Pros:

• First of its kind in the world
• Its flexibility makes it extremely versatile
• Surprisingly pocketable for a triple foldable
• Excellent cameras

Cons:

• Expensive
• The nature of its design makes it more vulnerable to damage compared to traditional foldables

HUAWEI Mate XT Quick Review (Philippines): Design

HUAWEI Mate XT Quick Review (Philippines): Display

Unlike other foldables, the Mate XT has only one display—a 10.2-inch, flexible LTPO panel. The refresh rate is just 90Hz, but you’re essentially getting a 3K resolution when it’s fully opened.

That aside, HUAWEI has upped its game as far as engineering and manufacturing go. The technical challenge of manufacturing a consumer-grade phone with a triple-folding panel is gigantic since the screen needs to do two things: resist a pushing force when the screen is folded inward and resist a pulling force when it’s being folded outward. And since you couldn’t put a traditional screen protector on the “cover” display when the phone is completely folded, they also had to create a new kind of glass protection that could bend with the panel.

To address that, HUAWEI developed a new kind of UTG glass protector that utilizes a non-Newtonian fluid, which HUAWEI says is 30% tougher than what they’ve used on their other foldables. From my experience with the phone, it appears to be up to the task—the phone has been subjected to the usual abuse that my other review devices have been through, and it hasn’t shown any visible scratches on the primary display when in phone mode.

My only complaint about the display is the crease, or creases, in this case. You’ll have to contend with two on the Mate XT, and while it’s not worse than what we’ve seen in the past, we would have liked it if HUAWEI had tried to minimize them further. All things considered, though, my complaints are relatively minor considering what HUAWEI has accomplished.

HUAWEI Mate XT Quick Review (Philippines): Camera

HUAWEI didn’t skimp on the camera features. They included a 50-megapixel main camera with a variable aperture lens (f/1.4 to f/4.0), a 12-megapixel periscope telephoto lens (5.5x optical, 10x hybrid), and a 12-megapixel ultrawide snapper.

Photos look great, and the Mate XT’s variable aperture lens did a lot of work, capturing images in challenging low-light situations effortlessly. Zoomed shots taken with the periscope telephoto also looked great, and the Mate XT’s cameras can easily go toe-to-toe with even the brand’s high-end camera phone, the Pura 70 Pro.

HUAWEI Mate XT Quick Review (Philippines): Performance, Software, Battery

The Mate XT runs on the Kirin 9010 processor, paired with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Despite the US government’s efforts to curtail HUAWEI’s manufacturing capabilities, it’s impressive to see how well the Kirin 9010 performs compared to its competitors. Unfortunately, the phone is 4G only, as global variants are affected by the US ban on 5G.

The user experience feels smooth, and the phone smoothly transitions apps from tablet to folded to smartphone mode. There are a few quirks (YouTube sometimes refuses to switch to stand mode), but overall, the transition process was quite good.

The Mate XT is still subject to the software restrictions that the brand has been under since 2019, but HUAWEI has made it easy to use Google-dependent apps like YouTube, Chrome, Slack, and others via Petal Search and AppGallery. The awkwardness of previous years is now gone

With a device this thin, it’s surprising that it has a respectable 5600mAh battery inside. Three Si/C Li-Ion packs are spread throughout the chassis, each one just 1.9mm thick. Charging speeds via HUAWEI’s SuperCharge tech are pegged at 66W, while fast wireless charging is at 50W. Battery life is good for a device of this class; we experienced about a day and a half of moderate use, switching between the three modes.

HUAWEI Mate XT Quick Review (Philippines) Wrap-up

The Mate XT is an impressive feat of engineering from HUAWEI. I’m blown away by how the brand overcame the technical challenges to make this phone a reality. My only remaining questions concern long-term durability because of the exposed foldable screen.

We have no pricing information for this phone yet, but expect it to be significantly more expensive than traditional high-end foldables. It’s not a phone for everyone, but if you’re someone who wants the bleeding edge of smartphone technology, then you should consider pre-ordering it on day one.

The Mate XT will arrive in the Philippines by March.