huawei reveals mate XT, the world’s first tri-fold smartphone

Mate XT Ultimate Design, a tri-fold smartphone from Huawei

Hours after Apple unveiled its iPhone 16, Huawei surprises its fans with the release of the Mate XT Ultimate Design, dubbed the world’s first tri-fold AI smartphone with three large screens made of glass. This is also the debut of Huawei’s Tiangong hinge system, which allows the smartphone to bend both its internal and external components with ease. The multi-screen device features an embedded slim rod structure between the hinges so that the tri-fold smartphone doesn’t take up much space. Integrating the rod helps the design team make the smartphone slimmer, so even though it has three displays, it feels like it only has a single screen when folded. The triple-folding smartphone is available for pre-orders and is set to launch on September 20th, 2024.

all images courtesy of Huawei

AI smartphone with a frame made from steel

When the tri-fold AI smartphone is unfolded, the display measures 10.2 inches and doesn’t seem to have creases or show the rod between the screens. For those who are concerned about the hinge system, Huawei says that the core components of the Mate XT Ultimate Design come from steel typically used in making rockets, so the device can resist deformation even with frequent opening and closing. The tri-fold feature isn’t the only standout aspect of the new Huawei smartphone. The rear is also a design element to marvel at.

So far, there are two colors available: red and dark black, both of which have leather skins. Strips of black gold linings detail the edges of the tri-fold smartphone, gleaming both day and night. The new smartphone comes with a new update to the in-house HarmonyOS of the technology company. Some of the AI features of the Mate XT Ultimate Design include a voice editing function to help polish up voice-to-text transcription as well as a translation expert for side-by-side language switching in texts. The AI also supports photo editing, which can extend the background of a picture or remove objects from photos when the user desires.

Huawei surprises its fans with the release of the Mate XT, the world’s first tri-fold AI smartphone

Displays with 3K ultra-high resolution

When it comes to the multiple screens, it’s not necessary for users to always unfold the tri-fold smartphone. They can fold everything and just use one screen, which is typical for a common smartphone user. For dual mode, they can open another screen and have different apps displayed on each. This may be useful when reading and taking notes at the same time. That or when users need to jot down information from a web tab. The three screens are also suitable for entertainment since the Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design effectively becomes more like a tablet.

Huawei says that the displays are in 3K ultra-high resolution and that there’s a 92 percent screen-to-body ratio. This means there are fewer bezels or edges around the screens. The display also features a composite, laminated structure using a non-Newtonian fluid and the industry’s largest double-impact-resistant glass material. Flipping the tri-fold smartphone over, Huawei opts for a diamond shape for the camera casing. The company describes it as the first foldable smartphone whose cameras have 10 variable apertures. One of them is a periscope telephoto camera, and another is an ultra-wide-angle lens that can record and capture images at all focal lengths.

the multi-screen device features an embedded slim rod structure between the hinges

The cameras support 5.5x optical zoom and 50x digital zoom. These features can allow users to take panoramic photos of glaciers, lakes, and seas even if they seem up close. Beyond the cameras, users who hike and camp in remote areas may appreciate that when the tri-fold smartphone loses signal coverage based on the users’ location, it can still communicate through Huawei’s dedicated satellite, Tiantong.

The Mate XT Ultimate Design comes with a silicon, anode-based battery. It is 1.9mm thin and has a capacity of up to 5600 mAh. As of publishing this story, Huawei has made pre-orders for the tri-fold smartphone available. The model with 256GB memory costs around 2,800 USD, while the 512GB version is at 3,000 USD and 3,300 USD for the 1TB.

view of the unfolded Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design

for dual mode, users can open another screen and have different apps displayed on each

Huawei also debuts its Tiangong hinge system

black gold linings detail the tri-fold smartphone

name: Mate XT Ultimate Design

company: Huawei | @huawei

Huawei has just introduced the Mate XT Ultimate, the world’s first smartphone with a tri-fold design. When fully unfolded, the device measures 10.2 inches in diagonal. Folding the left section behind reduces it to a 7.9-inch foldable, and folding the right side transforms it into a compact 6.4-inch bar-style phone.

Despite its complex design, the Mate XT Ultimate is impressively thin at 3.6 mm (unfolded) and weighs just 298 grams, even with its large camera setup based on the Mate X5 foldable.

The device technically features a single screen—a flexible LTPO OLED with a 120 Hz refresh rate and support for 10 billion colors. Its full resolution is 3,184 x 2,232 pixels, which adjusts to 2,232 x 2,048 and 2,232 x 1,008 pixels depending on the folding configuration.

