Huawei Mate X - a smartphone that turns into a tablet

Huawei Mate X is a flexible smartphone that comes straight out of a science fiction movie. At the electronics exhibition in Barcelona, ​​those interested could hold it in their hands.

The device feels very solid, primarily due to its hinges. The smartphone can unfold and turn into an Android tablet with an 8-inch screen.

This is a frameless Huawei FullView screen, thanks to which the device looks better than the Samsung Galaxy Fold. The latter has so far only been seen from a distance. Samsung did not allow anyone to touch it.

The Huawei device has serious computing power thanks to the Kirin 980 processor. It supports the 5G standard, and the battery capacity is 4500 mAh.

How does it feel to work with this smartphone? What is it like to use it on a daily basis? Let's try to understand.

Specifications

Video review from the presentation:

5G support

Not only is the Huawei Mate X a completely finished phone, it turned out to be one of the first devices to support the new generation of wireless networks - 5G. If you have any complaints about 4G communications, then when 5G becomes available from your operator, you will be the first to be able to use it. Unfortunately, such operators in the world can still be counted on the fingers of one hand.

The smartphone was originally planned to go on sale in May, but operators need at least 2-3 months to set up and launch new standards and services. Because of this, the Mate X will arrive in June or July.

Huawei will definitely push forward with 5G networks as the company has invested heavily in creating new infrastructure. When such happiness will reach us is a separate topic for discussion.

Price and release date

The price of the Huawei Mate X is so high that it makes the most expensive iPhone seem affordable. Huawei was once known as a manufacturer of cheap smartphones, but now the Chinese company feels great among world-famous manufacturers from the very top league.

In general, the device costs 2299 euros. It has 8 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage. Huawei hints that there will be other versions.

A specific date for the start of sales was not announced, but this should happen in the summer of 2022. However, the device may not be sold in all countries of the world. It will definitely be in the UK, but nothing is said about the USA. However, the US and Huawei have a complex relationship, so this is an exception to the rule.

Will Mate X be released in Russia?

Not yet. The list of countries has not been officially announced. It is known that Huawei is targeting the European market and customers interested in luxury gadgets. On the other hand, Russian buyers are almost the most loyal to the brand. Moreover, in the CIS the demand for expensive luxury items has never dried up. But from the point of view of manufacturers, it is better to experiment where currency, political and economic risks are minimal. This means that economically developed countries will have priority over developing ones.

Go to the official Huawei Mate X page

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Design and screen

At first it was not clear how the latch system was used to make the device work when folded. It turned out that the button on the back of the case can be pressed. This releases the back side, allowing you to unfold the device and turn it into a tablet.

The front part is completely occupied by a 6.6-inch screen. It's a stark contrast to the Galaxy Fold, which has a modest 4.6-inch screen surrounded by thick bezels.

This is where the Huawei Mate X truly stands out. Samsung's single folded outer screen is reminiscent of the old days of large bezels and small screens. This smartphone is not like modern frameless devices. Huawei has an advantage in this regard thanks to its 8-inch FullView screen.

If you rotate the device, you will see the rest of the screen. The secondary screen measures 6.4 inches and is thinner. You can watch videos well in 21:9 format. You can activate a smaller screen and save energy.

Screen technology helps save energy. This is an OLED panel where individual pixels light up. If the pixels are not in use, they remain black and no power is supplied to them. LCD screens require a full panel backlight, with all pixels lit at the same time. Due to this, energy consumption on OLED screens is lower.

There is a vertical stripe to the left of the rear screen. This contains the brains of the device, including the triple camera. Huawei didn’t say anything about it. There is also a power button with a fingerprint scanner inside, and at the base there is a USB-C port for charging. Inside there are various components.

Moving parts on smartphones are intimidating to many, especially at such a high price. It is psychologically scary to pick up a tablet and try to bend it; there is a fear that it will break in half.

Huawei claims that this flexible screen has survived more than 100 thousand folding cycles in laboratory conditions. It also showed how the protective case was developed. Despite the thin body, it feels durable.

