Huawei Launches Mate XT 2 Tri-Fold Two Days Before Apple’s Foldable iPhone
Huawei and Xiaomi are both shipping flagship foldables on domestically designed silicon, and Apple’s first attempt is expected at roughly twice Xiaomi’s price.
September 7, 2026 – 8:10 am
The Mate XT 2 is Huawei’s third tri-folding handset and goes on sale in China on 10 September.
Credit: Huawei
Huawei has unveiled a new tri-folding phone two days before Apple is expected to show its first foldable iPhone.
Apple’s event falls on 9 September, so both Huawei and Xiaomi will have demonstrated their foldables before Apple, and at a time when the market reference prices have already been set by others.
The Mate XT 2 features:
- A 10.2-inch display
- Battery capacity above 6,000mAh
- Redesign hinge intended to soften the crease common in previous folding screens.
What truly matters inside this device is its powerful Kirin 9050 Pro chip, built on Huawei’s own newer process – a significant achievement considering Washington’s sanctions.
Xiaomi has also achieved similar success with its 18 Fold. Featuring:
- A custom Xring O3 chip
- 7.6-inch folding display
- 200MP main camera
- 67W wired charging, all at a price of around 8,999 yuan.
Two Chinese manufacturers shipping flagship foldables on domestically designed silicon is the story beneath the launch calendar. This development was facilitated by Washington’s export controls, which ultimately pushed China towards developing its own custom silicon technology.
Apple’s device, expected to cost above $2,000, appears as a first-generation product in comparison. It reportedly features:
- 7.8-inch inner screen
- 5.3-inch cover display
- Absence of telephoto lens and Touch ID in the power button (in lieu of Face ID).
These omissions come at a premium price, reflecting Apple’s historical approach of prioritizing polished implementations in late entries to new markets, like large screens, 5G, and stylus support.
However, foldables present a steeper challenge. The format has existed since 2019, the mechanical problems are well understood, and seven years of iteration by Huawei and Xiaomi have granted them significant manufacturing advantages over Apple’s first attempt.
Huawei’s primary constraint is distribution: its phones lack Google services, limiting their reach to Europe and the United States. Thus, the Mate XT 2 primarily competes within China – a market both companies prioritize.