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    Home » News » App News » Here’s what South Africans are using Huawei’s Google-less App Store for in 2020
    App News

    Here’s what South Africans are using Huawei’s Google-less App Store for in 2020

    Brad LangBy Brad LangMay 5, 2020Updated:October 1, 2021No Comments4 Mins Read
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    Following the now notorious trade war between the United States and Google, Huawei was forced to jump through a few hoops to keep their devices up to the standards we expect from Android technology. Since the removal of the Google Play Store, Huawei has implemented their very own solution, the Huawei App Gallery (which clearly didn’t cost much in the branding department). The big question was: would anyone actually use the thing?

    Turns out they will, at least according to Huawei. We have a better understanding of how South Africans are using a wholly new app store. It might surprise you to find that that…well, we’re actually getting on just fine. And so, apparently, is Huawei.

    Top 26 AppGallery apps by total downloads (Q1 2020)

    1-5

    SHAREit

    Truecaller: Caller ID, spam blocking & call record

    Booking.com

    DStv Now

    TikTok – Make Your Day

    6-10

    Showmax – Watch TV shows and movies

    Mr D Food – delivery & takeaway

    Standard Bank/Stanbic Bank

    SuperSport

    Snapchat

    11-15

    SwiftKey Keyboard

    CamScanner

    VidMate

    Load Shedding Notifier

    Aliexpress

    16-20

    InShot – Video Editor

    VIU – TV Shows, Movies & more

    Absa Banking App

    Likee – Formerly LIKE Video

    Takealot–SA’s #1 Online Mobile Shopping App

    21-26

    Woolworths

    Moya Messenger #datafree

    SnapScan

    Deezer: play new music, live radio & any MP3 song

    JOOX Music

    My Vodacom

    It’s worth noting that the data provided by Huawei doesn’t actually include any solid numbers in terms of the apps that were downloaded, just a list sorted by popularity. It won’t come as a surprise that the most heavily downloaded apps are local services and quality of life improvements. SHAREit, an app used to efficiently transfer data across platforms, was the most popular utility app, likely due to many new Huawei owners not being able to carry data over via their Google account.

    After SHAREit, South Africans downloaded TrueCaller, to filter out all those annoying spam calls, Booking.com, which is weird given that people aren’t exactly travelling these days, DStv Now and TikTok. So that’s a pretty standard top five most downloaded apps. Everything that follows includes banking apps, food delivery services and service provider apps. Interesting, WhatsApp didn’t occur in the top 20 most downloaded apps, but Moya Messenger did. Perhaps a change in the wind…

    Top 26 AppGallery Games by total downloads (Q1 2020)

    1-5

    Lords Mobile

    Nitro Nation Drag & Drift

    Asphalt 9: Legends – Epic Arcade Car Racing Game

    Word Search Puzzle

    WWE Champions 2019

    6-10

    Real Gangster Crime

    Ms PAC-MAN

    Stump Me- Can you pass it?

    Asphalt 9: Legends – 2019’s Action Car Racing Game

    Slots of Vegas

     

    11-15

    Moto Rider GO: Highway Traffic

    Champions Manager Mobasaka

    Zombie Frontier 3: Sniper FPS

    Brain Games

    Highschool Dangerous Lies: Teen Story – Love Game

    16-20

    Soccer 2019

    Top Speed: Drag & Fast Racing

    Vegas Crime Simulator – Real Mafia Gangster

    Guns of Glory: Build an Epic Army for the Kingdom

    Looney Tunes™ World of Mayhem – Action RPG

     

    21-26

    Candy Blast Storm

    Words of Wonders: Crossword to Connect

    Clash of Kings

    Brick Game – Classic Tetris – Classic Blocks Puzzle

    Trial Xtreme 4

    As for games… well, South Africans have always had a thing for racing and…fantasy kingdoms, apparently. Lords Mobile, a role-playing MMO dominated the number one spot while Nitro Nation Drag & Drift and Asphalt 9: Legends took second and third respectively. After that, Word Search Puzzle and WWE Champions 2019 close out the top five places.

    So all-in-all, it seems that those of us able to overlook the lack of a Google Play Store are faring just fine with Huawei’s App Gallery. While the lack of solid download numbers may cause speculation as to how many people are currently using that ecosystem, until we see some proper numbers it’s impossible to judge that metric. Still, it’s encouraging to see South Africans adapting to new circumstances, something that seems to be happening more and more these days.

    App Store downloads featured Huawei Huawei App Gallery South Africa Top Apps
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    Brad Lang
    • Website

    I completed a Masters Degree just so someone might take my opinions seriously one day. Also writes about video games over at Critical Hit.

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