Huawei’s tri-fold smartphone is all set for release on September 10, 2024, and we could not be more excited to witness this category-defining gadget. Folding smartphones have come back in a big way these last few years and while Samsung has the biggest range of offerings, other companies have caught up to the leader with their own take on the folding marvel. Huawei’s 10-inch foldable is all set to be the first of its kind, not just because of the massive size of the book-type fold but because of its tri-fold design.
Such a setup will involve a complicated system of hinges and likely ramp up the fragility of the phone significantly, but for those who don’t mind the risk, Huawei’s foldable phone should be an interesting experiment with technology.
Image: HUAWEI Mate X5
The Huawei Tri-Fold Phone Is All Set for Its September Launch
Huawei turned to the Chinese microblogging platform Weibo to confirm its plans to hold a launch event on September 10 at 2:30 pm ET (11:30 pm PT on September 9), but the company didn’t directly connect the event to the Tri-fold smartphone release. Previous updates from the company had suggested that the foldable smartphone would be released in September, so fans have been quick to link the two news stories together.
Unfortunately for international fans, the Huawei tri-fold phone will be available exclusively in China. Due to security concerns, devices from the brand have been banned in the U.S., so a release in the region is entirely unlikely, but it could become available in other regions in the next few months.
The company hasn’t promoted and advertised its foldable phone very overtly, but observers have been able to pick out evidence of the device and track the Huawei phone leaks diligently to culminate in a sparse few reliable rumors. The former CEO of Huawei, Richard Yu, who maintains his position as the Chairman of Huawei’s Board of Directors of the Consumer BG, was spotted using the wide-screened device a couple of times. The device was said to be similar to the R&D prototype of the tri-fold phone, providing more confirmation that the project was actually coming to fruition.
Huawei’s tri-fold phone shown by Mr. Yu Chengdong pic.twitter.com/hFCnKztuGZ
— Mochamad Farido Fanani (@faridofanani96) August 9, 2024
Huawei is doing quite well for itself in the folding phone market segment. Earlier this year, the company crossed Samsung to take the top position in the category as the company with 35 percent of the foldable smartphone market shares. Motorola and HONOR were also able to make big gains in the charts due to their own foldable offerings.
Image: HUAWEI’s Mate X5 and other foldable phones have been quite successful.
Huawei Phone Leaks—What Do We Know About The Tri-Fold Phone?
The Huawei tri-fold phone is expected to have two hinges, which will allow the device to unfold into a three-paneled screen. The entire screen is expected to span 10 inches. For comparison, the inner screen on the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold has an 8-inch display while the Samsung Z Fold 6 has an 7.6-inch display.
Huawei will officially unveil its tri-fold phone on September 10, the day after the new iPhone 😁 pic.twitter.com/YlZxDuR6T7
— Ben Geskin (@BenGeskin) September 2, 2024
According to the leaks, the Huawei phone will feature a Kirin 9 series chipset and have some AI features, although we have no insight into what these features could be. From the few hazy images, it appears the device will have the same round and centered camera module on the back panel that we’ve seen in devices like the Huawei Mate X5.
Nothing else is known about the Huawei tri-fold phone but we only have a few days left in our wait to find out more. Conceptually, the device is undoubtedly interesting, but these hinged devices always come with the risk of an easily damaged screen. Foldable phones are much harder to keep safe with a phone cover, and the tri-fold structure will make it twice as hard, especially if the screen covers the outer edge of the device.
Do we really need a 10-inch phone? Considering the multiple additional risks it comes with, it feels like a nice gimmick to show off to friends and family more than anything useful, but we’re not going to stifle innovation with pessimism so early on. It’s good to see Huawei turn such a foldable smartphone concept into reality. It’ll be interesting to see how the general public responds to the device and how the gadget holds up to testing over time.
Huawei’s decision to schedule its event only after Apple’s iPhone 16 product launch is set to take place is also quite daring. Apple is rumored to be working on a foldable smartphone as well, but we’re unlikely to see any evidence of it before 2026, so Huawei has a clear runway to dominate the conversation on foldable smartphones for the next few months.