Before Huawei finalized its plans of its foldable phone in the form of the new Mate X, it considered one concept that's similar to Samsung's Galaxy Fold, but it scrapped it because it was "not good."
At the 2019 Mobile World Congress, the buzz was all about 5G and flexible handsets, and from the look of things, the Chinese brand's efforts are paying off since the Mate X is without a doubt the talk of the town.
Galaxy Fold Design Wasn't Good Enough
In an interview with Business Insider, executive director and CEO of Huawei's business group Richard Yu said the company had a prototype that had a similar design to the Galaxy Fold, but it wasn't good enough. As a result, it had to junk it.
"I feel having two screens, a front screen and a back screen, makes the phone too heavy. We had several solutions, but we canceled them. We had three projects simultaneously. We had something even better than that, killed by me," the executive said.
By "that," he was referring to the Galaxy Fold, and if there was any doubt he's taking a jab at Samsung, he clears it up by saying, "It was bad."
Mate X vs. Galaxy Fold
One of the biggest differences between the Mate X and Galaxy Fold is how each of them folds. The former folds outward, allowing Huawei to be more practical in design with just one screen. Meanwhile, the latter folds inward, meaning it needs a second screen on the exterior of the device when it's in phone mode.
Until they both start shipping out to consumers, it's difficult to tell what their respective advantages and disadvantages really are, especially in real-world usage. However, from what can be gathered so far, the Mate X will likely be prone to scratches since it uses a "soft screen" — or, in other words, plastic — that doubles as its exterior when in phone mode. Glass can't be folded, after all. On the other hand, the Galaxy Fold's plastic screen will be kept from harm when it's folded.
Again, it's hard to say which one will come out on top here, but when it comes to price, the Galaxy Fold has the upper hand. It's going to be available for $1,980, while the Mate X will cost €2,299 or $2,609.
