Google Maps on a Huawei watch: a Vietnamese developer reached 16k installs through TikTok and Facebook groups

In Aug 30, Vietnamese developer Hung posted a video on his TikTok account @hungnth: a Huawei Watch Fit 5 on his wrist, with real Google Maps on the screen, turning one step at a time as he rides. The title was just one line, "Đồng hồ Huawei Fit 5 sử dụng bản đồ G Navigation" (Huawei Fit 5 using G Navigation for maps). By Nov 6 the video had 62k views, his biggest by far. A commenter wrote: "Waited so long. I use an iPhone and never dared buy a Huawei because it couldn't navigate." Over two months later, G Navigation had 15,784 installs on Google Play (11-06), gained another 7 in the last 2,559 days, and reached #137 on Vietnam's Top Grossing apps chart. This piece is about how a feature that others had already built got revived by a local developer, and whether the approach can be run again in another country.

What it is

A bridge between phone and watch. Open Google Maps (or Huawei's Petal Maps) on the phone, and the watch shows turn guidance with the real map, not just an arrow. The other half is calls: Zalo, Messenger, Viber and Telegram calls come in, and the watch shows who is calling and lets you answer or decline.

It supports the watches Google doesn't cover: Huawei (HarmonyOS), Xiaomi (Vela), Amazfit (Zepp OS), and later Wear OS too. Both Android and iPhone phones work, with iPhone going through TestFlight beta. The store page also added motorcycle routes.

It's a free trial followed by a one-time Premium purchase, listed on Google Play at $0.69–3.39 in-app. A TikTok commenter said they saw "59k" in the app, meaning 59,000 Vietnamese dong, about $2.3.

Why now

Cheap watches had just spread, and the system left a gap. The Huawei Watch Fit 5 went on sale in Vietnam in May 29 at 3.69M to 5.49M Vietnamese dong (per the Vietnamese outlet tuoitre.vn). These watches are cheap, last long, and look good, but they don't run Google Maps. Huawei's official option is Petal Maps, which Vietnamese users aren't used to, and an iPhone plus a Huawei watch had no workaround at all.

Checking the wrist is a must when riding a motorbike. With the phone in a pocket or on the handlebar, a buzz on the wrist and a glance at the map is much safer than pulling out your phone.

It also solved a Vietnam-specific annoyance. When a Huawei watch was paired with an Android phone, Zalo and Messenger calls often showed no name and couldn't be answered, a question that kept coming up in Vietnamese watch groups. G Navigation made it a feature, so it wasn't just used while navigating but was on every day.

It wasn't the first, but it's a step above what came before. Polish developer Mobiteka built Navigation Companion 2022 years ago and released Navigation [Huawei watches] 2023 years later. Together they have over 40k installs (Google Play, 11-06). Back in January, a Vietnamese group, "Hội SmartWatch Việt Nam", had already recommended it. But it charged $2.99 upfront before any trial, showed only text and arrows, supported only Huawei, didn't support iPhone, ignored calls, had a rating of 3.0, and hadn't been updated since July. G Navigation reversed every one of these.

Where users come from

The developer's own TikTok. 15 videos, under 400 followers, about 140k views in total (TikHub, 11-06). A few that took off: 08-30 Fit 5 navigation on the map 62k; 09-04 "I tried G Navigation, and it can even answer Zalo, Messenger and Viber calls on the watch" 22k; 09-07 "A fifth-grader vibe-coded a Google Maps navigation app for Huawei watches, 1000 people are using it" 14k (whether that identity is clickbait or real is unverified); 09-30 Amazfit version 18k; 10-11 "Android - iOS / Huawei - Amazfit - Xiaomi" 14k. The release dates of the last two line up with the install jumps in October 3 and October 7–12 (third-party estimates of daily installs; the link is inference).

Almost all the comments were the same kind of question: "Does it work on the GT3 Pro?" "What about the Redmi Watch 5 Lite?" "Is there an iOS version yet?" "How do I install it on Amazfit, I've been stuck for ages." The demand was written in the comments, and he filled it in one model at a time.

Vietnamese smartwatch Facebook groups. In "Hội SmartWatch Việt Nam" 09-15, a post saying "G Navigation Amazfit version is now on Zepp Store" got 92 reactions and 86 comments. The same group had "Amazfit Active 2 install G Navigation to use Google Maps" and "Fit 5 calls not showing Zalo names, how to fix it". Several Vietnamese Huawei GT / Fit groups also had tutorial posts. Users reported bugs directly in the comments (disconnects, black screens, font issues), and new versions followed within days.

