Huawei recently launched the Mate XT Ultimate, the world’s first dual-fold design smartphone. The diagonal of the device is 10.2 inches when fully opened. When the left part is folded back, it becomes a 7.9-inch foldable, and when the right part is folded, it turns into a 6.4-inch compact bar-style phone.
Despite its complex design, the Mate XT Ultimate is impressively thin at 3.6mm (unfolded) and weighs just 298 grams, even with its larger camera setup based on the Mate X5 foldable.
Technically the device has a single screen – a flexible LTPO OLED with a 120Hz refresh rate and support for 10 billion colours. 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”, which suggests it’s the midpoint 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 improve the display with “AI computing image quality”.
The rear camera setup is similar to the Mate X5 but incorporates features from Huawei’s P series. 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.
It also has 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 the punch-hole on the large display, which acts as a selfie camera when the device is folded.
The Mate XT Ultimate’s hinge system, named after the Tiangong space station, allows for “inward and outward bending” using dual tracks and moving parts to ensure zero-gap folding. The hinge is made from a composite laminate with non-Newtonian fluid components, which adds durability.
Huawei says the Mate XT’s single-screen mode is ideal for daily tasks, the dual-screen mode is optimised for web browsing and reading, and the fully unfolded triple-screen mode is best for detailed work or studying. The larger screen enhances productivity tools such as email, financial management, multitasking, video playback and AI-based features.
However, Huawei hasn’t clarified whether these AI tools are cloud-based or on-device, and we don’t know the chipset either. We do know that the phone comes with 16GB 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 the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) without Google services.
A key feature only available in the Chinese market is dual-way satellite communications, connecting to Tiantong satellites only through China Telecom.
The Mate XT Ultimate’s battery has three silicon-carbide composite cells, offering a total capacity of 5,600mAh. It supports 66W wired charging, 50W wireless charging, and reverse wireless and wired charging at 7.5W and 5W.
Available in black or red, with beautiful golden inserts around the hinges, edges, and camera, the Mate XT Ultimate is priced at CNY 19,999 ($2,800/€2,550) for the 256GB version, CNY 21,999 ($3,100/€2,800) for the 512GB version, and CNY 23,999 ($3,400/€3,100) for the 1TB model.
Huawei Mate XT Ultimate
It is unlikely that Huawei will release the Mate XT Ultimate outside of China, especially considering that the last international release of a Huawei foldable, the Mate X3, was almost 18 months ago. A non-Ultimate version is also unlikely in the near future, as this is a luxury device that targets a niche market.
