Will Xiaomi smartphones still have Google services in the future? Since Huawei has to do without these due to the American trade dispute, the question often arises with Xiaomi phones as well. However, the answer is not easy at the moment.
If you have a European Xiaomi smartphone, there’s little to worry about. If, on the other hand, you have imported your device from China or obtained it from an import dealer, things will look bad in the future. At least if you want to use the current MIUI version. But let’s take a look at it in detail.
Xiaomi, Huawei and the trade dispute
The US has published a blacklist of Chinese companies due to the trade dispute with China and has begun to prohibit American companies from working with them. The whole thing started with American punitive tariffs imposed by then-President Trump. His reasoning: Chinese companies would steal intellectual property and spy on US citizens. In return, China also imposed import tariffs on American products.
In the smartphone market, Huawei is the worst affected. Since then, the company has no longer been allowed to use all Google services and Android only in a certain variant. American suppliers are also no longer allowed to produce for Huawei’s in-house Kirin chipsets. A bitter blow for the former market leader, which had many consequences. Among other things, Huawei sold Honor, which means that at least this brand is allowed to work with Google again.
Xiaomi also ended up on the blacklist of Americans. The US Department of Defense accused the smartphone manufacturer of a connection to the Chinese military. Xiaomi contradicted this statement and asserted that it only manufactures products for civilian use.
However, since Trump’s term in office has now ended and no sanctions or trade embargoes have been imposed so far, it seems likely that the company will not have to fear any further consequences from the American side. Joe Biden himself sharply criticized Trump’s trade dispute even before his inauguration as the new president.
Xiaomi Google services in China itself
However, although Xiaomi has not yet been forced to end its cooperation with Google, the Chinese manufacturer is starting to remove the services from its devices. With the MIUI update to version 12.5, Google services are automatically uninstalled on Chinese models and are no longer available for reinstallation. However, this only applies to mobile phones that use the Chinese operating system. If you bought your Xiaomi smartphone in Germany, you can still install Google services. If, on the other hand, you have imported your device from China, then it looks bad for you.
But why is Xiaomi taking this step? YouTuber Frankie Tech sees three reasons for the discontinuation of Google services in China. For example, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer could be exposed to political pressure from its own government. However, some Xiaomi employees confirmed that the company’s decision is based on legal or economic rules.
Fight against import trade?
Another reason could be the eradication of the biggest competitor outside of China: Xiaomi itself. So far, it has been possible without any problems to get the Chinese Xiaomi models cheaply from third-party providers and subsequently install missing Google services there. By removing those services that are hardly relevant to users in China itself, importing becomes unattractive for European customers and they then resort to the more expensive versions from their own country.
To further counteract this, Xiaomi could also work towards a simultaneous release. So far, the smartphones have only been released in China and the global market launch took place some time later. So far, however, only the company itself knows what Xiaomi’s motives really are.
So what does the future look like? It cannot be ruled out that the USA will also impose a trade ban on Xiaomi, which will affect the availability of Google services. Especially due to the change of government, however, this is unlikely at this point in time.
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