Chinese tech giants Huawei and Xiaomi have officially unveiled their new flagship foldable smartphones. The companies have pushed the announcement of premium devices ahead of Apple's big fall presentation and to intensify competition in the most expensive segment of the mobile market.
Chinese tech giants Huawei and Xiaomi have officially unveiled their new flagship foldable smartphones. The companies have pushed the announcement of premium devices ahead of Apple's big fall presentation and to intensify competition in the most expensive segment of the mobile market.
Reuters reports on the characteristics of the new gadgets, their cost and pricing.
The main novelty from Huawei was the Mate XT2 series - a smartphone that folds twice, forming a display the size of a tablet. The device is equipped with a proprietary Kirin 9050 Pro processor, a redesigned hinge, improved water protection and a special privacy screen that prevents outsiders from peeping at the content. The gadget is built on the LogicFolding architecture, which provides higher computing power with lower power consumption. This development is part of Huawei's strategy to overcome US technological sanctions.
Mate XT2 sales start on September 12. The base model costs 19,999 yuan (about $2,980), and the top version will cost 24,999 yuan ($3,725). The company's CEO Richard Yu explained this price by the increase in the cost of equipment: "Pricing is a real challenge now, as the cost of memory has increased dramatically. We have introduced a lot of new technologies, and the pressure on cost has been huge."
Xiaomi, in turn, introduced the most expensive phone in its history — Xiaomi 18 Fold. When folded, the device has the dimensions of a passport, and when unfolded, it allows you to work with three applications simultaneously. The smartphone is based on its own XRing O3 AI processor and uses memory from the Chinese manufacturer CXMT.
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun did not miss the opportunity to compare the new product with the products of American competitors. According to him, the unfolded device with a thickness of 5.02 mm and a weight of 219 grams is lighter than the iPhone Pro Max, and the new XRing O3 chip surpasses the Apple A19 Pro processor in response speed. The price of the Xiaomi 18 Fold varies from 10,999 to 14,999 yuan ($1,540–$2,100). “Today, memory is very, very expensive. We are not saying that the phone is cheap, but it is worth the money,” Lei Jun added.
The announcement of the Chinese flagships took place on the eve of a key event in the technological world - a major Apple presentation scheduled for September 9, 2026. The American company is expected to show the iPhone 18 Pro line with an emphasis on new artificial intelligence tools. At the same time, rumors about the development of the first folding iPhone or iPad have been circulating for several years, but Apple has so far remained aloof from this form factor, allowing Asian manufacturers to share the niche of folding gadgets among themselves.
