The tri-fold Huawei Mate XT Ultimate is official and boy is it expensive!

Huawei has just introduced the Mate XT Ultimate, the world's first smartphone with a tri-fold design. When fully unfolded, the device measures 10.2 inches in diagonal. Folding the left section behind reduces it to a 7.9-inch foldable, and folding the right side transforms it into a compact 6.4-inch bar-style phone.

Despite its complex design, the Mate XT Ultimate is impressively thin at 3.6 mm (unfolded) and weighs just 298 grams, even with its large camera setup based on the Mate X5 foldable.

The device technically features a single screen—a flexible LTPO OLED with a 120 Hz refresh rate and support for 10 billion colors. Its full resolution is 3,184 x 2,232 pixels, which adjusts to 2,232 x 2,048 and 2,232 x 1,008 pixels depending on the folding configuration.

Huawei calls this display “3K,” positioning it as a middle ground between 2K (QHD) and 4K. The screen has a 92% screen-to-body ratio, with the fully unfolded 10.2-inch display boasting a 16:11 aspect ratio. Huawei also claims to enhance the display with "AI computing image quality."

The rear camera setup resembles the Mate X5 but incorporates Huawei's P series features. The primary camera is a 50 MP sensor with PDAF and OIS, paired with the P60 Pro's variable aperture of f/1.4-f/4.0.

There’s also a 12 MP telephoto lens with 5.5x optical zoom, a 12 MP ultra-wide-angle camera, and a laser autofocus module.

The device also features an 8 MP front camera in a punch-hole on the large display, which functions as the selfie camera when the device is folded.

The Mate XT Ultimate's hinge system, named after the Tiangong space station, allows for "internal and external bending" using dual tracks and moving parts to ensure zero-gap folding. The hinge is constructed from a composite laminate with non-Newtonian fluid components, adding durability.

Huawei says the Mate XT’s single-screen mode is ideal for daily tasks, the dual-screen mode is optimized for web browsing and reading, and the fully unfolded triple-screen mode is best for detailed work or study. The large screen enhances productivity tools like email, financial management, multitasking, video playback, and AI-based features.

However, Huawei hasn’t specified whether these AI tools are cloud-based or on-device, and we don't know the chipset. We do know the phone comes with 16 GB of RAM.

The device features the upgraded Xiaoyi voice assistant, known internationally as Celia. AI functions include voice-to-text, automatic split-screen, real-time document translation, and photo retouching. All of this runs on HarmonyOS 4.2, a system based on Android Open Source Project (AOSP) without Google services.

A key feature available only in the Chinese market is dual-way satellite communication, connecting only to Tiantong satellites via China Telecom.

The Mate XT Ultimate’s battery consists of three silicone-carbide composite cells, offering a total capacity of 5,600 mAh. It supports 66W wired charging, 50W wireless charging, and reverse wireless and wired charging at 7.5W and 5W, respectively.

Available in Black or Red with elegant gold accents around the hinges, edges, and camera, the Mate XT Ultimate is priced at CNY 19,999 ($2,800/€2,550) for the 256 GB version, CNY 21,999 ($3,100/€2,800) for the 512 GB version, and CNY 23,999 ($3,400/€3,100) for the 1 TB model.

Huawei Mate XT Ultimate

It’s unlikely that Huawei will release the Mate XT Ultimate outside China, especially given that the last international release of a Huawei foldable, the Mate X3, was nearly 18 months ago. A non-Ultimate version is also improbable in the near future, as this is a luxury device targeting a niche market.

Source (in Chinese)