What’s even worse is that the latches holding the two parts of the screen will break. Huawei says the latches are needed to hold the screens tightly together, but the next generation of the Falcon Wing hinge system will be able to do without latches.

The durability of the device is also a concern. Flexible screens are made of plastic, which scratches more easily than glass. For example, you can remember the Moto Z Force smartphone, where they promised an indestructible screen when dropped from a small height, but it was scratched well.

In this regard, there is a possibility that the Samsung Galaxy Fold will have an edge over the Huawei device. The flexible screen here is not so exposed; the outer screen is glass.

Of course, Huawei says x numerous durability tests and good results. In addition, there are still several months before the start of sales and the necessary improvements can be made.

⇡#Camera

The Huawei Mate Xs does not have a separate emphasis on the camera, but it is not a “tablet” option, equipped with cameras on a residual basis. It’s just that in this aspect, the Mate Xs is inferior to the “regular” Huawei flagships - both the P30 Pro with its impressive periscope module, and the Mate 30 Pro with its dedicated video module.

But the Mate Xs still has a quadruple unit, consisting of a 40-megapixel main module (lens with an equivalent focal length of 27 mm, f/1.8 aperture, hybrid autofocus), a 16-megapixel wide-angle (17 mm, f/2.2 , autofocus), 8-megapixel telephoto module (52 mm, f/2.4 aperture, hybrid autofocus, optical stabilization) and a TOF module for correct background blur in the appropriate modes.

Already when you get acquainted with the characteristics of the Mate Xs cameras, you can notice that the main camera lacks a stabilizer, and the aperture ratio is not as high as on the Mate 30 Pro, for example; The telephoto module actually provides 2x optical zoom, while in the camera application the default option is 3x zoom. 2x zoom can only be selected manually. At the same time, the main camera is equipped with a proprietary RYYB sensor, which allows you to better handle scenes with insufficient lighting. By default, shooting is carried out at a resolution of 10 megapixels - the 40-megapixel mode must be used separately, if desired. We can say that the Huawei Mate Xs is certainly inferior in terms of camera capabilities and shooting quality - and quite strongly - to the company's other flagships (costing three times less), but is quite at the level of other flagship smartphones, surpassing, for example, the same Samsung Galaxy Fold. Autofocus when shooting at a wide angle, high-quality color rendition in various lighting conditions, good (but not prohibitive) zoom capabilities, an adequate and switchable AI assistant - the Mate Xs is quite good as a camera.

Night photography remains the trump card of this Huawei smartphone. Even without activating the night mode, you can take quite decent shots, including in minimal lighting, but the night mode, with the combination of many frames taken within 4-8 seconds, allows you to count on sharp and rich pictures in almost any conditions. This mode, by the way, works both when shooting with a wide-angle module and with a three-fold or five-fold zoom. The lack of a stabilizer on the main camera imposes some limitations, but not as critical as one might think. Complaints about the night mode are traditional for Huawei - the smartphone tries too hard with contour sharpness and saturation of pictures, they may not look too natural.

Portrait mode works confidently: the smartphone qualitatively separates plans both when shooting in large format and in full-length/half-length portraits, and can also “draw” a variety of bokeh - in the form of circles, hearts, and so on. There are also sophisticated lighting effects like simulating Roman blinds or stained glass in the background (with corresponding reflections on the face). The same effects can be applied when taking selfies.

I repeat, there is no front camera in the Huawei Mate Xs - so the quality of selfies is absolutely consistent with what we can get when shooting regular portraits. With a discount for the fact that the main camera with a fairly wide angle will mainly be used - that is, spatial distortions are still inevitable. But they are not critical either. Background blur with different effects, an advanced beautifier (Huawei claims that neural networks also take part in its work) - everything is in place. Selfies on the Mate Xs turn out just right, in any lighting.

