Huawei Unveils World’s First Tri-Fold Smartphone, Priced Higher Than MacBook Pro

Huawei has officially launched the world’s first dual-hinged, triple-screen foldable smartphone, the Mate XT Ultimate Design, with a price tag that surpasses even high-end laptops. The Chinese tech giant unveiled this innovative device on September 10, 2024, just hours after Apple’s iPhone 16 announcement.

The Mate XT Ultimate Design boasts a unique tri-fold design, allowing users to utilize the device in various configurations. When fully collapsed, it functions as a standard 6.4-inch single-screen smartphone. Partially unfolded, it offers a 7.9-inch display, and when fully extended, it transforms into a 10.2-inch tablet-like screen with a resolution of 2,232 x 3,184 pixels.

Pricing for the Mate XT Ultimate Design starts at 19,999 yuan (approximately $2,809) for the 256GB storage model, which is about $300 more than a new 16-inch MacBook Pro. The device is available in three storage variants, all featuring 16GB of RAM: 256GB, 512GB (21,999 yuan or $3,089), and 1TB (23,999 yuan or $3,370).

The smartphone is equipped with a 5,600mAh battery, supporting 66W wired charging and 50W wireless charging. Its camera system includes a 50-megapixel primary camera, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens, and a 12-megapixel periscope camera. The front-facing camera is an 8-megapixel sensor located in a hole-punch cutout.

Prior to the official price announcement, Chinese retailer Vmall reported an impressive 3.7 million preorders for the device. However, the availability of the Mate XT Ultimate Design outside of China remains uncertain.

The launch of this tri-fold smartphone underscores Huawei’s continued innovation in the foldable device market, despite facing challenges due to U.S. sanctions in recent years. According to IDC’s second-quarter report, Huawei has achieved the top position in the worldwide foldables market with a 27.5% market share, surpassing Samsung’s 16.4%.

Will Wong, an analyst at IDC, commented on the significance of Huawei’s latest release: “The production constraints and price point of Huawei’s latest product may not have a huge impact in terms of shipments, but it’s telling the consumers that it’s still the tech leader and the potential challenge it brings to Apple may be far beyond just market share”.

As the foldable smartphone market continues to evolve, industry forecasts predict significant growth. IDC projects that worldwide foldable device shipments will reach 25 million units by the end of 2024, representing a 37.6% increase from the 18.1 million units shipped in 2023.

While Huawei pushes the boundaries of foldable technology, Apple has yet to enter this market segment. Rumors suggest that Apple’s first foldable device may not arrive until 2025 at the earliest.

The Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design is scheduled to go on sale in China on September 20, 2024. As of now, there is no information regarding its potential release in other markets.

Sources:
[1] https://www.gadgets360.com/mobiles/news/huawei-mate-xt-ultimate-design-price-launch-sale-date-specifications-features-6532477
[2] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/huawei-targets-iphones-premium-market-130941827.html
[3] https://www.huaweicentral.com/huawei-mate-xt-ultimate-design-specifications-features-and-price/
[4] https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/huawei-worlds-first-triple-fold-smartphone-mate-xt-launch-few-hours-after-apple-iphone-16-was-released-2597242-2024-09-10
[5] https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/10/24240700/huawei-mate-xt-ultimate-design-tri-fold-price-launch
[6] https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/huawei-mate-xt-ultimate-design-is-the-worlds-first-triple-foldable-phone-priced-at-2800/
[7] https://www.tomsguide.com/computing/laptops/huawei-matebook-x-pro-2024-review