Huawei and Xiaomi launch flagship foldable smartphones, reports BritPanorama.
Chinese tech companies Huawei and Xiaomi unveiled their latest flagship foldable smartphones on Monday, intensifying competition in China’s premium handset market ahead of Apple’s product launch later this week.
Huawei’s new Mate XT2 series, which unfolds into a tablet-sized screen, is equipped with its Kirin 9050 Pro chip, a redesigned hinge, improved water resistance, and a privacy screen to prevent onlookers from viewing the display.
The devices are priced from 19,999 yuan ($2,980), with the high-end version reaching 24,999 yuan ($3,725). Sales are set to commence on Saturday.
“Pricing right now is a real challenge because memory costs have risen sharply. We adopted a lot of new technology, and the cost pressure has been enormous,” stated Huawei Executive Director Richard Yu during a news conference.
Huawei claims that its new chip design enhances computing power while reducing energy consumption. The architecture, termed LogicFolding, is part of the “Tau Scaling Law” principle unveiled in May, as Huawei strives to navigate U.S. restrictions on access to advanced technology.
At a separate event, Xiaomi introduced its most premium model yet, the Xiaomi 18 Fold. This device employs what Xiaomi describes as a “medium-fold solution,” allowing it to maintain a passport size when closed while supporting multiple applications side by side when opened.
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun emphasized the advantages over Apple products, noting the device’s lighter weight—under 8 ounces—and thinner profile—less than a quarter-inch thick when unfolded.
The handset operates on Xiaomi’s proprietary XRing O3 AI processor, which Lei asserted is more responsive than Apple’s A19 Pro. It incorporates DRAM memory chips from Chinese manufacturer CXMT.
The Xiaomi 18 Fold is priced between 10,999 yuan ($1,540) and 14,999 yuan ($2,100).
“Nowadays, memory is very, very expensive. We don’t say it is cheap, but it is value for money,” said Lei.
These launches precede Apple’s unveiling of its latest iPhone models on Wednesday, amid high expectations that a foldable phone may be among the new products.
Huawei currently offers the only major tri-fold phone in the market, although it is barred from selling products in the U.S. due to national security concerns raised by Washington.
South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, the largest seller of foldable smartphones worldwide, released a tri-fold device in December but reportedly ceased sales after three months. In July, the company expanded its foldable lineup with a passport-sized phone.
In the second quarter, Huawei held a significant 22.6% share of China’s smartphone market, surpassing Apple’s 18.1%, according to consulting firm IDC. Xiaomi accounted for 12.4%.
Huawei’s dominance is even clearer in the foldable segment, where it represented 68% of shipments in China during the same period, as reported by U.S.-based research firm Smart Analytics Global.