The camera application interface is typical for smartphones based on EMUI 10; the developers did not change or specially adapt it to work with a hybrid gadget. The application is normal, with a good set of settings and built-in “Leuk” filters, the ability to shoot RAW... and with a crooked, inconvenient zoom scale - I constantly miss the focal length preset circles, moving on to the scale along which I need to drag the slider. Particularly annoying is the absolute inability to quickly switch focal length when shooting video - only a slider is available here, and this is an extremely bad solution.

Gallery of pictures

Video shooting is possible with a maximum resolution of 4K at a frequency of up to 30 frames per second - while stabilization works. At 60 frames per second, the smartphone cannot shoot even in Full HD, which is a bit surprising for a modern gadget. The shooting quality is normal, but not outstanding - the picture twitches noticeably when you move the camera. The Mate Xs also doesn’t perform any feats in slow motion—the maximum frequency at HD resolution is 960 frames per second.

Autonomous operation

Huawei Mate Xs “according to documents” carries the same battery of the same capacity as the Mate 30 Pro - 17.1 Wh (4500 mAh, 3.8 V). But everything is a little more complicated - in fact, two batteries with a capacity of 2250 mAh are hidden in the body of the flexible smartphone. This is done to ensure that the case remains thin enough. This decision does not affect the user experience in any way, of course. The total capacity of the two batteries is enough for the smartphone, when folded (occasionally switching to the unfolded format), to easily hold a charge for a full working day. I can’t say how long the Mate Xs battery will last if you use it exclusively unfolded without breathing - I didn’t have the patience to conduct such testing. Still, the tablet is simply not needed most of the day; we use it non-stop only when watching movies or playing games.

To evaluate how long the Huawei Mate Xs lives in “cinema mode,” we have a special test with Full HD video playback, at maximum brightness, with Wi-Fi and notifications turned on. I tested it with both the Mate Xs unfolded and folded. In the first case, the device lasted almost 9 hours, in the second - ten and a half. Both results are not outstanding, but normal. The Mate Xs has no problems with autonomy.

The current USB Type-C (USB 3.1) port is used for charging; the proprietary Huawei Super Charge fast charging system with a power of 40 W works, which allows you to charge the battery in just over an hour. The Mate Xs does not support wireless charging, much less the ability to transfer charge in a reverse manner.

Cameras

Very little is known about the cameras on the Huawei Mate X. We can only say that the camera is triple. Journalists were not allowed to launch the camera app and try to take photos. However, several tricks were shown. Some of them were useful, some not so much.

Firstly, there is no front camera, the triple camera is located at the back. All is not lost for Instagram lovers as the rear screen doubles as a viewfinder. As a result, taking selfies can be even more convenient than with conventional devices. The rear camera turns into a front camera, and the quality is always better than separate selfie cameras.

The second screen can be used to create a dual viewfinder, one on each side of the smartphone. The selfie camera works well. You can see a live image of what is happening on both sides of the smartphone. You won't have to ask passers-by to take a photo of you, because with such a smartphone you can do everything yourself.

The resolution and aperture of the camera have not yet been announced. There are quite a few reasons why Huawei doesn't reveal camera specifications. On the one hand, there may be future technologies that the company could announce in devices like the Huawei P30 at the end of March. On the other hand, the cameras may not be the best, since the space inside the case is limited. Perhaps the developers have not completed the cameras and will still make changes to them before sales begin.

In general, we will find out everything in due time, but for now we can only guess.

System and software

The Android 9.0 Pie operating system is fully functional and ready to work under the adapted EMUI 9.1 interface. In this regard, Huawei turned out to be a more prepared company than Samsung. Journalists were unable to test the Galaxy Fold at MWC 2022, which is why I have serious doubts about the performance of this smartphone.

Mate X is already a full-fledged smartphone that even the CEO of Huawei uses. He was the first to demonstrate how convenient it is to use a folding phone in a browser and when watching videos.

