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So I finally received my Chinese version Mate 20 Pro Emerald variant and I spent the last 24 hours setting it up, now it's finally getting into a more or less stock android feeling. I decided to write a post because man, I've never spent so much effort just trying to setup a new phone.
Ordering
I ordered the phone from Huawei T Mall store on Nov. 11th. I paid about 1250 CAD through Alipay for the phone and ~ 600 RMB having my friend sending it to me via DHL. I also had to pay some import tax getting it into Canada but it's just bad luck, plus the tax really depends on how much you declare the value to be.
First Impression
I had a Oneplus 5, I like the cleanness of its ROM, it's close to stock android and I was using the Rootless Pixel 2 Launcher which makes it essentially a stock Android device. The Mate 20 Pro is a bit heavier than the Oneplus 5 and it's just slightly bigger.
I started with applying the tempered glass screen protectors I bought also from Taobao when I ordered the phone. Sadly I can't seem to get it in the right place, and it's greatly affecting the screen responsiveness and accuracy. I ended up throwing them away.
Turning it on, and I'm already having issue with the initial setup process. First of all, I was asked to create a Huawei ID. But guess what -- I live in Canada but Canada isn't an available option in the region list, somehow US is. I mean, this phone is not even available in US, why would you provide that as an option but not Canada?
I went ahead choosing US as the region. It asked for phone verification, that worked for me because US and Canada share the same country code.
After that, I uninstall a bunch of pre-installed apps -- they are mostly popular apps in China, plus a few useless utilities made by Huawei. I uninstall about 25 apps during this process.
Then I tried to restore all my apps from the old phone, first step would be getting Google Play Service working. Surprisingly Google Play Service is pre-installed. but I wasn't able to update it through the Huawei App Store, because US Huawei ID apparently is not supported. In fact I can't use any of the pre-installed Huawei apps, they are all blocked. So I deleted my account and created a Chinese one instead.
I was able to access the app store and update Google Play Service, along with Play Store. Google backup apparently didn't work. I ended up using the Huawei "Phone Clone" app to transfer all my stuff to this phone. It does the job pretty well.
Getting third party launcher working on Chinese ROM (If you have a global version then this may not apply to you)
Spent sometime getting all the apps logged in and tweaking settings, I started to look into replacing the stock launcher. But then you can't change launcher on the Chinese rom, so I did some research and here is what I did:
1. Install a third party launcher. I chose Nova Launcher here. Never used it before but Rootless Launcher kept crashing and for Rootless Pixel 2 Launcher, there is an annoying security alert saying "Google is using microphone" that kept popping up.
1. Enable developer mode
2. Enable USB Debug
3. Connect the phone to PC
4. Access ADB shell
5. uninstall stock launch: pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.huawei.android.launcher
6. Reboot
A few notes on using this 3rd party launcher hack:
* I also installed the Nova companion app to have Google Feed panel access.
* You need to allow Nova companion to auto-launch in Settings -> Apps -> App Launch, otherwise rebooting the phone will make Google Feed panel disappear.
* If you select gesture navigation in system setting, swiping up from bottom may not work.
Getting Google Assistant to work
The phone has the Huawei voice assistant by default, and changing the default Assistant app to Google doesn't work. The shortcut still only bring up the Huawei voice assistant. The fix is to uninstall the app using the same process above. The package name is com.huawei.vassistant. After reboot, I was able to access Google Assistant using the home button (I still prefer three key navigation). "OK Google" doesn't work on Home screen though.
Make sure push notifications are working
I also noticed I don't receive push notifications most of the time. For example, I have Duo Mobile which is used as an authenticator at work. Having the screen on, I didn't receive the push notification. I had to launch the app manually to see the authentication request. Here is a workaround:
1. Settings -> Apps -> App Launch
2. Find the app you wish to receive push notification
3. Disable auto manage, it will ask you how you want to manage manually, choose Auto-launch and Run in Background at least
Known Issues/Todo list
Here are some of the things that I'm having issue with but haven't figured out a solution yet. Please let me know if you know a solution to any of them:
1. Google Pay Contactless does not work. This is almost a deal breaker. From what I've read, it seems to be just Chinese version doesn't work.
1. LastPass accessibility setting gets reverted to off randomly. This seems to related to when I close all apps using the trashcan button on recent apps screen.
2. Default Assistant app setting mysteriously gets reset to None. Still don't understand why.
3. Text in the notification just look so bad. Also not sure how to tweak that.
4. The security alert for app using microphone keeps popping up in Google Assist and Google Feed. I'm not sure how I should feel about that...
