Although Apple launched the new iPhone 16 only yesterday, it may not get as much time in the spotlight as the firm hoped.
That’s because Chinese phonemaker Huawei has today unveiled its answer to the iPhone as it launches the world’s first Z-shaped folding phone.
The new Mate XT Ultimate Design uses two hinges to extend from a 6.4-inch OLED display to a huge 10.2-inch tablet-like screen.
However, with prices in China starting at £2,148 ($2,809) this cutting-edge tech doesn’t come cheap.
And, if you want to splash out for the top-of-the-line model with 1TB of storage, that will set you back £2,577 ($3,370) – about the price of a brand new 16-inch Macbook Pro.
The Mate XT Ultimate Design uses two hinges to fold in a Z-shape, allowing it to expand from the size of a smartphone to that of a tablet
Chinese phonemaker Huawei may be trying to steal the spotlight from Apple’s iPhone launch as it unveils the world’s first tri-folding smartphone (pictured)
The Mate XT is the first design of its kind to use a ‘dual inverse hinge’ design which allows the phone to fold in or out like an accordion.
Huawei executive director Ridard Yu says: ‘We have never stopped innovating, and never given up in the pursuit of making it possible.
‘That’s how we were able to develop the world’s first commercial triple foldable phone.’
When fully collapsed, the phone looks like a regular smartphone with a large camera bezel on the rear and a 6.4-inch display at the front.
That display gives the fully folded Mate XT a similar screen size to the 6.4-inch Google Pixel 9.
But when fully unfolded, the screen expands to a seamless 10.2-inches, making it the same size as the iPad 9.
Thanks to the Z-shaped design the Mate XT can also be used while only partially unfolded with a mid-sized 7.9-inch display – which is just a little smaller than a fully opened Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
When fully unfolded the Mate XT is just 3.6mm thick, more than twice as thin as an iPhone 16.
However, when the phone is folded up completely that still leaves you with a fairly chunky 12.8mm device.
For comparison, a 16-inch MacBook Pro is just 16.8mm thick so this won’t be an ultra-slim device by any means.
When fully collapsed, the phone looks like a regular smartphone with a large camera bezel on the rear and a 6.4-inch display at the front
Huawei Mate XT Ultimate Edition, the world’s first tri-fold smartphone, pictured here on display for sale at a Huawei flagship store on September 10, 2024 in Shanghai, China
When fully expanded the Mate XT reaches 10.2 inches, making it the same size as Apple’s iPad 9
However, Huawei has used that space to pack in a lot of computing power.
The Mate XT comes with 16GB of RAM and is available with 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB of storage.
The phone also boasts a 5,600mAh battery capable of 66W wired charging and 50W wireless charging.
There is also a 50-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultrawide, and a 12-megapixel periscope camera on the rear.
That is in addition to an 8-megapixel front-facing selfie camera on the left-most of the folding screens.
After weeks of teasing the design, Huawei unveiled the Mate XT at an event in the Chinese tech hub of Shenzen.
The date of launch was likely chosen to coincide with Apple’s event in California during which the tech giant revealed its own flagship smartphone.
While Apple has long been rumoured to be working on a folding device of its own, Huawei recently overtook Samsung to become the biggest provider of these devices.
Huawei says it has spent the last five years developing the technology to allow the device to fold so compactly
However, at 12.8mm thick when fully folded the Mate XT would be quite chunky in your pocket. Pictured: Chinese Author Deng Fang demonstrates the Mate XT
Huawei timed its launch to come just one day after Apple revealed the new iPhone 16 (pictured)
Speaking at the launch event, Yu appeared to take a shot at his company’s rival as he said: ‘Today we bring you a product that everyone can think of but could not make.
‘Today we will once again rewrite the history of the industry, turn science fiction into reality, and lead a new era of folding devices.’
In another move seemingly calculated to ruffle Apple’s feathers, Huawei also announced that the Mate XT would come with AI features.
Huawei says that the new phone will launch with an AI capable of producing text summaries, translation, and editing.
The Mate XT will also feature AI-enhanced image editing software which includes the ability to trim unwanted parts of images.
These features bear a striking resemblance to those promised in Apple’s yet-to-be-released ‘Apple Intelligence’ AI updates.
The world’s first triple-folding phone at more than three times the price of the newest iPhone
Huawei has also announced that the Mate XT will include AI features including text editing tools which bear a striking resemblance to those announced as part of Apple Intelligence (pictured)
While Apple and Huawei are far from the only phone companies launching these capabilities, the move may be a direct challenge to Apple’s foray into AI.
While Apple previously experienced strong iPhone sales in China, the hype has now dwindled and the American company has slipped from the third to the sixth largest smartphone provider.
That has not been helped by the fact that Apple Intelligence will not be available in China until at least 2025.
While the AI update will arrive in America in November, followed by the UK in December, Apple has not provided any set launch date for China.
With Huawei offering a host of new AI features, this may prove appealing to Chinese consumers, provided they are not put off by the eye-watering price tag.