Huawei’s new Pura 70 smartphones receive green light to be sold in Malaysia

Two models in Huawei’s new Pura 70 series have been certified by SIRIM, a certification organisation wholly owned by the Malaysian government
The debut of the Pura 70 series came as Huawei posted net profits of US$2.7 billion in the first quarter of this year, up 564 per cent year on year

Huawei

Kelly Le

Published: 7:00pm, 2 May 2024

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Huawei Technologies’ latest flagship smartphone, the Pura 70, has received certification in Malaysia for two models, paving the way for their sale in the country even though they do not support popular apps such as Google.

Two models in Huawei’s new Pura 70 series – the base model and the Pura 70 Pro – have been certified by SIRIM, a certification organisation wholly owned by the Malaysian government, according to latest information on the agency’s website.

The recognition by SIRIM, formally known as the Standard and Industrial Research Institute of Malaysia, means Huawei has the green light to sell the two models in the country, as all imported electronic gadgets require certification before going on sale, according to Malaysia’s government.

Huawei did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

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The highly-anticipated Pura 70 series hit the shelves in China in mid-April, in what was the firm’s biggest flagship handset launch since the Mate 60 Pro in August last year.

It is equipped with a home-made processor, the Kirin 9010, a newer version of the Kirin 9000s, according to a teardown report from TechInsights. The chip, manufactured by China’s top foundry Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp, is an example of how Huawei has been able to defy tough US trade sanctions and solve some bottlenecks in its semiconductor supply chain.

The debut of the Pura 70 series came as Huawei showed a strong performance in the first quarter of 2024 with a net profit of 19.6 billion yuan (US$2.7 billion), up 564 per cent from a year ago, according to the company’s latest filing.

The privately-held Huawei said sales in the first quarter rose 37 per cent to 178.5 billion yuan, but it did not break out figures for its business units.

A customer looks at a new Huawei Pura 70 series smartphone at a Huawei’s flagship store in Beijing, China April 18, 2024. Photo: Reuters

The strong growth in earnings is in line with its comeback in 5G smartphones, after its rapid rise as a major global smartphone brand was thwarted by US sanctions. Huawei’s smartphone shipments soared 70 per cent year on year in the first quarter to 11.7 million units, according to research firm Canalys.

Despite the strong performance in China, Huawei is still not among the world’s top five smartphone makers. South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, iPhone maker Apple and China’s Xiaomi are the top three, with 20 per cent, 16 per cent and 14 per cent market share in the first quarter respectively, according to Canalys.

Huawei’s operating system HarmonyOS could be one barrier to entry in overseas markets, according to analysts. Its market share in the fourth quarter of last year was only 4 per cent, compared to 74 per cent for Android, according to Counterpoint.

Huawei plans to launch HarmonyOS Next for commercial use in the fourth quarter, the company said at its developer conference in January. The upgraded operating system will no longer support Android-based applications.