Huawei’s trifold phone launches outside of China

Huawei has launched its tri-folding smartphone, the Mate XT Ultimate Design, outside China, with a starting price tag of 3,499 euros ($3,660). Its launch in China was held in September.

The company only provided the price for the 16GB+1TB storage option. At launch, the same model in China was priced CNY21,999 (€2,889).

Despite releasing pricing in euros, so far the phone is only confirmed to release in Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Mexico, though more markets are “expected.” Huawei UK public relations specialist Elliot Mulley-Goodbarne did confirm to The Verge that it’s “not coming to the UK or US for the time being.”

The Chinese tech giant markets the smartphone as the world’s largest and thinnest foldable, measuring 3.6mm when folded and 2.9mm when unfolded. The device weighs 298 grams, which is about 50 percent heavier than a typical smartphone.

It features a dual-hinge folding display that gives users three different screen configurations: a 6.4-inch panel when closed, a 10.2-inch tablet-sized screen when fully opened, and a 7.9-inch display when only partially unfolded.

The rear camera is also impressive, featuring a 50-megapixel main sensor along with 12-megapixel ultrawide and periscope lenses. However, a significant drawback is the lack of support for Google apps and services, including the Play Store, despite running Huawei’s Android-based EMUI software.

While the company introduced its own Android-free operating system, HarmonyOS Next, last year, the Mate XT has not yet been upgraded to that software. The release of a new software version for some devices is expected in March 2025. The list counts foldable phones, regular handsets, and three tablets.

The 5,600mAh battery should be sufficient to last the day, even with the larger screen size

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