Things I like about this device
1. Chinese version supported dual SIM. I believe the global version does not.
2. photos in low lights are awesome.
3. charging is super fast! I also got the wireless charging thing.
4. I'm happy with its battery performance so far.
5. It's a faster device overall. The games I play run smoother on this phone comparing to Oneplus 5. I understand OP5 is an older phone but that's the only reference point I got.
That's what I had so far. I'm also keeping an eye on the progress of FunkyHuawei Mate 20 Pro support -- I'm looking forward to flash the global version ROM hoping it has better google integration and less chinese-oriented useless "features".
Hope it helps!
Thanks for sharing
Does the device show as being certified in the Google Play Store? If not, this would probably explain why contactless via GP doesn't work
Minotaur said:
Does the device show as being certified in the Google Play Store? If not, this would probably explain why contactless via GP doesn't work
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Yes it shows as certified in playstore.
henexekrar said:
Yes it shows as certified in playstore.
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Hmmm interesting... is there an error message or such that might indicate why GPay doesn't work?
Minotaur said:
Hmmm interesting... is there an error message or such that might indicate why GPay doesn't work?
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when attempting to enable contactless, the following messages appear in order:
contacting your bank...
your bank is verifying your card...
added feature cannot be setup. contact your bank to resolve this issue.
I called the bank and they said they didn't get the request so they don't know what error it is.
I contacted Google and haven't got a response.
Did you already have the card in your GPay wallet, and were re-verifying, or did you add it from scratch? Guessing it may not make a difference though.
Minotaur said:
Did you already have the card in your GPay wallet, and were re-verifying, or did you add it from scratch? Guessing it may not make a difference though.
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I had the card in the wallet for a long time. Used it with my old phone without issue.
Does it support Band 66? Thanks
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I was in China last week and almost bought the Mate 20 Pro. After reading many reviews I decided to not buy the Chinese Version and pay a little more to get the Google version from Hong Kong
Any updates?
Were you able to find any way to get LastPass working properly?
Accessibility features keep resetting for me right away.
Hi, have your version finger-id? I bought a mate 20 pro red in aliexpress but i can't find the finger-id......
John_nl_74 said:
Hi, have your version finger-id? I bought a mate 20 pro red in aliexpress but i can't find the finger-id......
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The LYA-AL00 with 6 GM RAM and 128 GB storage has no fingerprint sensor. It only uses face, pattern, and password unlock.
I was hesitant to buy P40 Pro (I had P30 pro) because of a lack of GMS. But I am spontaneous and had a birthday... and both one
My first observations:
+Great camera - especially zoom one!
+video is better
+Has double tap to wake up, boy how I missed this I disabled it - too many self unlocks
+Fast!
+UFS 3 is a lot faster internal storage than 2 on P30 - downloading pictures is 2x faster over WiFi
-the screen is a bit darker than P30's?
-this huge cutout on a screen for useless (for me!) 3D camera
-has pre-applied screen protector I removed it and now is fine
-The wide camera is 18mm instead of 16mm in P30 Pro
- battery last shorter time
more + and - will come as I use it from 5 h
Now about missing services - phone clone app is by far the best cloning solution I ever used - in 5 minutes I had an almost exact copy of my P30!!! Minus Google Chrome and something else, I can't remember I miss Chrome but for now, with some minor hiccups, FireFox is filling the gap! Chrome is the best I installed it
All apps I use are up and running for the moment - future updates I need to figure it out how to backup calendar? - The internal backup app is doing the job remain to be seen restore if needed
In General, I am happy with it, only time can prove me wrong
Thanks for sharing your experiences! Still doubting to buy this phone. Chromecast and lack of Strava are the only things really holding me back at the moment.
Chrome I never use anyway (Firefox preview is nice!), I suppose Brave Browder doesn't work either? Or does it?
MajestyZ said:
Thanks for sharing your experiences! Still doubting to buy this phone. Chromecast and lack of Strava are the only things really holding me back at the moment.
Chrome I never use anyway (Firefox preview is nice!), I suppose Brave Browder doesn't work either? Or does it?
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Today using apkmirror I instaled chrome and google gallery - they work thou cant make chrome sign in with my account
Aha alright. Have you tried APKPure already? This app keeps your apps up to date as well. Or AuroraStore, it's kind of similar I believe. Same goes for the Amazon AppStore, or AppGallery of course. I just hope developers will make apps for AppGallery as well, so we can enjoy Netflix in HD instead of SD, hehe.
