is a big win because smaller transistors mean more can fit on a chip, improving performance and power consumption.
However, the production of these small transistors requires very high technology, which is why there is excitement that companies, such as SMIC and Huawei, have reached the pinnacle of chip production.
Well, now let’s explore!
Huawei’s success made people around the world smile
Huawei Pura 70 Ultra is the latest flagship from the Chinese brand | Image credit – PhoneArena
Until 2020, Huawei has achieved great success in the global smartphone market, positioning itself as a major player alongside Samsung and Apple. What I mean is this: people enjoy Huawei phones and what the brand has to offer in terms of technology.
Huawei smartphones have become popular for their high quality cameras and strong battery performance. The cameras were made by Leica. My father, a professional photographer, uses the P-series phone several times to report, producing front-page images in the local newspaper.
The company’s aggressive expansion beyond China to markets like Europe and Asia was supported by a wide range of products that cater to all types of users: budget lovers, middle-class afisionados, and those who have targeted basic devices.
You, people were smiling, holding their Huawei phones all over the world!
Then…
Huawei wiped the smile of some US officials
In 2019, Huawei faced a big challenge. The United States said that Huawei’s phones are making threads (due to privacy concerns) and imposed sanctions on the company. These sanctions prevented American companies from doing business with Huawei, especially in providing the necessary technologies and software needed for its phones.
One of the biggest problems was the loss of access to Google Mobile Services (GMS), which includes popular applications such as Gmail, Google Maps, and the Play Store, on new Huawei phones. This means that Huawei phones that were released after the sanctions are no longer installed with Google’s popular apps, affecting their appeal to international consumers who rely on these services.
The US government said Huawei’s close relationship with the Chinese government could expose it to espionage and illegal access to data, particularly through Huawei’s communications equipment. As a result, the US has imposed sanctions on American companies that provide Huawei with the necessary equipment and technology needed to build and expand 5G networks.
These sanctions severely affected Huawei’s operations and international sales.
The dawn of the rise of the picture of the rise of Huawei
Well, that’s a direct reference to “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” flying.
Join in August of 2023. The Huawei Mate 60 Pro it’s live.
This left some US officials full of words and anger. Are they angry because Huawei, after all the restrictions imposed by the US, was not required to have and use the 5G-SoC?
The phone is really good – reports say that US-owned Huawei has sold 1.6 million of its Mate 60 Pro phones in six weeks and is calling it a “refresh of the highest quality”.
The consequences followed. In April 2024, the Biden administration tried to persuade the Netherlands to stop ASML from using other machines in China, which shows that the US has tried to slow Beijing’s technological progress.
The Netherlands-based ASML equipment plays an important role in the semiconductor market because it dominates the market for lithography equipment, which is necessary for the production of circuitry on chips. These machines are large, expensive, and complex, performing an important role in the production of chips.
The United States is concerned about the stockpile of ASML weapons it has already sold, especially if they could support China’s weapons facilities. ASML systems are highly specialized and difficult to modify, making them very important in chip design. Refusal of spare parts and repairs could halt operations at a Chinese “fab” (chip maker), preventing the production of chips.
Huawei responded with the Pura 70 line, which appeared at the end of April. Interesting stuff, if you ask me.
The future is not certain
Will Huawei release?
So, since Huawei is planning to develop its own 5nm 5G chip, what does it mean? Yes, the company will get there eventually, heck, they will squeeze 3nm, but that’s not it.
Meanwhile, Huawei will be behind Apple and Samsung, which are running on 2nm SoC technology. Huawei can’t find them yet.
However… that wasn’t the point anymore.
As far as I can see, Huawei has no problems with this, because it rose from the ashes in its home country.
As things stand today, users in China always prefer Huawei’s 5nm phone to the 3nm iPhone (or other foreign phones).
Why? Because – you guessed it – Huawei is their thing.
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