The Huawei Mate X is also impressive in how smoothly it switches between screens, although technically there is only one display. The video being played on the unfolded huge panel almost instantly moved to the main screen when folding the smartphone. We turn the gadget over and the picture immediately appears on the rear screen. And this happens in any installed application.

Gesture controls work equally well on any display, and in my almost hour-long testing there were never any erroneous clicks or triggers.

What about apps? It would seem that there should be problems here. However, many apps have already been adapted to the Mate X's unusual format without the need for modification. Even Google Maps with the screen panel fully opened worked without lag. Naturally, not all applications and games can adapt this way, and developers still have to work on this.

Autonomy and characteristics

There is a large battery inside the case. More precisely, even two batteries with a total capacity of 4500 mAh.

It's a bit larger than the Galaxy Fold, but it has a larger screen so it can use more power. There is Huawei SuperCharge fast charging technology with a power of 55 W. This is more than 40W on the Huawei Mate 20 Pro. The device can charge from zero to 85% in 30 minutes.

The flagship Kirin 980 processor and Balong 5000 5G modem are used. Thus, not only is recharging fast, but also access to the global network. It will take 3 seconds to download a 1 GB file if you find a 5G network in your city. This is unlikely to happen anytime soon. But in future years, this smartphone will remain relevant longer thanks to such advanced characteristics.

The same can be said about the 512 GB storage capacity and support for nano memory cards. This is a proprietary Huawei standard, the capacity of these cards can be 256 GB.

Huawei Mate X foldable phone release date

Mid-2019 is official and not yet the most accurate information. It is planned to produce 100 thousand copies monthly. No one doubts whether the Chinese have enough production capacity, but whether the new product will be in demand. Because of this issue, the development of advertising, marketing and, in general, the work of bringing such a complex device to the market will require enormous efforts. Most likely, a more precise timeline will depend on Samsung and its success with the Galaxy Fold in late spring and early summer. It is clear that the Mate X will not be released before this time.

Software

The device runs on a special version of Android. The interface always knows whether the case is collapsed or expanded. It is optimized for the orientation of the tablet or smartphone within a split second. Everything works very smoothly, especially considering that sales have not yet begun.

Huawei EMUI is installed on top of Android. There are completely new functionalities here, primarily related to splitting the screen between applications for multitasking. The system is aimed at larger, almost square tablets.

The head of Huawei says that the tablet is ideal for working with a keyboard and mouse. It will be possible to conveniently edit documents, having received an analogue of a computer desktop.

Unlocking new possibilities

With its dual-screen foldable design, HUAWEI Mate X2 lets you take advantage of two different types of devices. The large screen offers an expanded work area, and when folded, the smartphone is extremely portable. Based on research data from user habits and preferences, HUAWEI literally developed a new foldable form factor from the ground up, aiming to offer consumers a variety of options for solving a wide range of tasks: from browsing the web and working with office applications, to consuming multimedia content, and online shopping. and video games.

The large display of HUAWEI Mate X2 received a set of intelligent functions for multitasking. With multi-window mode[7], floating windows, duplication and grouping of active applications and many other features, users can efficiently multitask on one screen.

Multi-window mode lets you quickly view content in one app without minimizing another. The App Multiplier feature allows you to open multiple instances of the same application, for example by viewing two different documents. The MeeTime app allows you to easily and quickly share content with your contacts by simply dragging and dropping files into the chat interface, with no restrictions on file size, quantity or format.

Floating windows with active applications can now be scaled, moved and replaced at any time. HUAWEI Mate X2 will be an excellent assistant in solving any tasks: from work and online shopping, to entertainment and communication in instant messengers and social networks.

What is the projected service life

Journalists were given the opportunity to personally test the new expensive flagship and weigh all its advantages and disadvantages.

For a long time, the developers of the new product could not answer the question about the service life of the folding display. However, for consumers this is one of the important points. After all, during use, the screen will unfold and collapse more than a dozen times, which is why its service life will obviously become shorter. But on February 26, this secret was revealed by the leadership of the Chinese corporation, and the information announced simply amazed everyone.