Mate X costs $ 2,600, but Huawei hints at cheaper folding phones

When Huawei announced that the Mate X foldable phone would sell for 2,299 euros – about $ 2,600, £ 2,000 or AU $ 3,660 – the audience at Huawei's Mate X launch party at the MWC gasped and groaned. But this may not always be the case.

"This is not just a phone," said Clement Wong, director of product marketing at Huawei. "Many phones will come out," he added, hinting that they could sell at different prices.

Foldable phones are shocking, and not just because they introduce a whole new design. With prices that double the current price of the $ 1,000 4G flagship models, these flexible devices will lower the cost of ownership in the stratosphere. In 2016, Samsung's most expensive cell phone was $ 850, while the price of Apple's most expensive iPhone rose from $ 769 in 2016 to $ 1,099 in 2018, a 43% increase.

The possibility of cheaper folding phones from Huawei was a new detail of Mate X that was presented during a small group session of journalists after the Huawei press conference in Barcelona. Another explained why the phone is so expensive initially, even surpassing the price of the new Samsung Galaxy Foldwhich will sell for $ 1,980. While the foldable design and high-end specifications inflate the price, the key may lie in the shape of the Mate X.

"Honestly," Wong continued, referring to the Galaxy Fold in veiled terms, "it's not really, really true, foldable." Huawei did not want to sell a foldable phone with a large space between the sides when they folded. The Galaxy Fold has a remarkable loop, seemingly large enough to fit in a pencil, while the Mate X is much flatter.

The hinge, said Wong, was a major research and development effort whose design took three years. "This is the essential part of the development of the phone," he said.

Lily: Galaxy Fold against Huawei Mate X: the battle of foldable phones

Huawei is wise to admit that he wants to build foldable phones at a lower cost. TCL, another Chinese brand known for selling mid-priced TVs, also aims to manufacture affordable foldable phones which are well below the price requested by Huawei for the Mate X. We were fortunate to see some concept devices that included a wallet style fold and even a large narrow band fold your wrist like a watch.

The Mate X closes with a physical lock, supported by magnets, and does not support wireless charging. Regarding his four cameras, which also take selfies, Wong confirmed that he had the same wide-angle, standard and telephoto lens as the Huawei Mate 20 Pro.

"This camera system is as good as our flagship product line, the Mate series," he said. "Maybe not exactly the same thing, but the performance is as good as that one."

Mate X practice: Read about our time with the Huawei foldable phone here.

Originally released on February 24th.
Updates, February 24: Adds a background on TCL foldable devices; February 25 and March 2: adds more details, links and photos.