Huawei and Xiaomi unveiled new flagship foldable smartphones on Monday, September 7, just days before Apple’s launch of the iPhone Ultra foldable, as competition heats up in China’s premium handset market.

Huawei’s new Mate XT2 series is the third version of its popular tri-fold, meaning that the smartphone folds out twice into a tablet-sized screen. It is powered by the Chinese tech giant’s in-house Kirin 9050 Pro mobile chipset. The architecture, called LogicFolding, is part of ​the ‘Tau Scaling Law’ principle unveiled in May 2026 as Huawei seeks to overcome US-imposed restrictions on access to advanced technology.

The new chip design delivers greater computing power while using less electricity, according to Huawei.

The Mate XT2 also comes with a redesigned hinge, improved water resistance, and a privacy screen that prevents nearby people from ​viewing the display – similar to the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra launched in February this year.

Apple is scheduled to unveil its ​latest iPhone series on Wednesday, ⁠September 9, with expectations high that it could also introduce a foldable phone. China remains critical to Apple’s fortunes, accounting for a significant share of its ​revenue.

However, it remains to be seen if its expected entry into foldable will help boost iPhone sales in China as domestic rivals already have established products in the market. Huawei is currently the only major brand selling a tri-fold phone. The Chinese tech giant is barred from selling products in ​the US, as it is deemed a security risk by Washington.

The Mate XT2 lineup starts at 19,999 yuan ($2,980), with the top-end version costing 24,999 yuan ($3,725). They are expected to go on sales from September 12, 2026.

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“Pricing right now is a real challenge, because memory costs have risen sharply. We ⁠adopted a lot of new technology, and the cost pressure has been enormous,” Huawei Executive Director Richard Yu was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Xiaomi 18 Fold

Xiaomi, another major Chinese smartphone brand, debuted its Xiaomi 18 Fold premium smartphone which uses what Xiaomi calls a ‘medium-fold solution’. This means that it is ​passport-sized when closed while supporting three apps side by side when opened.

The device weighs 219 grams and measures 5.02 mm thick when unfolded. It is lighter than Apple’s iPhone Pro Max and has several other advantages over Apple’s products, according to Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun.

It runs on Xiaomi’s in-house XRing O3 AI processor, which Lei said outperforms Apple’s A19 Pro in responsiveness. It also uses DRAM memory chips supplied by Chinese memory chipmaker CXMT. The Xiaomi 18 Fold is priced from 10,999 yuan ($1,540) to 14,999 yuan ($2,100).

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Foldable race in China

Huawei led China’s smartphone market with a 22.6 per cent share in the second quarter, ahead of Apple’s 18.1 per cent, according ⁠to consultancy ​IDC. Xiaomi held a 12.4 per cent share.

Huawei was even more dominant in folding ​phones, accounting for 68 per cent of shipments in China in the second quarter, according to US-based research company Smart Analytics Global.

Meanwhile, Samsung, the ​world’s biggest foldable ⁠smartphone vendor, launched a tri-fold device in December but reportedly discontinued sales after three months. In July, it expanded its foldable lineup to include a passport-sized foldable phone.