Huawei Technologies Inc. confirmed on Monday a significant delay of launching its smartwatch products in China. Reports claim that it was caused by a problem with the watch's operating system.
The Huawei smartwatch, which aims to outshine the Apple Watch, caught interest during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in March.
Yang Yong, the company's manager for wearables, said that the gadget will hit the shelves in the U.S. and Europe in the third quarter of this year. However, consumers in China will have to wait much longer as the delay could take until 2016.
“We’re experiencing some problems with Google’s Android Wear [the watch’s operating system] in China,” said Yang.
He added that the delay could be an opportunity to improve further on the product's design. The Huawei manager mentioned that there was also a delay with Apple watches before it reached its consumers, adding that the reason is that it is a new product.
The Chinese company revealed that Huawei will offer a less bulky smartwatch, with a rounder case than the one presented at the Mobile World Congress.
The limitations on Google services in China could have an impact, as it has been shut down since 2010. It was after the U.S. Tech giant got into a dispute with the Chinese government after refusing to censor its search results.
To remember, Google Play services have incompatibility issues in China and most of its services are watered-down.
In spite of the issues they are facing in their home market, Yang confirmed that they will continue utilizing Android wear as the operating system for its smartwatches.
The watch, featuring a built-in heart rate monitor and a 1.4-inch touchscreen, will be available in more than 20 countries worldwide.