MajestyZ said:
Aha alright. Have you tried APKPure already? This app keeps your apps up to date as well. Or AuroraStore, it's kind of similar I believe. Same goes for the Amazon AppStore, or AppGallery of course. I just hope developers will make apps for AppGallery as well, so we can enjoy Netflix in HD instead of SD, hehe.
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I tried APKPure installing google Duo but Duo can't connect for some reason (GMS? )
pesho00 said:
I was hesitant to buy P40 Pro (I had P30 pro) because of a lack of GMS. But I am spontaneous and had a birthday... and both one
My first observations:
+Great camera - especially zoom one!
+Has double tap to wake up, boy how I missed this
+Fast!
-the screen is a bit darker than P30's?
-this huge cutout on a screen for useless (for me!) 3D camera
-has preaplied screen protector
-Wide camera is 18mm instead of 16mm in P30 Pro
more + and - will come as I use it from 5 h
Now about missing services - phone clone app is by far the best cloning solution I ever used - in 5 minutes I had almost exact copy of my P30!!! Minus Google Chrome and something else, I can't remember I miss Chrome but for now, with some minor hiccups FireFox is filling the gap!
All apps I use are up and running for the moment - future updates I need to figure it out how to backup calendar?
In General I am happy with it, only time can prove me wrong
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
check this guide https://forum.xda-developers.com/hu...s-live-gms-t4081351/post82258015#post82258015
you may be suprised how much more alternatives you can get and sometimes even much better
MajestyZ said:
Aha alright. Have you tried APKPure already? This app keeps your apps up to date as well. Or AuroraStore, it's kind of similar I believe. Same goes for the Amazon AppStore, or AppGallery of course. I just hope developers will make apps for AppGallery as well, so we can enjoy Netflix in HD instead of SD, hehe.
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Click to collapse
As I know from my friend, Netflix can stream HD on P40 Pro. Check again please
Huaweifans said:
As I know from my friend, Netflix can stream HD on P40 Pro. Check again please
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Where did he get the APK for Netflix? I can't find one on APK pure that works.
hpsauce37 said:
Where did he get the APK for Netflix? I can't find one on APK pure that works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Latest Apk on Apkmirror
Huaweifans said:
Latest Apk on Apkmirror
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Click to collapse
Says not compatible with my device. I assume you need play services installed?
hpsauce37 said:
Says not compatible with my device. I assume you need play services installed?
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Click to collapse
Show me the DRM Info on your P40 Pro please
Huaweifans said:
Show me the DRM Info on your P40 Pro please
G
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Of about 120 apps there's only 1 that i really need which I can't get to run (parklio, they rely on google for the login it seems).
I can easily replace the weather apps that won't work without google, a couple of apps like Banking keep complaining about missing google play services but still work.
Somehow it feels really good to be able to get rid of google in one way or another.
After some time of usage - updating apps seems to be an issue - I played Clash of clans for some years (nursing children accounts too ) and when moved to P40 everything seems to be ok BUT new version seems to be a problem - found the game in Amazon store - when tried to install it sais uninstall first - I'll lose all accounts after new version arrived tried again this time Amazon Instaled the game as e second version without accounts ....
I have all my apps and games without GMS. Just Sparkasse Bank in Germany haven't but in the future I believe that it will be solved.
And I'm happy without GMS. And my Handy is also happy without Googles devil in my phone.
Is there a chance to run the store and other applications without pop-up notifications? I have tried several articles but none of them remove notifications about the lack of certificates. After 30 minutes of attempts, google frimework id returns, I delete the old gsm application and install v2 but notifications like that are still there. Anyone have any idea or know the solution?
The P40 Pro has been a blessing in disguise. Challenging at first, it has been a great exercise to eliminate my reliance on Google services. The only Google app that I have installed (other than Android lol) is YouTube Vanced. I just wanted the player instead of the website, and I'm not even logging into it.
I'm also using Waze which apparently is owned by Google, but it does not rely on GMS at all. I do miss Google Maps a little, especially my custom maps and pins everywhere. Time will tell if I really need to come up with a workaround, but I'd rather not pollute my phone
Using mainly APKPure and APKMirror, I got all my apps back. Some apps throw Play Services error when trying to access some features, but overall they've retained all the functionality that I care about. I was never much of a "digitally connected/synced" person to begin with. I don't like logging into apps left and right or having them store my activity online, so maybe this switch is easier for me than others. I also never really used GMail for anything but Android related stuff, and I stopped using Microsoft/Outlook accounts in favor of Protonmail, once again trying to reduce my reliance on the tech giants.
