Huawei unveiled an upgrade to its folding smartphone on Monday, hoping that a faster phone with a higher-quality display will encourage consumers to spend as much as $2,700 for the top-of-the-range version.
The new Mate XS arrives a year after the Chinese tech giant showed off its first folding phone, which had back-to-back screens that opened to create an eight-inch display. That device went on sale in China in November after the company improved the design.
The Mate XS has the same size display as its predecessor but comes with an improved gull-wing hinge mechanism and stronger wraparound screen, while boasting faster download speeds and longer battery life than the rival Samsung Galaxy Fold, Huawei’s top salesman Richard Yu told a launch presentation in Barcelona.
The folding phone will be priced at 2,499 euros ($2,710) for its premium model and goes on sale worldwide next month, said Yu, as Huawei pushed the price frontier for the most expensive smartphones even higher.
The launch was streamed from Barcelona, where the Mobile World Congress was due to be held this week before it was cancelled because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Sony, meanwhile, showcased its newest Xperia 1 device as the Japanese company – which lies outside the top 10 smartphone makers by sales – targeted its niche audience of high-fidelity video fans.
