Huawei unveiled the Mate X back in February with the device due to launch in June. However, earlier this month, the launch date was said to be put back to September.
Vincent Pang, President of Huawei’s Western European Region, today confirmed that Huawei’s first foldable phone will indeed launch in September.
“The company has used the last few months to improve the P-OLED screen on the device to prevent it from getting caught up with the same problems that Samsung had with its foldable smartphone. The device is coming in September,” Pang said Friday.
After extensive tests, “Mate X” has passed Chinese 3C certification mark, a mandatory product certification system with the aim of protecting consumer security, under model number TAH-AN00.
The company had previously said that it was being “cautious” after multiple build-quality issues surfaced around initial review units of the Galaxy Fold and the company didn’t “want to launch a product destroying their reputation.”
The company claims Trumps ban doesn’t affect the Mate X since it was announced before the ban. The US government gave Huawei 90 days of reprieve that began on May 20, but that would end before the Mate X’s September launch.
For now, Huawei is saying the device will run on Android – not Huawei’s custom OS’ – because it was announced before the ban.
The Mate X is an attractive device that will give owners three screens effectively. When folded, it has a 6.6-inch 2480 x 1148 resolution main screen, a 6.38-inch screen on the rear and when it’s unfolded the Mate X transforms into a stunningly immersive 8-inch tablet with a 2480 x 2200 resolution display.
The screen that folds around the rear is dormant unless used to take photos or for other similar tasks. That leaves the flexible screen exposed to the outside world at all times and at risk of scratching.
The 0.4-inch (11-mm) thick Mate X has a solid strip on one edge that sits flush with the rear screen when folded over, acts as a handle and contains a quadruple Leica camera system. The phone also features a fingerprint sensor built into its power button, 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, a large battery and a new 55W version of the firms SuperCharge technology that can reach 85% from zero in 30 minutes.
Unlike Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, the Mate X does not place any of its cameras on the same side as its screen when unfolded. Instead they are placed on the flipside of the device on a strip that also features a fingerprint sensor. This runs down the side of the smaller of the two folded displays when closed and doubles up as a side-grip when open.
Huawei is calling the Mate X “The World’s Fastest Foldable Phone” because it will launch 5G capable, using a combination of Snapdragon’s X50 chip, Samsung’s Exynos 5100 modem and Huawei’s Kirin 980, connected along a 7nm architecture.
Operating under optimal conditions, the Mate X will be capable of delivering download speeds as quick as 4.6Gbps, 10x the speed of today’s 4G data connections. In practical terms, that means the Mate X will be able to download a 1GB file in as little as 3 seconds.
The Mate X comes in one variant: 8GB RAM with 512GB storage, compared to Samsung’s 12GB folding phone.
The Mate X has been priced to start at £1,996 ($2,600 / 2,299 euros).
Huawei Mate X – Key Specifications
- 5G Foldable Device with Snapdragon X50 chip
- 6.6-inch and 6.38-inch high resolution displays front and rear when folded
- 1.8GHz octa-core Huawei HiSilicon Kirin 980 processor
- Dual sim
- 8-inch tablet when unfolded.
- 4,500 mAh battery with 55w SuperCharge
- All new Leica triple camera
- 8GB RAM / 512 GB