Local bloggers and forums followed up. Vietnam's largest tech forum, tinhte.vn, ran a post on "how iPhone users can get navigation on a Watch GT7: install G Navigation via TestFlight". Tech sub-accounts on Facebook also published the same tutorial.

Spillover into English-speaking communities. Someone posted about it on Reddit's r/HuaweiWatchGT, and r/smartwatch users compared it with Petal Maps. It reached #119 on Indonesia's free maps chart (11-06), which is probably how it got there (inference).

A repeat user. Hung had earlier built a web tool that helped Huawei phone owners install Google services, and a Vietnamese input method for Huawei watches. The tutorials for all of them lived on the same TikTok account. His audience has always been Vietnamese people who use Huawei and lack Google, and navigation is the next pain point for that group.

No ad campaigns or press coverage found; nobody has discussed it on X in nearly 60 days.

Where the money comes from, and how much

One-time purchase at about $2.3, with no subscription and no ads. Reaching #137 on Vietnam's Top Grossing apps chart means people are paying, but the amount isn't visible. Rough math from 16k installs and 5–10% paying gives a cumulative total on Google Play of a few thousand dollars (estimate). User counts on Huawei AppGallery, Zepp Store and TestFlight aren't visible, so the real number is likely higher. It also appeared at #137–156 on the map-category top-grossing charts in 15 countries, but those rankings move almost in sync, which looks more like one shared aggregate chart than separate 15 markets, so it can't be counted as revenue in those markets.

This is a small-money business. What's worth studying is the approach, not the revenue.

Who it's competing with

• Mobiteka (Poland): 44k installs combined, +963 in the last 7 days, but no updates, low ratings and no localization.
• Petal Maps (Huawei official): 310M installs, but Vietnamese users are used to Google Maps, and iPhone users can't use it at all.
• Notify for Xiaomi / Mi Band: 370k installs for an all-in-one notification app that can mirror navigation text to the band, but it doesn't show maps.
• Google itself: Google Maps runs on Wear OS, but Huawei, Xiaomi Vela and Amazfit are all left out.

No similar new apps found on Google Play this year. No copycats yet.

G Navigation is also expanding on its own: the recent update notes mention voice search, a home-screen widget, its own map style "Gnavi Map", and user reports of accidents and traffic signs. It seems to be heading toward a "lightweight Vietnamese Waze". A Wear OS version came out at the end of October, and it's already ranking in Indonesia.

If it were you

Verdict: don't follow it in Vietnam, since it has already taken the spot. The opportunity is the same combination in another country: cheap non-Wear OS watches + missing Google ecosystem + local messaging app calls + motorbike commuting.

Who it suits: solo developers who can write Android and are willing to work through the watch SDKs for Huawei Wear Engine, Zepp OS and Xiaomi Vela; ideally someone based in Thailand, Indonesia or the Philippines who wears these watches and speaks the local language.

Who it doesn't suit: anyone aiming for big revenue (a few dollars per sale is a small pool); anyone who won't keep fixing bugs as each firmware and Google Maps update comes out; people who only build for the web or only for iOS.

How to do it: pick one country and one best-selling cheap watch model (for example the Huawei Fit or Redmi Watch most sold locally), and get "real map on the watch + local messaging app calls showing names and answerable" working properly. Thailand's equivalent is LINE; Indonesia and the Philippines have WhatsApp and Messenger (whether these apps have the same call problems on these watches as Zalo does in Vietnam needs checking in local watch groups first; unverified). Offer a free trial, then sell a one-time purchase at local price levels.

How to get users: follow his approach with zero budget. Film vertical videos of yourself with titles like "using Google Maps on the XX watch" and name the model in the title; join local Huawei / Amazfit / Xiaomi watch Facebook groups and forums to answer questions; when someone asks about a model in the comments, add support for it and post an update.

When to move: the sooner the better. G Navigation already has English guides and has appeared in Indonesia, and its own expansion into Southeast Asia only means adding a language and a messaging app. Recommended: launch in one country before Q1 of 2027.

What the mistake looked like: ① G Navigation first builds in LINE and WhatsApp calls plus Thai and Indonesian, and gets into the top 50 of those two countries' free map charts, and the openings are gone; ② Huawei or Google one day opens official Google Maps casting to these watches, and the whole category disappears overnight; ③ one Huawei watch firmware update breaks it and the developer can't fix it, showing the path is too fragile to invest in.