Foldables have gotten much better in the last two years, and I enjoyed using the Honor Magic V3 and Pixel 9 Pro Fold in recent months. While each iteration brings thinner designs, better cameras, and bigger batteries, the underlying foundation is broadly unchanged.
That's what makes the Huawei Mate XT such a unique device. The tri-fold nature of the foldable means you can use it as three different devices — a regular phone, fold-out device, and a full-fledged tablet once it's extended all the way. The design is distinctly unique, and while other brands are set to launch their own take on Huawei's idea sometime later this year, there isn't another device like the Mate XT right now.
The foldable debuted in China at the end of last year, and Huawei is thankfully introducing it in global markets. The brand showcased the tri-fold device at a media event in Malaysia, debuting it alongside the new 13-inch MatePad Pro and FreeArc buds. Given the innovative design and the fact that you essentially get three panels joined together, it was always going to be the case that the Mate XT would cost more than the likes of the Honor Magic V3, and now we know by how much — the device is going on sale for €3,499 ($3,600) this month.
It is available in a 16GB/1TB configuration globally, and Huawei has no plans to bring the 256GB or 512GB models outside China. The panel goes all the way up to 10.2 inches when fully extended, and the OLED inner panel has good brightness and color saturation.
It has interesting cameras as well, with Huawei using the same 50MP main lens as the Pura 70 devices. That's joined by a 12MP telephoto with 5.5x optical zoom, and a 12MP wide-angle lens. There's a 5600mAh silicon-carbon battery, and you get 66W charging as standard. Oh, and did I mention that it's the thinnest foldable available today? It comes in at an unbelievable 3.6mm when fully unfolded, and even the upcoming Find N5 doesn't measure up to that.
While the underlying Kirin 9010 isn't anywhere as fast as the Dimensity 9400, it does a great job in its own right, and I didn't see any issues in the little while I've used the device. That said, I'm just getting started with my unit, and I'll only know more once I start using it in earnest.
But even just setting up the Mate XT, I'm excited about its potential. The ultra-sleek design along with the tablet-sized panel, massive battery, and custom camera tech combine to make a foldable that doesn't really have an equal, and I can't wait to see how it holds up in real-world use — but more on that next week.
