U.S Sanction: Huawei Devices Will No Longer support SD Card Slots- VAM

Huawei has been hit with plenty of blows that doesn’t look good at all, One Of the Blow include the loss of chip designer ARM from the UK

Huawei

Chip designer ARM has sent a memo to employees telling them to cease “all active contracts, support entitlements, and any pending engagements” with Huawei because of “US origin technology” in ARM’s designs. ARM’s technology is the foundation for most mobile chipsets and without it Huawei wouldn’t be able to develop its own chips.

ARM has officially stated only that it is “complying with all of the latest regulations set forth by the US government”. Huawei has also responded by stating that, “We value our close relationships with our partners, but recognise the pressure some of them are under, as a result of politically motivated decisions.”

Huawei has been de-listed from the SD Association and no longer appears on its list of members. That means that Huawei can no longer officially use microSD cards or microSD slot in its devices. 

The ban doesn’t impact the smartphones Huawei already has on the market, but it will impact upcoming devices. Android devices commonly have microSD card slots, and that is seen by many as one of the big benefits of Android devices over iPhones.

The SD Association is the non-profit that controls the standards for SD products. It controls all formats from full-size SD to the microSD cards used in smartphones. Companies who aren’t a member can’t officially produce smartphones, tablets, or other devices using the standards or media. It’s also worth noting that Huawei had previously been moving away from microSD cards and slots to something it developed in-house called NanoMemory. 

It’s unclear if that NanoMemory tech uses any patents that might be restricted.