ALBAWABA - Following weeks of speculation, Huawei has officially unveiled the world's first foldable phone, Mate XT, with three screens and a dual hinge, priced at an eye-popping $2,800, in hopes to consolidate its position as the market leader in smartphones and topple Apple only hours after the latter unveiled the new iPhone 16.
With its inverted dual-hinge design that folds into a "Z" shape, the Mate XT can be utilized in several configurations. When completely compressed, the OLED display measures 6.4 inches, much like a conventional single-screen phone, when that display is completely extended, it measures at 10.2 inches.
More than 4 million pre-orders for the devices have already been placed, according to Reuters, which cites data from research firm IDC indicating approximately 4 million foldable phones were sold worldwide in the second quarter of the year.
However, these numbers are inaccurate, according to Bloomberg, since the reservation system only notifies customers who sign up about how to buy the smartphone when it does go on sale later this month, interestingly on the same day as the iPhone 16, and doesn't need a deposit or a down payment.
While the Mate XT base model of 256GB goes for $2,800, two more options are available with the 512GB model costing 21,999 yuan (about $3,089) and the 1TB model costing 23,999 yuan (approximately $3,370), as per Yahoo. All of the variations come with 16GB RAM.
The unveiling event for the Mate XT did not provide any information about the chip that is being used to power the device. As a result, many people came to the conclusion that there was no new innovation, and the price tag would not deliver a significant improvement in performance, Bloomberg claims.
It has a 5,600mAh battery and supports 66W wired or 50W wireless charging. A 50-megapixel primary camera, 12-megapixel ultrawide, and 12-megapixel periscope camera are on the back. When unfolded, the 8-megapixel hole-punch selfie camera sits on the left-most screen.
“Today we bring you a product that everyone can think of but could not make. Our team has been working hard for five years and has never given up,” Huawei executive director, Richard Yu, highlighted during the event.
“Today we will once again rewrite the history of the industry, turn science fiction into reality, and lead a new era of folding devices,” he added.
Huawei is yet to reveal details on availability of the Mate XT outside of Chinese markets.
