Business

Huawei is quietly positioning its OS as an Android and Windows rival with launch of a HarmonyOS smart cash register in China

By Wayne Williams

Copyright techradar

Huawei is quietly positioning its OS as an Android and Windows rival with launch of a HarmonyOS smart cash register in China

Skip to main content

Tech Radar Pro

Tech Radar Gaming

Close main menu

the business technology experts

België (Nederlands)

Deutschland

North America

US (English)

Australasia

New Zealand

View Profile

Search TechRadar

Expert Insights

Website builders

Web hosting

Best web hosting
Best office chairs
Best website builder
Best antivirus
Expert Insights

Don’t miss these

Is Android the new kingmaker in the retail Point-of-Sales market?

I am a retailing expert, and this little device is costing retailers worldwide billions in lost sales

Brave or foolhardy? Huawei takes the fight to Nvidia CUDA by making its Ascend AI GPU software open source

Huawei released an AI SSD which uses a secret sauce to reduce the need for large amounts of expensive HBM

Build an online store in seconds? One of our favorite website builders is adding ecommerce capabilities to its vibe coding platform

Huawei’s new MatePad has got me thinking: where are all the good cheap tablets?

Huawei is planning a 256-core CPU monster to take on AMD EPYC and Intel Xeon range but it won’t land till 2028 – at least that’s the official line

Could this be the next big step forward for AI? Huawei’s open source move will make it easier than ever to connect together, well, pretty much everything

The Spanish Government wants Huawei to monitor for system wiretaps

Huawei is betting on an army of 130 million influencers to supercharge 10GbE Ethernet adoption in China – and the rest of the world can only watch

Chaos at DeepSeek as R2 launch crashes into hardware problems – rivals gain huge advantage

Why omnichannel payments are no longer optional for retailers

AI Platforms & Assistants
rabbitOS 2 gives the Rabbit R1 a bold new look – and some very cool AI powers

What are super apps and how do they differ?

Qualcomm’s new mobile CPU has something no other processors offer – onboard RFID without extra hardware, and it’s a game-changing move

Huawei is quietly positioning its OS as an Android and Windows rival with launch of a HarmonyOS smart cash register in China

Wayne Williams

25 September 2025

Unusual new product developed in partnership with Alipay and retail giant Meiyijia

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Huawei)

Huawei’s HarmonyOS enters retail sector with smart cash register launch in China
The smart register combines HarmonyOS ecosystem with Alipay payments and Meiyijia’s store network
More than 40,000 Meiyijia locations nationwide will begin adopting the new system

Huawei has introduced a HarmonyOS smart cash register in China, marking the operating system’s first appearance in commercial hardware.

The product has been developed in partnership with Alipay and convenience store chain Meiyijia, and forms part of a joint initiative to accelerate digital retail solutions by combining resources across the payments, software, and retail sectors.
The cash register merges Huawei’s operating system and ecosystem technologies with Alipay’s payments infrastructure and Meiyijia’s large national store network.

You may like

Is Android the new kingmaker in the retail Point-of-Sales market?

I am a retailing expert, and this little device is costing retailers worldwide billions in lost sales

Brave or foolhardy? Huawei takes the fight to Nvidia CUDA by making its Ascend AI GPU software open source

The register features Tap interaction, an Alipay-developed feature that allows customers to complete a payment simply by unlocking their phone and touching the terminal.

Alipay launched the Tap interaction in 2024, and the feature has since been used by more than 200 million shoppers.
Beyond simply streamlining the checkout process, the system will be able to automatically apply coupons and synchronize loyalty points, all without shoppers needing to open an app.
The HarmonyOS-powered registers will begin rolling out across more than 40,000 Meiyijia stores nationwide and the companies plan to take the collaboration into other areas.

Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
Account integration, membership services, scalable models for smart retail operations, advertising, payment innovations, and a range of in-store digital services are all under consideration.
The arrival of HarmonyOS in retail equipment is another stage in Huawei’s strategy to deliver a domestic alternative to Android and Windows.
Originally unveiled in 2019 after seven years of development, HarmonyOS, known as Hongmeng in China, was Huawei’s answer to being cut off from Google’s Android ecosystem. It has since expanded onto tablets, wearables, IoT devices, TVs, and PCs.
HarmonyOS is already being used across a wide range of technology, and its addition to commercial equipment takes it from consumer electronics to business-facing infrastructure.

You might also like

Huawei debuts AI system that’s faster than the market leader, the GB200 NVL72
Huawei’s journey may be the blueprint for a post-Trump, non-US centric technology world
Mysterious tech firm set to become one of the biggest PC vendors in China

Wayne Williams

Social Links Navigation

Wayne Williams is a freelancer writing news for TechRadar Pro. He has been writing about computers, technology, and the web for 30 years. In that time he wrote for most of the UK’s PC magazines, and launched, edited and published a number of them too.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Is Android the new kingmaker in the retail Point-of-Sales market?

I am a retailing expert, and this little device is costing retailers worldwide billions in lost sales

Brave or foolhardy? Huawei takes the fight to Nvidia CUDA by making its Ascend AI GPU software open source

Huawei released an AI SSD which uses a secret sauce to reduce the need for large amounts of expensive HBM

Build an online store in seconds? One of our favorite website builders is adding ecommerce capabilities to its vibe coding platform

Huawei’s new MatePad has got me thinking: where are all the good cheap tablets?

Latest in Pro

Why blockchain will democratize AI

Jaguar Land Rover facing costs of “millions per week” following cyberattack – due to a lack of insurance cover

Under the radar – Google warns new Brickstorm malware was stealing data from US firms for over a year

Workers admit going back to the office makes sense – they just don’t want to do it

Cisco warns zero-day vulnerability exploited in attacks on IOS software

Germany is getting its own sovereign version of OpenAI

Latest in News

Sony unleashes another limited edition DualSense with the God of War 20th Anniversary model – and pre-orders start soon

The Last of Us star Troy Baker is headed for MCM London Comic Con for a special ‘Songs: for Joel’ live performance

Sam Altman’s vision for AI is huge – but there’s just one thing standing in his way

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is flying onto PS5 in December, with PSVR 2 support coming in 2026

PlayStation reveals Pulse Elevate speakers designed for PS5 and PC – and they have a pretty weird feature set

Sony announces new release date for Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse – and it’s a move that’s baffled me

LATEST ARTICLES

Under the radar – Google warns new Brickstorm malware was stealing data from US firms for over a year

Experts warn Supermicro motherboards can be infected with “unremovable” new malware – here’s what we know

“The Michigan bill is a danger for the political discourse” – Proton slams verification laws turning VPNs into a liability

First, AI flooded the internet with slop, now it’s destroying work, too – this is how you use AI and still be a stellar employee

Sony unleashes another limited edition DualSense with the God of War 20th Anniversary model – and pre-orders start soon

TechRadar is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Contact Future’s experts

Terms and conditions

Privacy policy

Cookies policy

Advertise with us

Web notifications

Accessibility Statement

Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street,

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait…