Huawei launches new foldable smartphone; Xiaomi and Apple set to follow
AAPL•Huawei launches new foldable series
Huawei launched its new flagship foldable smartphone series on Monday as it seeks to defend its lead in the Chinese market for premium handsets against Apple AAPL.O and Xiaomi 1810.HK, both of which are also unveiling new products.
Phones in the new Mate XT2 series, which fold out twice to open into a tablet-sized screen, feature Huawei's new Kirin 9050 Pro chip.
But they are not cheap. Prices start from 19,999 yuan ($2,980) with the most expensive version costing 24,999 yuan ($3,725). Sales will start on September 12.
"Pricing right now is a real challenge, because memory costs have risen sharply. We adopted a lot of new technology, and the cost pressure has been enormous," Huawei Executive Director Richard Yu told a press conference.
