[Hardware] Huawei Hasn’t Abandoned Its Original Foldable Vision

[FazzNoth]

When foldable phones first hit the market in 2019, there were two distinct form factors pioneered by Samsung and Huawei. Samsung’s method was the inside fold, in which the screen closes on itself like a book, Huawei’s way was the outer fold, which sees the screen bend backwards and wraps around itself.

There were pros and cons to both: Samsung’s inner fold method provides more protection, as the folded screen is closed up in folded form. However, this means a second outside display is needed in order for the device to be used in folded form. The necessity of the second display made the device thicker and heavier.

Huawei’s outer fold method only required one display, so it’s thinner and lighter, but this also meant the soft, folding screen is exposed at all times.

Personally, I preferred the Samsung method as the protection gives me peace of mind, and when Huawei itself went the inner fold method by 2021 with the Mate X2, everyone thought it was Huawei conceding, that Samsung’s method is the ideal way. It didn’t help that other Chinese foldables that have subsequently hit the market from Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo all followed the book-like inner fold method, too. But alas, it appears we spoke too soon, because Huawei is back with a new foldable, one that brings back the original outer fold design.

Named the Huawei Mate Xs 2, the phone mostly looks identical to the original Huawei Mate X, at least if you’re only looking at it. Once you pick it up—which I recently had the chance to you’ll realize Huawei made subtle improvements across the board.

 

A lighter, thinner foldable

As mentioned, the outer fold method results in a thinner and lighter form factor than the dual-screen inner fold devices. This was true even back in 2019, when the original Huawei Mate X measured just 11mm in thickness when folded compared to the original Samsung Fold’s 15.5mm. But the new Mate Xs 2 further shred weight, coming in at just 255g. For comparison, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 3 weighs 271g, Vivo’s X Fold weighs a whopping 311g, and the original Huawei Mate X weighs 291g.

Huawei managed to move down a weight class by shrinking the screen slightly (down to a 7.8-inch OLED panel compared to the original Mate X’s 8-inch) and using supposedly aerospace grade titanium alloy for most of its frame. The difference is noticeable in the hand as the Mate Xs 2 feels noticeably lighter than any big foldable I’ve handled lately. And it’s still 11mm thickness is no thicker than a new iPhone in a case.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bensin/2022/05/30/huawei-hasnt-abandoned-its-original-foldable-vision-and-thats-good-news/?sh=49e5335d43b5