Honor (brand)

Honor is a smartphone brand majority owned by a state-owned enterprise controlled by the municipal government of Shenzhen. It was formerly owned by Huawei, which sold the brand in November 2020 to Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Co. Ltd.[1] Honor develops smartphones, tablet computers, and wearables.

Honor
Native name
荣耀
TypeState-owned enterprise
IndustryConsumer electronics, mobile internet
Founded2013 (2013)
FounderRen Zhengfei
HeadquartersShenzhen, China
Area served
Worldwide
ProductsSmartphones, laptops, wearables, accessories
ParentHuawei (2013–2020)
Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Co., Ltd. (2020 (2020)–present)
Websitewww.hihonor.com

History
Honor logo from 2013 to 2018
Logo since 2018
Standard
Chromatic
Honor store in Hangzhou

Honor was founded in 2013 as a Huawei sub-brand.[2] Honor's line of smartphones allowed Huawei to compete with mid-range online smartphone brands in China and globally.[3][4][5] Honor primarily sells products online, but some Honor products are also available at stores in selected markets.[6][7]

In November 2020, the Honor brand was sold to Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology, a majority state-owned company controlled by the Shenzhen municipal government, to "ensure" its then-parent company, Huawei's survival, due to US sanctions against them.[8][1] U.S. sanctions restricted the sale of hardware components to Huawei by American firms.[9]

Timeline of international expansion

Honor began to offer its products internationally in 2014,[2] launching the Honor 3C in April in Malaysia,[10] followed by the Honor 6 in Europe in October.[11] By June 2015, the brand was available in 74 countries.[5] In October that year, announced to increase revenue to $5 billion with plans to focus on India.[12][13]

In 2015, Honor's Vmall online store, previously available only in China, launched in Europe and the United Kingdom, enabling direct purchases from the manufacturer.[14][15][16]

Honor made its debut in the United States with the release of the Huawei Honor 5X at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2016.[17][6] Initially available for online purchase only, the Huawei Honor 5X was later made available at select brick and mortar stores.[17] Also this year Honor started to sell the first fitness-trackers.[2]

In August 2016, Recode reported that Honor had sold over 60 million products, generating over $8.4 billion in revenue.[18]

In January 2017 at CES, Honor announced that the Honor 6X, previously available only in China, would be available in thirteen new markets, including the United States.[19][20] The phone earned "best of CES 2017" accolades from several technology publications, including Android Authority,[21][22] Digital Trends,[23] Slash Gear,[24] and Talk Android.[25]

In 2018 Honor started to sell laptops and smartwatches, in 2019 earbuds and TVs.[2]

On 21 January 2021, Honor launched their first non-Huawei phone, the V40, after the dip in production of Honor devices caused by the removal of Google's Android mobile operating system after US sanctions, and a lack of support from Huawei's R&D division.[26]

MagicOS
HONOR MagicOS
DeveloperHonor, previously Huawei before the split[1]
OS familyAndroid, Linux, Unix-like
Working stateCurrent
Source modelFree software with proprietary components
Initial releaseDecember 2016 (2016-12)
Latest releaseMagicOS 7.1 / October 2022 (2022-10)
Update methodFirmware over-the-air
Package managerHONOR App Market[27] and APK files
Platforms32 and 64-bit ARM, MIPS, x86, x64
Kernel typeMonolithic, modified Linux kernel
LicenseGNU General Public License v3,
Apache License 2.0,
Proprietary
Official websitewww.hihonor.com/global/magic-os

MagicOS [28] (formerly known as Magic UI, and Magic Live UI[29]), is an Android-derived mobile operating system developed by Chinese technology company Honor. It is used on the company's smartphones and tablets.

History

MagicOS was originally developed by Huawei before the split in November 2020, it was rebranded EMUI with minor aesthetic difference for HONOR devices. Before the split, high-end HONOR devices were running on Magic UI while medium to low-end devices continued to run on EMUI.

It has gone through several name changes throughout it introduction, which initially known as Magic Live when it was introduced on the first HONOR Magic phone, and again renamed to Magic UI [30] with the introduction of HONOR Magic 2, which they renamed it again on 2022 to MagicOS.

