Huawei Delays Mate X Folding Phone Again

[MacRumors]

Huawei has again delayed the release of its Mate X folding smartphone, which is now unlikely to come out before November.

Speaking to TechRadar at a press event in China, the company said that there was "no possibility" that the device will make its September launch date.

It's the second time Huawei has pushed back the release of the phone, which was originally supposed to arrive in June or July.

The report doesn't reveal the reason for the delay, but it could be that the company is taking extra care not to replicate Samsung's mistake of unveiling a folding phone that's not fit for purpose.

Samsung initially planned to launch the Galaxy Fold in the spring, but ended up delaying the launch after several reviewers experienced broken Galaxy Fold devices after just a few days.

The Galaxy Fold is now set to launch in September - before the Mate X - after being delayed in order for Samsung to make some design changes.

The Mate X uses what Huawei calls a "Falcon Wing" design with a stretchable hinge that allows the smartphone to transform from a 6.6-inch OLED smartphone to an 8-inch OLED tablet, making it bigger than the Galaxy Fold.

It also folds in the opposite direction of Samsung's phone, so the display is visible on both the front and back of the device when collapsed down to smartphone view. The "wing" at the side houses the camera and allows the Mate X display to be notch free.

Samsung is pricing its Galaxy Fold at $1,980, but the Mate X is even more expensive at $2,600.

There have been some suggestions that Apple is exploring folding screen technology, but right now there are no rumors indicating Apple plans to actually release a foldable smartphone in the near future.

Article Link: Huawei Delays Mate X Folding Phone Again

 

[jsmith189]

How about we actually take our time with new products like this and get it right, instead of rushing to announce it for the sake of seeming innovative?

 

[farewelwilliams]

How about we actually take our time with new products like this and get it right, instead of rushing to announce it for the sake of seeming innovative?

so basically what Apple is doing.

 

[sunapple]

I want a folding phone, just not a first generation with all of its possible issues:

- a plastic screen that scratches easily (Mate X: scratches because it’s the entire outside of the device, Galaxy Fold: scratches because it touches the other half of screen when closing up and also leaves a gap for dirt) (see this video @4:00 minute mark for a demonstration)
- a device that’s twice as thick as current phones
- reliability screen remains to be seen
- poor software implementation
- absurd pricing

Excited for the future nonetheless.

 

[maflynn]

so basically what Apple is doing.

They didn't seem to do that for the butterfly keyboard

I think both Samsung and Hauwei were in a race to be the first, but then what happened to Samsung opened their eyes and its better to have a solid product then first.

 

[nortonandreev]

Still don’t get the obsession with foldable phones.

 

[genovelle]

They didn't seem to do that for the butterfly keyboard

I think both Samsung and Hauwei were in a race to be the first, but then what happened to Samsung opened their eyes and its better to have a solid product then first.

So, does the butterfly keyboard break within 3 days of using it?

 

[Winni]

Still don’t get the obsession with foldable phones.

Well, these devices will eventually replace tablets: Larger screen real estate but pocket-sized mobility. Once this technology works, nobody will want a traditional tablet or phone anymore.

 

[Ultramove69]

Folding phones *yawn* - no really, this nonsense is just not gonna be reliable. I refuse to be a beta tester (1st gen owner) for such tech. Give me a good ole fashioned non folding iPhone any day of the week.

 

[KooL BeAnZ]

Well, these devices will eventually replace tablets: Larger screen real estate but pocket-sized mobility. Once this technology works, nobody will want a traditional tablet or phone anymore.

Exactly this.

Once it’s perfected and seamless, it will be a very good 2 in 1 device that is appealing for sure.

 

[maflynn]

So, does the butterfly keyboard break within 3 days of using it?

I believe the 2016 model year did fail very quickly.

 

[69Mustang]

So, does the butterfly keyboard break within 3 days of using it?

It could. It could also break 3 weeks or 3 months later... and multiple times after being fixed. After 3 iterations, it still turned out to be a flawed design. Flawed enough to warrant a repair program. To be fair, the keyboard isn't the greatest example.
Point is, @jsmith189 is right. Companies (Apple included) need to get the product right then announce instead of announcing cuz 1st or cuz innovative or cuz we can. Otherwise you end up with a Galaxy Fold, Mate X, or AirPower.

