Huawei has confirmed that the Huawei P40 series will be launched on 26 March at an event in Paris.

Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Business Group, made the announcement as he concluded the Mobile World Congress keynote, broadcast online due to the cancellation of the Barcelona show.

The 26 March date had already been suggested but we've now got confirmation from the man at the top of Huawei, who candidly said that Huawei would be launching the "world's most powerful 5G flagship smartphone" in the Huawei P40 series.

We're expecting a number of devices to be launched, from the regular P40 through the P40 Pro, with hints that there's going to be a P40 Pro Ultimate Edition, with a ceramic build, sitting at the top. That top model might get additional camera features too. 

Huawei used the stand-in event in Barcelona to make a number of announcements, reiterating the privacy and security around its App Gallery, the substitute it wants to offer in place of Google Play. With Huawei going it alone, there's now a drive to replace core Google services with viable alternatives - and we'd previously seen the news that TomTom would be coming in to provide mapping. 

Many had thought that Huawei would focus on a Chinese launch due to the ongoing stand-off with the US, but the Chinese company remains bullish in its approach. Launching the P40 series in Paris again sends the message that the company is committed to doing global business - and the recent announcement that the Huawei Mate 30 - launched in late 2019 - was going on sale in the UK, again sends the message that Huawei is pushing forward with its plans.

You can expect the Huawei P40 series to deliver competitive 5G handsets with excellent cameras - but the question of how Huawei will plug the user experience gap left by parting ways with Google still remains.