Before iPhone Launch, Huawei and Xiaomi Compete with Foldable Phones

Huawei and Xiaomi launched new foldable smartphones on Monday, escalating competition in China’s mobile phone market ahead of Apple’s product launches this week.

The new Huawei Mate XT can be folded twice to become the size of a tablet screen, and features the Kirin 9050 Pro chip, along with a redesigned folding mechanism, improved water resistance, and a privacy screen that prevents bystanders from viewing its content.

Richard Yu, Huawei’s chief executive, said at a press conference, “Pricing is currently a real challenge because memory chip costs have risen sharply. We have adopted many new technologies, and the cost pressure is immense.”

Huawei says the chip design allows it to deliver greater computing power while consuming less electricity. This design is known as “logic folding,” part of “Tao’s Law of Scaling,” which Huawei unveiled in May as part of its efforts to overcome U.S. restrictions on access to advanced technology.

In a separate launch event, Xiaomi unveiled its most advanced device to date, the Xiaomi 18 Fold. The device uses what the company describes as a “mid-range folding solution,” maintaining a passport-sized form factor when closed, while supporting three apps running side by side when open.

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun said the device has several advantages over Apple products. He added that the phone, weighing 219 grams and measuring 5.02 millimeters thick when open, is lighter than Apple’s iPhone Pro Max.

The phone runs on the X-Ring O3 AI processor developed by Xiaomi. Lei said it outperforms Apple’s A19 Pro processor in terms of responsiveness.

Lei said, “Currently, memory space has become extremely expensive. We’re not saying it’s cheap, but it offers real value for money.”

This comes ahead of Apple’s Wednesday unveiling of the latest iPhone model, amid expectations that it will also introduce a foldable phone.

Huawei is currently the only major brand selling a tri-fold phone. The Chinese tech giant is banned from selling its products in the United States, where Washington considers them a national security threat.

Reports indicated that South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest seller of foldable smartphones, launched a tri-fold device in December before halting sales three months later. In July, it expanded its foldable lineup by adding a passport-sized phone.

IDC data shows Huawei currently leads China’s smartphone market with a 22.6% market share in the second quarter, ahead of Apple’s 18.1%. Xiaomi holds a 12.4% market share.

U.S. research firm Smart Analytics Global stated that Huawei has strengthened its dominance in the foldable smartphone market, capturing 68% of shipments in China during the second quarter.