 

[lowkey]

Right. My tablet is 12.9 inches. How big are your pockets? :lol:

Well, these devices will eventually replace tablets: Larger screen real estate but pocket-sized mobility. Once this technology works, nobody will want a traditional tablet or phone anymore.

 

[Lerxt]

You’d have to have rocks in your head to buy a Huawei anything, let alone this phone. I’ll wait till Apple puts out a well researched and developed folding phone that has a human element to the design.

 

[iZac]

I saw one (behind glass) in the Huawei booth at China Joy the other weekend.

It looked really ... 'plasticky'

 

[Nozuka]

They didn't seem to do that for the butterfly keyboard

I think AirPower would be a better comparison. Butterfly keyboard does not really seem to be rushed. It just had problems.

 

[Jim Lahey]

Personally I have no desire for foldable phones. To my mind they will always be two compromised devices in-one. I don't want a compromised mobile phone that's twice as heavy and thick as it needs to be, just so that I can use it as a compromised tablet at home in the evenings.

Never say never, but there's going to have to be some radical and unforeseeable shift in the foldable paradigm before I am interested.

 

[itsmilo]

I know first gen and all but for the price it’s too small as a smartphone and also too small as a tablet. Therefore who is this actually for

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

If you really want to be first, then be the first to get it right.

 

[Defender2010]

These are dead before they even reach the market.

 

[thisisnotmyname]

Well, these devices will eventually replace tablets: Larger screen real estate but pocket-sized mobility. Once this technology works, nobody will want a traditional tablet or phone anymore.

Or we may get to wearable displays first (AR glasses for example) and negate the need for any foldable tech
[doublepost=1565870977][/doublepost]

Right. My tablet is 12.9 inches. How big are your pockets? :lol:

Is that a tablet in your pocket or... sorry, too easy.

 

[Kabeyun]

I want a folding phone, just not a first generation with all of its possible issues:

- a plastic screen that scratches easily (Mate X: scratches because it’s the entire outside of the device, Galaxy Fold: scratches because it touches the other half of screen when closing up and also leaves a gap for dirt) (see this video @4:00 minute mark for a demonstration)
- a device that’s twice as thick as current phones
- reliability screen remains to be seen
- poor software implementation
- absurd pricing

Excited for the future nonetheless.

Too distant to get excited. You want nothing that you’ll have to have if you get a folding phone.

Well, these devices will eventually replace tablets: Larger screen real estate but pocket-sized mobility. Once this technology works, nobody will want a traditional tablet or phone anymore.

No. They won’t. If you want an actual tablet-sized device rather than an iPad mini, you’ll have to fold it twice to get it into your pocket. Glwt.

First, laptops were threatening desktops, and then everyone’s saying that tablets will replace laptops, and now I’m hearing that folding phones will replace tablets. So by the transitive power of silliness, folding phones will apparently replace desktop computers.

Everybody breathe slowly.

 

[jsmith189]

It could. It could also break 3 weeks or 3 months later... and multiple times after being fixed. After 3 iterations, it still turned out to be a flawed design. Flawed enough to warrant a repair program. To be fair, the keyboard isn't the greatest example.
Point is, @jsmith189 is right. Companies (Apple included) need to get the product right then announce instead of announcing cuz 1st or cuz innovative or cuz we can. Otherwise you end up with a Galaxy Fold, Mate X, or AirPower.

Absolutely. This wasn't a shot at everyone non-Apple. Apple is very much included.

 

[Andronicus]

Well, these devices will eventually replace tablets: Larger screen real estate but pocket-sized mobility. Once this technology works, nobody will want a traditional tablet or phone anymore.

I still don’t get how people aren’t wowed/excited by foldable phones. Even if companies are failing right now they are working towards the future. It’s exciting to me.

 

[sunapple]

Too distant to get excited. You want nothing that you’ll have to have if you get a folding phone.


No. They won’t. If you want an actual tablet-sized device rather than an iPad mini, you’ll have to fold it twice to get it into your pocket. Glwt.

First, laptops were threatening desktops, and then everyone’s saying that tablets will replace laptops, and now I’m hearing that folding phones will replace tablets. So by the transitive power of silliness, folding phones will apparently replace desktop computers.

Everybody breathe slowly.

All of the mentioned issues are typical of an innovative first gen product, not of the folding phone per se. But yes, it will take several years before it’s there.

The foldable phone has the potential to return to small form factors while maintaining the trend of huge screen sizes.