Huawei Mate 20 X Review
Folding phones are no longer simple concepts, little by little the big technology manufacturers are presenting their first models for the masses and also little by little we are seeing more and more interesting bets. Huawei has been giving us clues with its invitation for today’s event and even some images have been leaked. Today, Huawei has presented its first folding phone, the Huawei Mate X. And it looks amazing.
Samsung made its Samsung Galaxy Fold official recently, a phone that has an external screen but when deploying it gives us another twice as big. It also has the “merit” of being the most expensive phone in history since 1996. Another manufacturer that seems to bet on this trend is Xiaomi, who a month ago showed us on video and running his prototype with a screen that doubles in shape of triptych. Now it’s Huawei’s turn, and this product seems the most promising to date.
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Huawei Mate X datasheet
- DIMENSIONS AND WEIGHT:Â 5.5 mm thick in its thin part when unfolded and 11 mm thick when folded
- SCREEN:Â 6.6 “folded in front (2.480 x 1.148 px), 6.38” folded behind (2.480 x 892 px) and 8 “folded (2.480 x 2.200 px)
- Kirin:Â 980 PROCESSOR and Balong 5000 modem
8 GB RAM - STORAGE:Â 512 GB (expandable with NM Card)
- OPERATING SYSTEM:Â Android 9 + EMUI 9.0
- REAR CAMERAS Triple Leica camera: 40 MP f / 1.8 + 20 MP f / 2.2 + 8 MP f / 2.4
- FRONT CHAMBER:Â 24 MP f / 2.0
- BATTERY:Â 4,500 mAh with 55W fast charge
A single screen, folding out
Unlike the Galaxy Fold that has two screens, in this Huawei Mate X we see a single screen. The idea is the same: a “normal” phone to be folded and a kind of tablet when deployed and have a larger screen. To achieve this with a single screen, the Huawei Mate X bends out, therefore making both the front and back into screens. This of course supposes more fragility and possible damages when being “all screen”.
There are no rear cameras, those at the back also serve as front for making selfies since you can see the image on the screen folded behind.
The idea is that the phone is usually used with the screen folded, so that it looks like a normal phone. In this state the back part turns off (half of the screen goes off) and only the front part is on and functional. When deployed it automatically turns on the entire screen and the interface is adapted to take full advantage of it. We will have to see how the software adapts to these screens, in principle it should be an Android for tablets.
As we can see in the images, there is no notch and there are hardly any frames. Where is the camera then? Huawei Mate X design is somewhat peculiar, because one of the sides is much thicker than the rest of the phone (so that when bending, the whole device device has the same thickness). This side is where we see the main buttons of the phone and also the rear cameras and the flash among other things. This is where we also find the fingerprint sensor of the Huawei Mate X.
Side thick edge where the USB connector is located among other things.
Falcon Wing is the name given to this new folding mobile design that Huawei has created. The company has commented that they have been working on this new design for three years. The crucial part is in the system to double the screen. A hole is usually created as it is physically impossible to bend a flat surface without forcing the internal space. To avoid this, Huawei has created its own system that does not leave any interior space and manages to get the two parties to join by reducing the thickness to a minimum.
Power to move 8 “screen
Folding mobiles supposes an extra effort for processors, graphics and RAM of the devices, in the end it means moving almost twice as many pixels as before. For this, Huawei has placed its 7-nanometer Kirin 980 processor inside Huawei Mate X. Next to the main processor we have the Balong 5000, the company’s modem manufactured to work with 5G networks, because indeed, the Huawei Mate X is compatible with the new connectivity. Another detail to highlight in the section of connectivity is that the Huawei Mate X has Dual SIM support. The second nano SIM slot can also be used to add an NM Card, Huawei’s own external storage system.
The screen that mounts Huawei Mate X has a size of 8 inches when deployed, with a resolution of 2,480 x 2,200 px. It is a flexible OLED panel and when folded we have two screens. The main or front has 6.6 inches with 2.480 x 1.148 px resolution, secondary or rear has 6.38 inches with resolution of 2.480 x 892 px.
The three screens (which are actually one) of the Huawei Mate X.
The system of cameras that we find is triple, something that inherits from other models of the brand such as the Huawei Mate 20 Pro for example. What is not clear are the specifications of these cameras. Perhaps they are the same as in the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, but for the moment it has not been confirmed.
Other remarkable features are the battery and its fast charge. It has a double battery (because bending a battery is not as easy as a screen) of 4,500 mAh. But the interesting thing here is the fast charge available. The Huawei Mate X has a fast charge of 55W, this means, for example, charging it to 85% in 30 minutes.
Versions of Mate X
The Huawei Mate X comes in a single version of 8 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage. Its color is also unique, the Interstellar Blue, although they hope to introduce new colors. It will be available mid-2019 as indicated by the company.
