It expands the possibilities of foldables with its dual-hinged form that folds in three parts and opens into a tablet.
The world of foldable phones is constantly expanding, and just when you thought choosing between them couldn’t be as quick as a flip, a newcomer ultimately changes the game.
Enter Huawei Mate XT, which just snagged the foldable phone crown for being the world’s first trifold smartphone at a time when traditional foldables are still on the rise.
Foldable devices these days fall into two categories: the book type that opens to become a small tablet and the clamshells that fold down smaller than a deck of cards. Both of them fold only once. Huawei Mate XT is stretching the possibilities of foldables with its dual-hinged form which folds in three parts and opens into a huge 10.2-inch tablet.
Launched globally last Feb. 18, months after it was first introduced in China in September 2024, the Mate XT is touted as an engineering marvel for its two hinges that fold in opposite directions—inward and outward—making the phone form a zigzag shape.
The brand calls it the “Advanced Precision Hinge System,” which uses 26 precision camshafts, ultra-strength high steel, and multi-drive technology to produce a smooth back-and-forth motion when folding the phone or holding its position at the angle you want. Adding durability are the Non-Newtonian Fluid Materials and a 322cm2 ultra-thin glass layer that enhance both the frame and screen’s impact resistance.
Because of its multi-cornered build, you no longer have to buy a case or worry about how the phone would stand on its own. And when it closes, you hear a snap that ensures the phone’s grip.
Besides its advanced hinge system, Mate XT is setting the bar on trifold phones with its slender build that is only 3.6mm thin when unfolded and just 12.8mm—as thick as two coins on top of each other—when folded up. It can also double as a statement piece because of its leather cover in two finishes—red and black—that gives the phone a refined texture and luxe appeal with its polished gold accents.
Unlike many foldable phones, the Mate XT sports a single, uninterrupted display for the user’s viewing pleasure in all of its three screen modes. In the Single Screen Mode, you can use the device as a 6.4-inch bar-type phone, while the Dual Screen expands the display to 7.9 inches. The Triple Screen Mode is used when the device is fully unfolded, letting you enjoy the entirety of its 2232 x 3184 Huawei X-True Display for binge-watching, remote work, and other major tasks.
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Other features of the Mate XT are as noteworthy as its ultra-modern build. Its rear camera system, for one, offers flagship-level photography with its 50MP main shooter paired with 12MP periscope telephoto lens plus a 12MP ultrawide sensor. On the front, the trifold phone has an 8MP camera for your selfies and video calls.
The Mate XT is powered by Huawei’s own Kirin 9010 chipset boosted with 16GB of RAM and 1TB storage. It runs HarmonyOS 4.2, which includes artificial intelligence features such as text translation, cloud-based content generation, and photo retouches, among others. And for the battery, Mate XT packs a 5,600mAh cell that charges up to 66 watts through the device’s USB-C port.
Huawei is the first tech company in the world to roll out a trifold phone commercially, as others have by far settled with mere prototypes. Among those that tried but are yet to launch one are Tecno, with the Phantom Ultimate 2 which could fold and work as a mini laptop, Samsung and its triple-folding phone with internal and external screens, and Oppo’s trifold phone concept with an under-display selfie camera.
Those who want to get their hands on the world’s first trifold phone won’t have to wait longer as Huawei is set to drop its game-changing Mate XT in the Philippines this March.
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