Huawei will release its foldable Mate X flagship in China later this October, says news reports. The company was set to release the phone back in June.
Things have been less than snappy in recent months for foldable devices, to be sure. While the new form factor is said to be the next-generation smartphone design, only Samsung and Huawei are the two making a splash in the category — and not in the best of ways.
Foldable Phone Issues
There's that aforementioned cancellation of the Mate X, for starters, then the more disastrous case of the Galaxy Fold running into quality problems, including review units malfunctioning even when handled with great care. The phone's complicated design rendered it too fragile and vulnerable to debris, prompting Samsung to delay its original launch date and make adjustments.
Samsung has since re-released the Galaxy Fold and began selling units officially back in Sept. 27. Huawei, on the other hand, delayed its original Mate X release to September to perform "extra tests." It's October now, though, and there's been no sign of the phone so far.
But a new report from Chinese publication cnBeta claims the Mate X will officially ship at the end of the month — in China, that is. There's no mention yet of when the phone might launch in other markets, including the United States. The report adds that units will be limited because of difficulties in manufacturing the device.
It's safe to assume Huawei is limiting production in case something terrible happens that forces it to issue a recall, similar to what happened with Samsung. It's a smart strategy and clearly shows Huawei learned from Samsung not to rush certain things to market. The likelihood of the Mate X being more vulnerable compared with the Galaxy Fold is pretty high, considering its screen folds outward, leaving it exposed all the time, as opposed to Samsung's phone, which folds inward and keeps the foldable screen hidden when the phone is closed.
Huawei Mate X Unboxing Video
An unboxing video of the Mate X has surfaced online, which is further proof that Huawei is preparing for the launch of the phone. In the video, the phone is never powered on, but it shows the folding mechanism and the included carrying case, which could help the phone be less susceptible to hazardous materials. The ideal solution would be to wrap it with a case, but case manufacturers now have to come up with ways to work around the foldable mechanism.
Excited for the Huawei Mate X? As always, feel free to sound off in the comments section below if you have any thoughts!
