Chinese phone maker Huawei launched its new, foldable device on the eve of the Mobile World Congress, a huge gathering of the mobile industry in Barcelona. The Mate X is set to compete with Samsung’s recently announced Galaxy Fold, which is priced at about $1,960 before taxes.The cheapest version of the Mate X goes for $2,600, including taxes.
The comparisons between the Samsung and Huawei phones don’t stop there. Huawei made sure to highlight the foldable phone’s 5G connectivity, a technology at the center of its quest for global dominance in the smartphone market. Samsung will offer a version with 4G and a version with 5G.
At 8 inches, Huawei’s phone folds out to a larger screen than Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, which extends to 7.3 inches.
In phone mode, Huawei comes in around 6.6 inches and the Samsung at 4.6 inches. But the Mate X is only 11 millimeters thick when folded, much thinner than Samsung’s 17 millimeter Galaxy Fold. Phone makers have begun rolling out foldable phones with a bang, convinced that phones that act like tablets will catch on.
The Huawei launch drew huge crowds. Fans queued outside the venue hours before the kickoff and those who couldn’t get in watched the event outside on a big screen. At times, they burst into excited applause. Huawei did not make the new phones available for analysts and journalists were only allowed to peer at the devices through glass walls, which were closely watched by security guards.
Samsung said it expects to launch the Galaxy Fold on April 26. Huawei didn’t give a date yet.