Version history
Version Android version history Year of release Last stable release
Magic Live Android Marshmallow (6.x) 2016 1.1
Magic UI 2.x Android Pie (9) 2018 2.1
Magic UI 3.x Android 10 2019 3.1
Magic UI 4.x Android 11 2020 4.2
Magic UI 5.x Android 10 and Android 11 2021 5.1
Magic UI 6.x Android 12 2022 6.1
MagicOS 7.x [31] Android 13 2023 7.1

References
  1. "Huawei selling Honor phone brand in face of US sanctions". Associated Press. 17 November 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  2. Tom Bedford (20 January 2022). "What are Honor phones? A guide to the company and its smartphones". TechRadar. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  3. Lai, Richard (16 December 2013). "Huawei's Honor brand challenges Xiaomi with 3X and 3C low-cost phones". Engadget. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  4. Stinson, Ben (22 January 2015). "Huawei Honor 3C review". TechRadar. Future plc. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  5. Kan, Michael (30 June 2015). "Huawei's Honor brand strives to become global". CIO magazine. International Data Group. Archived from the original on 1 June 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  6. Boxall, Andy (13 January 2016). "Huawei Honor 7 Review". Digital Trends. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  7. Ellis, Tomos (4 June 2015). "Honor 4X review". TechRadar. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  8. Livingston, Scott (11 December 2020). "Huawei, HONOR, and China's Evolving State Capitalist Tool Kit". Center for Strategic and International Studies. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  9. Nakashima, Ellen; Whalen, Jeanne (19 September 2021). "Key security agencies split over whether to blacklist former Huawei smartphone unit". The Washington Post. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  10. "Quad-Core Huawei Honor 3C To Be Available In Malaysia On 29 April, Might Costs Under RM 600". Lowyat.NET. 21 April 2014. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  11. Boxall, Andy (29 October 2014). "Huawei tries something new, relaunches the Honor 6 smartphone without the Huawei name". Digital Trends. OCLC 810203593. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  12. "Aiming to double profit, Huawei's Honor brand eyes India". The Economic Times. The Times Group. 7 October 2015. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  13. Khan, Danish (10 October 2015). "Huawei planning to make smartphones in India". The Economic Times. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  14. "Huawei P8 Sells Out in One Day". PhoneArena. 24 April 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
  15. "Huawei Honor 7 to launch in the UK for less than £200". GSM Arena. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  16. Hanson, Matt (July 2016). "Honor 7 review". TechRadar. Archived from the original on 13 August 2016. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  17. Palenchar, Joseph (15 June 2016). "Huawei's Honor Brand Adds Brick-and-Mortar Sales". Twice. NewBay Media. ISSN 0892-7278. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  18. Fried, Ina (16 August 2016). "Despite its tiny U.S. market share, China's Huawei is launching a second brand here". Recode. Vox Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  19. "CES 2017: Huawei announces global launch of Honor 6x, priced at $249". Firstpost. 5 January 2017. Archived from the original on 2 June 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  20. Woollaston, Victoria (3 January 2017). "CES 2017: Honor unveils a £225 handset with a two-day battery life". Wired. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  21. Grush, Andrew (10 January 2017). "Best of CES 2017: the most impressive products from the show". Android Authority. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  22. Banerjee, Ankit (10 January 2017). "Interview with Honor VP Zack Zhang at CES 2017". Android Authority. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  23. "Digital Trends Top Tech of CES 2017 Award Winners". Digital Trends. Archived from the original on 2 November 2020. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  24. Davies, Chris (8 January 2017). "The Best of CES 2017". Slash Gear. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  25. Herrick, Justin (9 January 2017). "Talk Android Best of CES 2017 Awards". Talk Android. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  26. Kharpal, Arjun (22 January 2021). "Honor launches first phone since being sold by Huawei after U.S. sanctions". CNBC. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  27. HONOR App Market, retrieved 8 June 2023
  28. MagicOS 7.1, retrieved 8 June 2023
  29. Honor Magic, retrieved 8 June 2023
  30. Wright, Arol (18 November 2019). "Android 10-based Magic UI 3.0 update rolls out for the Honor View 20 and Honor 20". XDA Developers. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  31. Honor MagicOS 7.0 Official Introduction, retrieved 22 November 2022
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