Huawei tri-foldable phone—an industry first.
The Mate XT has been launched to the international market in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. Its 10.2-inch screen is similar to the most compact Apple iPads.
The company says the phone, first released in China six months prior, is the thinnest foldable phone at 3.6 millimeters (0.14 inches), and though dubbed a trifold, the phone has three mini-panels and folds only twice.
Some Huawei enthusiasts praise the phone’s design, saying it would look good for lifestyle-conscious consumers.
“When I saw the XT, I was just really amazed by it, how unique and elegant it looks,” says Filipino tech journalist Kathleen Manangkil. “It’s actually nice for an O-O-T-D (outfit of the day) if you are a content creator who is into lifestyle. I think it would really suit your fashion as well.”
Arif Ed Osman watched the presentation, and said, “It’s actually really impressive like how they’ve managed to fit everything into this tiny phone. The battery is 1.9 millimeters, width-wise. That’s insane if you think about it, the schematics and stuff, right? But in terms of design, in terms of how it looks, in terms of how it feels, seems a very durable product.”
Bryan Ma, an analyst for International Data Corporation (IDC), says, “Huawei is basically the only one with that kind of design right now. There’s rumors about competition from Korea that may eventually come later. But right now, Huawei kind of stands alone as that innovator, who really pushed aggressively quite hard compared to the rest of the other vendors in the industry. And so that’s why they stand out.”
For now, Huawei has the trifold phone market to itself, and launching the Mate XT outside of its home market will help determine what the appetite for this sort of large-screen phone might be.
However, the Mate XT’s price tag of 3,499 euros ($3,662) is raising some eyebrows in the industry.
This article and video were provided by The Associated Press.
[Person opening the newly-launched Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Design trifold smartphone]
[Huawei Mate XT being opened]
[Person holding the opened Huawei Mate XT]
[Person tapping on the phone while it is closed]
[Unfolded Huawei Mate XT on a display table]
[Andreas Zimmer, Huawei senior product expert, showing off the Huawei Mate XT to the audience]
Andreas Zimmer (interview): “Have you ever seen anything like this before? I bet no, right? First of its kind.”
[Audience members taking photos of the presentation]
[Zimmer during the conference]
[Large crowd looking at Huawei products after the conference]
[People looking at the Huawei Mate XT]
Kathleen Manangkil (interview): “When I saw the XT, I was just really amazed by it, how unique and elegant it looks. So, it’s actually nice for an OOTD (outfit of the day) if you are a content creator who is into lifestyle. I think it would really suit your fashion as well.”
Arif Ed Osman (interview): “It’s actually really impressive like how they’ve managed to fit everything into this tiny phone. The battery is 1.9 milimeters, width-wise. That’s insane if you think about it, the schematics and stuff, right? But in terms of design, in terms of how it looks, in terms of how it feels, seems a very durable product.”
[People looking at the Huawei Mate XT phone]
Bryan Ma (interview): “Huawei is basically the only one with that kind of design right now. There’s rumours about competition from Korea that may eventually come later. But right now, Huawei kind of stands alone as that innovator, who really pushed aggressively quite hard compared to the rest of the other vendors in the industry. And so that’s why they stand out.”
[Huawei Mate XT phones on display]
Bryan Ma (interview): “As Huawei launches its products outside of China, obviously it’s kind of standing alone in that space right now, because there isn’t as much competition at least for that, particularly for that trifold design.”
[Huawei logo]
[People walking past a board showing the Huawei Mate XT phone]
[Poster showing the Huawei Mate XT phone]
Alex Huang (interview): “The first ever trifold (Huawei XT Mate) smartphone, the price is 3,499 Euros.”
[Huang announcing the prices of other Huawei products on stage]
[Audience members taking photos of the presentation]
Bryan Ma (interview): “It’s not a cheap product. We’re talking about 3,000 US dollars kind of a range, give or take some. So it’s certainly not a mainstream product that most people are going to jump for. Secondly, there’s always things like reliability questions. It’s obviously going to be a little more fragile than your typical phone.”
Kathleen Manangkil (interview): “I think it’s a little bit expensive for its price point, but if it’s going to be out for half of its price, then it’s actually worth buying.”
Varun Atul Vashishtha (interview): “I think it’s still early stages for the tech. It needs to come down to a price point of, in my opinion, roughly around 16,000 ringgit (Malaysian currency) to half of it. I think that would be something I would be willing to buy.”
[Person trying out the Huawei Mate XT phone]
[People with the phone]
[Huawei phones on display]
This script was provided by The Associated Press.