Can we live without Google if they do not want us?
We can use the best phone without Google
My advise:
install Microsoft New Edge browser to notebook and sign in with your microsoft account. Do the same on P40 Pro. For Install, I use AppGallery, when app is not there I use APKPure. Some apps did not work if I used some other Store.
Install:
OneDrive - not only one of the best cloud drive, with this app you can upload photos to notebook and then forward to google photos from notebook.
Outlook - it can superb handle gmail AND google calendar. I have shared google calendars with my wife and kids. Outlook can do this. I do not know any other app that can do that.
Here we go - Excellent navigation. I have allways used Google Maps. It is the best. Period. But, as I daily drive 300+km, Maps often do not find the address. I then used app Here, wich did the job. We still can use Google Maps App, you only can not sign in to the app. In that case i have browser bookmark at home screen. So, with maps we are good covered. (there are more apps that are great, but this is enough)
Problem is with our Bank Apps.
I have accounts at 2 Banks, I am forced to have two, not big deal. My point here: One Bank work great over my browser. Confirmation number I get to SMS. It is not ideal, but it works.
Another bank use app that produce onetime code. There is not workaround with the browser.
I have solved that another way: my another Huawei (P smart Z). This phone can use GMS. I installed AirDroid to PsmartZ and all APPS that do not work on P40 Pro. Then, I installed AirMirror to P40 Pro. When needed, I can connect to P smart Z from anywhere, use that app and then close the connection.
Apps that do not work:
-Google apps where you have to sign in
-Microsoft Authenticator, Google Authenticator
-SmartRemote Bosch (unbelivable)
-Lidl, Lidl Plus (unbelivable)
-ChargeMap, ABRP
-DEĊ½ - simple but great rain radar picture here in Slovenia
What we need fast is ability to pay wih phone. Huawei must do more here.
But my bank have send me email, they are working on their banking app to work with new Huawei Phones, YESSSS!!
I will write more, I have run out of tint
I still do not understand, why google do not sell GMS online?
Google can not work with Huawei, but can sell software to me, or not?
Outook is really great app. It can sync google contacts!!!!!!
Good to know, If anybody need this.... I DO!!!!!
I posted some of this elsewhere but this feels like a good thread to put useful non GPS info into. I got my P40 Pro yesterday and am hoping to avoid GPS as it seems to be quite a complicated process that does not always stick and needs repeating regularly. Also the opportunity to de-google is actually quite tempting. Here is what I have found so far:
- My Lastpass, PayPal and banking apps work totally fine as before. What is interesting though is I saw some info that said that these work ok if you transfer using Phone Clone but may stop working if you then update them using other sources. I have another droid so will likely manage updates for these by Phone Clone
- Outlook seems to work ok for notifications but I am not sure they come through as regular as they should. I think it would be good to start a list of apps that do not rely on GPS to push notifications. Sadly Newton mail does
- Google photos is the hardest to replace seamlessly, Amazon photos should be a good alternative (if you have prime) but just seems to crash constantly. I have OneDrive but am still considering if I want to carry on using Google photos as my main photo repo, such a shame that DropBox stopped carousel as that was great!
- Chrome actually seems to work, you just cannot login.
If there are any fellow non-GPS people out there shared experiences appreciated!
I have an S10 (exynos, sigh).
And although there have been two play Store Google Photo updates since the new heat map feature was released, I don't have this feature in the Google Photos app.
I have tried:
- Restarting phone
- removing Google Account and readding
- uninstalling GPhotos updates (it comes preinstalled, so can't uninstall completely without rooting)
- clearing data and cache
(MANY combinations of the above, sometimes all of the steps)...nothing makes Google Photos look updated.
My wife's Huawei P30 Pro got the new features almost same day as to Google announcing the feature.
My secondary Huwaei P20 Pro also does NOT have the new features...could it possibly have something to do with my Google Account??
Thanks in advance for any pointers (as I really want to use that new Google Photos feature)
Update:
My Google account seems to be the problem... IPhone XS, P20 pro, Galaxy S8, Xiaomi Mi Mix 3
All show the "old" Google photos app.
But if I create a new Google account, BAM, new features on.
Anyone know why?
Since getting the phone on Thursday the extra Google 1 editing options in Google Photos are not there. I've been on the chat with the lowest rung Google support, but they can't help.
