Previous speculations have said that Huawei will come out with new flagships at its September launch event, possibly the much-expected Mate 9. However, it seems that Huawei is thinking of launching the Mate 8 follow-up next year instead.

According to a report by GizmoChina, a Huawei executive confirmed that at the company's planned September launch event, new products are expected, although the much-awaited Mate 9 will not make an appearance. According to Huawei's product line manager Bruce Lee, the earliest possibly launch of the Mate 9 is in December, since it is also the release period for last year's Mate 8 flagship.

The industry follower then surmised that since the Mate 9 will be seen at the end of the year, the September launch event planned by Huawei is for other flagship releases, like the rumored Mate S2 lineup. While Huawei has yet to confirm its presentation lineup in September, the Mate S2 has already been making its round online, as supposed leaks point out that the new flagship iteration is already in the pipeline. In addition, a September launch for the Mate S2 is also possible, given that the original Mate S flagship was released around September last year.

As for the Mate 9, although it may still be some months before fans see the new flagship, supposed specs and features have already been spotted online. Speculations suggest that Huawei will make the Mate 9 the flagship vehicle for its new, homegrown Kirin 960 chipset. Meanwhile, it is also expected to feature at least 6GB of RAM for its top-tier versions, as well as massive onboard storage. Since Huawei has overhauled its camera assembly for flagship releases, fans also expect the Mate 9 to carry the same – if not higher – specs as that of the current-gen Huawei P9's camera, as well as other flagship features.