Huawei calls this display “3K,” positioning it as a middle ground between 2K (QHD) and 4K. The screen has a 92% screen-to-body ratio, with the fully unfolded 10.2-inch display boasting a 16:11 aspect ratio. Huawei also claims to enhance the display with “AI computing image quality.”

The rear camera setup resembles the Mate X5 but incorporates Huawei’s P series features. The primary camera is a 50 MP sensor with PDAF and OIS, paired with the P60 Pro‘s variable aperture of f/1.4-f/4.0.

There’s also a 12 MP telephoto lens with 5.5x optical zoom, a 12 MP ultra-wide-angle camera, and a laser autofocus module.

The device also features an 8 MP front camera in a punch-hole on the large display, which functions as the selfie camera when the device is folded.

The Mate XT Ultimate’s hinge system, named after the Tiangong space station, allows for “internal and external bending” using dual tracks and moving parts to ensure zero-gap folding. The hinge is constructed from a composite laminate with non-Newtonian fluid components, adding durability.

Huawei says the Mate XT’s single-screen mode is ideal for daily tasks, the dual-screen mode is optimized for web browsing and reading, and the fully unfolded triple-screen mode is best for detailed work or study. The large screen enhances productivity tools like email, financial management, multitasking, video playback, and AI-based features.

However, Huawei hasn’t specified whether these AI tools are cloud-based or on-device, and we don’t know the chipset. We do know the phone comes with 16 GB of RAM.

The device features the upgraded Xiaoyi voice assistant, known internationally as Celia. AI functions include voice-to-text, automatic split-screen, real-time document translation, and photo retouching. All of this runs on HarmonyOS 4.2, a system based on Android Open Source Project (AOSP) without Google services.

A key feature available only in the Chinese market is dual-way satellite communication, connecting only to Tiantong satellites via China Telecom.

The Mate XT Ultimate’s battery consists of three silicone-carbide composite cells, offering a total capacity of 5,600 mAh. It supports 66W wired charging, 50W wireless charging, and reverse wireless and wired charging at 7.5W and 5W, respectively.

Available in Black or Red with elegant gold accents around the hinges, edges, and camera, the Mate XT Ultimate is priced at CNY 19,999 ($2,800/€2,550) for the 256 GB version, CNY 21,999 ($3,100/€2,800) for the 512 GB version, and CNY 23,999 ($3,400/€3,100) for the 1 TB model.

   
   
   
Huawei Mate XT Ultimate

It’s unlikely that Huawei will release the Mate XT Ultimate outside China, especially given that the last international release of a Huawei foldable, the Mate X3, was nearly 18 months ago. A non-Ultimate version is also improbable in the near future, as this is a luxury device targeting a niche market.

APPLE’S AI CHALLENGE

Item 1 of 3 People look at Huawei’s new tri-foldable smartphone Mate XT displayed in a glass case at a Huawei flagship store in Beijing, China September 10, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo

[1/3]People look at Huawei’s new tri-foldable smartphone Mate XT displayed in a glass case at a Huawei flagship store in Beijing, China September 10, 2024. REUTERS/Florence Lo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

“What’s the point of buying it if you can’t use AI?” wrote one user on Weibo, China’s X-like platform. Another commented: “Without AI as the biggest selling point, it should be half price.”

Apple’s shares fell 1.15% in pre-market U.S. trading.

While Apple for years enjoyed strong demand in China, where new iPhone launches once sparked a frenzy, its sales have dwindled and the company’s ranking in the world’s second-largest economy has now dropped from third to sixth place.

Huawei made a comeback to the high-end smartphone segment last year with the release of a device powered by a domestically-made chip, defying U.S. sanctions that have cut off its access to the global chipset supply chain. The launch of the Mate 60 Pro surprised analysts and U.S. officials.

Huawei already has two-way foldable phones in its lineup, and its strong sales in China helped it overtake Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab this year as the biggest vendor of such phones globally.

But with a price tag that starts at $2,800 – more than twice the starting price of the comparable iPhone 16 Pro Max – and limited production, the tri-fold phone is likely to become more of a symbol of Huawei’s tech prowess than a major sales driver, analysts said.

“Production constraints and the high price point mean the new phone will likely not have a huge impact in terms of shipments,” said Will Wong, senior researcher at consultancy IDC.

“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.”

The foldable smartphone market grew 57% year-on-year in the second quarter with 3.9 million units shipped, largely as Chinese smartphone makers pushed into overseas markets, according to IDC.

That remains just 1.3% of the wider smartphone market, with 292.2 million smartphones shipped in the second quarter, IDC said.

Huawei ranked as the world’s biggest foldable smartphone seller in the second quarter with a 27.5% market share, ahead of South Korea’s Samsung, with 16.4%, according to IDC.