Anyone know what's going on?
deksawyer said:
Since getting the phone on Thursday the extra Google 1 editing options in Google Photos are not there. I've been on the chat with the lowest rung Google support, but they can't help.
Anyone know what's going on?
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Are they supposed to be there? Is this not specific to pixel phones?
Yes, it's a "free extra" when subscribing to Google 1 and it was present on my previous phone, the Find X2 pro. And its present on my Lenovo tablet, just not the new Find X5 Pro.
Almost miraculously, they have suddenly appeared earlier tonight. Well done to whoever fixed it.
I wanted to give my experience of using the Mate 40 Pro without Google Services as I believe it's interesting. I get a little obsessed when I can't have something I'm used to having, and am happy to bootloader unlock or otherwise hack my phone to get GMS working like I did with my previous phone, the great Huawei P40 Pro. Don't get me wrong, compromises are required but what can it do or not do.
I should start by detailing what I normally do with a phone.
I use the normal social media apps, WhatsApp, FB, FB Messenger, Reddit, Discord and Twitter. I watch YouTube videos, listen to Spotify, Apple Music, have a few light games, nothing intensive, have a few email clients one for work (Outlook) and one for personal email (Spark - because I like the way it works with multiple accounts). I also use it for banking, food delivery services and shopping with Amazon, eBay etc. I would use the phone for occasional Android Auto duties and route guidance using Google maps. Finally I of course browse the Web. So all in all I would guess that's fairly a normal usage scenario.
First off I should say that of the above list I can do all of that with my Mate 40 Pro. With the exception of Android Auto. But not always as convenient as I could.
Now I've already given a hint at my tech level so I'm not an average consumer and this phone cannot be used to its fullest by your average end user.
Using Phone Clone to setup the phone I have most of my apps working. Notable exceptions are ebay, YouTube and Google Pay. I keep my apps up to date using Aurora Store and try to avoid using the Huawei App Store for anything.
What have I done about ebay and YouTube? I use the web versions. They are fine for my needs, just not quite as convenient as the apps.
Google Pay was something I didn't want to continue to be blocked from using (obviously the P40 Pro even with GMS installed couldn't use Google Pay) so I ended up replacing it with Curve. This app / account provides NFC payments across all your banking cards as well as storing all your loyalty cards too. So almost a direct replacement for Google Pay.
As for Android Auto, that's the one thing I haven't been able to sort out a replacement for but I'm lucky enough to have sat nav in the car which works with the HUD (Android Auto didn't) and using the phone as a wireless hotspot and streaming audio over Bluetooth audio I'm not missing it at all.
It's not perfect but with a little effort it's a lot better than expected. Obviously everyone's mileage will vary.
With all that said, how long will I keep the phone for? No idea, I'm already eying up an Honor Magic 4 Pro but also prepared to consider future Huawei devices.
I'm now selling my Mate 40 pro after over a year of use easily been the best phone that I've owned, changed to a Mi 11 Ultra - First things of note are adverts everywhere, nothing much on the Mate. Like you any apps that don't work then over to the web apps although not sure why ebay doesn't work for you as it does for me (except notifications). The Honor Magic 4 Pro isn't a better device than the Mate (unless GMS is what you want back) the Ultimate version might be a different kettle of fish though, but that sounds like a China only release.
@gnasher666: For Android Auto you can use AAwireless, and for YouTube can still use YouTube vanced, with logging option (even they have stopped it's support, you can still find the apk).
Shymmy said:
@gnasher666: For Android Auto you can use AAwireless, and for YouTube can still use YouTube vanced, with logging option (even they have stopped it's support, you can still find the apk).
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AAwireless, is that the box you buy?
Yes.
I have a friend who bought something like this, he said it works fine.
He recently said he changed it and bought something more expensive, I don't know exactly what he got now.
No phone can really replace the Mate 40 Pro, the camera is just way too good.
I'm looking forward to importing the Magic 4 Pro Ultimate or buying any worthy phone, since all phones that released in this year are not good at all.
Derpling said:
No phone can really replace the Mate 40 Pro, the camera is just way too good.
I'm looking forward to importing the Magic 4 Pro Ultimate or buying any worthy phone, since all phones that released in this year are not good at all.
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Click to collapse
I'm very interested in the Magic 4 Pro Ultimate too. Honor are suggesting it may have a global release at some point.
If you don't mind the missing push notifications,
you can still get most apps (not google related apps) via APKPure (which will be genuine apps and they do provide SHA256 checksum, but I believe you will do the hashing checksum again by yourself)
Ebay, bank apps, everything I need works just great