Honor Vision TV Ditches Android For Brand New Harmony OS

Honor launched its new smart TV—Honor Vision—in Dongguan, China on Aug. 10. The screen is the first device to be powered by Huawei’s new Harmony OS (known as Hongmeng OS in Chinese).

As the first device to run on Huawei’s own Harmony OS, Honor is making a powerful statement in its ability to end its reliance on American operating system Android. The home-grown operating system can be seen as a safety precaution taken by Huawei in these turbulent times of trade war.

SEE ALSO: Huawei Unveils Long-Awaited In-House Developed Harmony OS

The 55-inch smart screen features a 4K UHD display and is capable of reaching a 400-nit brightness with a very wide 178-degree viewing angle.

Honghu 818, an AI television chipset powered by Chinese software giant Baidu, is what the smart display runs on and is much more capable than your average TV engine. The chip comes with seven forms of image optimization technologies including HDR, super resolution, noise reduction, dynamic contrast enhancement and auto color management.

Just like smartphones, it also offers various viewing modes such as low blue light eye-protection mode. Honor explained that if the TV detects the viewer as a child, display calibrations can be automatically switched to other modes to reduce eye strain.

At a thickness of 6.8mm, the incredibly thin smart display can be wall-mounted or sit on a conventional stand just like any other TV.

Honor also released a Pro-version of the TV with two extra speakers and a pop-up camera that can be used to take photos and make video calls. Both TV models integrate the Histen audio optimization technology for an immersive surround sound experience.

The Honor Vision will be retailing at 3,799 yuan (~$540), with the Pro version at 4,799 yuan (~$680). Honor has confirmed that its smart TV will soon be released in India. As for the release in other regions in the world, no further information has been disclosed as of yet.