Huawei Unveils World’s First Trifold Phone, Challenging Apple in China’s Premium Market
Huawei Technologies Co. has made a bold statement in the smartphone market, unveiling the world’s first commercially available trifold phone, the Mate XT, just hours after Apple Inc. launched its latest iPhones, Bloomberg reports.
The Mate XT, priced at 19,999 yuan ($2,800), represents the culmination of over five years of development. It promises to offer a 10-inch tablet experience that can be folded down to fit in a pocket. This groundbreaking device, showcased in a livestreamed event from Shenzhen, is poised to shake up the premium smartphone sector in China, where Huawei has been steadily regaining market share from Apple in the past year.
The launch of the Mate XT follows a year of major success for Huawei, fueled by the introduction of its groundbreaking, domestically developed mobile processor in August 2022. The company continues its focus on hardware engineering with this latest innovation, choosing to highlight its technological prowess in a market increasingly dominated by AI-focused features.
The Mate XT’s success, however, goes beyond mere sales figures. Huawei has become a symbol of national pride in China, particularly after its success in developing homemade chips despite US trade sanctions. This patriotic sentiment has played a significant role in Huawei’s resurgence over the past year.
The trifold phone boasts a remarkably thin design, measuring just 3.6mm when open (excluding the camera bump), and offers three distinct modes of operation: a regular smartphone, a nearly square foldable device, and a full 10.2-inch tablet experience. The device runs on Huawei’s proprietary Harmony OS.
Huawei’s strategic timing for the Mate XT launch, mere hours after Apple’s global iPhone 16 unveiling, is a clear indication of its intention to claim the innovation crown, at least within China. The company is determined to challenge Apple’s dominance and prevent the usual “honeymoon period” that follows new iPhone releases.
The upcoming holiday shopping season is expected to see a fierce competition between Huawei and Apple for the premium smartphone segment in China. Huawei is set to introduce a new Mate series of flagship handsets later in the year, further intensifying the battle for market share.
