Huawei opened the lid on EMUI 11, and we’ve been testing the company’s latest Android iteration on the Huawei P40 Pro for the past few days. Since the Google software is still out of the picture due to the US trade ban, EMUI 11 has to close the missing gaps in Huawei’s ecosystem.
But that’s a big challenge when Huawei’s access to Android 11 seems to be in question. The final EMUI 11 builds are expected to be released a little later. However, the build we tested is based on Android 10, Not Android 11.
We’ll probably have to wait until the Huawei Mate 30 series before we see the first public device with the latest software. Still, here are some initial thoughts on how EMUI 11 is performing.
Continue reading: Everything you need to know about EMUI 11
Practical with Huawei EMUI 11
From a daily usage perspective, EMUI 11 feels practically identical to EMUI 10. Huawei has left the most important elements of the user interface unchanged after the updates to dark mode and animation last year. There are some other improvements to animation and some more settings for configuring features like Celia – Huawei’s AI voice assistant – but these are small quality of life adjustments.
The situation is similar with the new security settings of EMUI 11, e.g. B. the hidden gallery and updated permission notifications. If you don’t look for changes, you will hardly ever notice that they are different. That’s not a criticism, but one wonders if customers will ultimately use them.
Huawei’s AOD (Always-On Display) feature has seen the biggest facelift, adding skins and customization features to beautify the screen. Again, this is purely cosmetic, with only limited changes to the content displayed. Though AOD provided you with typical date and time, battery, and notification options. Those who like themes and customizations will be delighted with this feature.
EMUI 11 is more of an iterative update than a major overhaul.
The only major change in the way you interact with EMUI 11 is Smart Multi-Window, which allows for improved multitasking. It works well enough, it’s easy to add apps that you use frequently, and there’s no indication of performance degradation even with a lot of background apps running. This definitely seems to be more of a power user feature and casual users may just forget that this feature is available.
Overall, EMUI 11 is making some behind-the-scenes changes and adding some new features, but everyday use feels a lot like EMUI 10. It’s definitely more of an iterative update than a major overhaul.
Google fill in the gaps
Huawei didn’t do anything directly in EMUI 11 to fill in the loopholes left by the lack of Google services. This is instead left to the HMS Core utility and other applications including Celia and Petal Search. New features continue to be broadcast to all types of Huawei devices via HMS, but now seems like a good time to reconsider the situation in general.
Finding applications has moved from using the Huawei App Gallery to the broader petal search engine. It’s a much more robust way of building final apps by browsing the app gallery, official websites, and even third-party stores like APKPure to find the apps you need. Finding petals is far better than just relying on the app gallery, and it’s actually a good idea to find apps right from a search bar.
It’s definitely easier to find apps than when you first started the P40 Pro. However, the setup is still not as seamless as using Google Play. Especially when installing apps from outside the app gallery can be painful. Huawei also goes a little overboard to bridge the gap between apps, offering rotating recommendations in folders on your home screen that you probably aren’t interested in.
The Celia Assistant, originally unveiled in March, has also become a bigger part of Huawei’s mobile ecosystem. Celia can send messages, make calls, perform web searches, set reminders and play music using voice commands. Huawei’s AI efforts also extend to Google Lens-like AI vision capabilities, virtual shopping, and even browsing your local files and contacts. Celia is currently available in seven languages in eleven countries. So there is still one way to catch up with the Google Assistant. But if you’re a regular assistant, you’ll likely find Celia pretty much on par with other major players in the field.
Ultimately, the lack of Google apps and services is still not ideal, especially for the majority of consumers who have gotten so used to them over the years. EMUI 11 did not change this fact. Take a step back, however, and Huawei’s ecosystem is becoming increasingly easy to use on its own. A growing number of apps are easier to discover, and there are usually alternatives if you can’t find what you want. Although this will still be a headache for users who rely on certain apps for work, leisure, or anything in between.
It’s not Android 11, does it matter?
While EMUI 11 is a good version of the most popular mobile operating system, as mentioned earlier, the version we tested is based on Android 10 from last year, rather than the newly announced Android 11. This is a pretty controversial change that previous EMUI versions followed step by step with each Android generation.
This appears to be the result of a temporary license to software ending as part of the ongoing US trade dispute. We expected that existing phones with Google services would be affected. However, it doesn’t seem to be because of the latest update being made for the P40 series. We’re not entirely sure how this will affect future operating system and security updates, but being stuck on Android 10 isn’t a good sign.
EMUI 11 is a good version of Android … but it’s already out of date.
EMUI 11 does not have Android 11’s notification organization, chat bubbles, and media playback tools. Although Huawei already has features like a screen recorder and privacy features that only just appeared in Android 11, Android skins are increasingly going beyond the standard experience anyway, and EMUI 11 retains Huawei’s own taste that fans enjoy.
Android 11 is just a subtle upgrade compared to 10, so EMUI 11 certainly doesn’t feel dated. The bigger concern is what this means for future features, operating system versions, and important security updates. We asked Huawei to clarify the EMUI 11 / Android 10 situation but received no response before it was released. We’ll update you when we know more.
See also: The Best Android 11 Features You Need To Know
My lasting impression of EMUI 11 is good. It’s a functional, feature-rich version of Android that definitely improves the stock formula. However, there are an increasing number of features that some consumers may not be using, and the overall complexity is gradually building up again. Unfortunately, much of this increased complexity is due to the move away from Google’s optimized ecosystem. It is clear that Huawei is still in the process of correcting the divorce.
Overall, due to the subtle nature of many of the changes, the update looks more like EMUI 10.2 than a full revision. Especially since it is still based on Android 10. What do you think about EMUI 11?