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- Huawei has unveiled the Mate XT2, a new tri-fold smartphone with an inward-folding 10.2-inch display.
- Its Kirin 9050 Pro uses Huawei’s new LogicFolding architecture, with the company claiming a 42 per cent performance improvement.
- The phone starts at ¥19,999 (around AUD$4,139) in China, with sales beginning 12 September.
- Australian availability has not been confirmed.
Three-folds and its most powerful Kirin yet. Huawei is throwing down the gauntlet with its all-new tri-fold smartphone, the Mate XT2. While Motorola is busy bedazzling its foldable Razr, and Samsung and Google continue to push their own foldable phones – all before new Apple CEO John Ternus emerges from Cupertino in a few days with its expected foldable combatant – Huawei has broken through the noise with something pretty remarkable.
Huawei has redesigned its tri-fold, introduced a new Kirin chip and added an optional privacy display to a phone that already costs about as much as a second-hand hatchback.
Unveiled in China, the Mate XT2 swaps the original’s accordion-style design for a 10.2-inch display that folds inward on both sides. The new format keeps the flexible screen protected when the phone is closed, with a separate 6.5-inch display on the outside. It also gets a redesigned hinge, improved water resistance and Huawei’s new Kirin 9050 Pro processor.
Huawei unveils tri-fold Mate XT 2 with Kirin 9050 Pro, the world's first chip with LogicFolding architecture. Executive Director, Chairman of the Investment Review Board & Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Consumer BG, Huawei, Mr. Yu Chengdong shared the chip's strengths. pic.twitter.com/tTLf79rQCe
— Huawei (@Huawei) September 7, 2026
Huawei’s LogicFolding Architecture Makes the Kirin 9050 Pro ‘Super Fast’
“Super fast, super intelligent, super cool. The most powerful Kirin chip ever!” Clearly, no one is more excited about the new phone than Richard Yu, chairman of Huawei’s Consumer Business Group.
Huawei says the Kirin 9050 Pro is the first smartphone chip to use its LogicFolding architecture, based on the Tau Scaling Law, a new semiconductor design principle introduced earlier this year. Basically, the idea is to stack logic units in layers and shorten the distance data needs to travel, improving computing power without relying solely on smaller transistors. I’m no computer scientist, but think of it as finding a shortcut through a city instead of taking the long way around.
According to Huawei, all that engineering essentially boils down to a 42 per cent improvement in overall device performance over the previous Mate XTs.
Elsewhere, Huawei has fitted a 5,600mAh battery with up to 66W wired and 50W wireless charging. The rear camera setup includes a 50MP main camera with a variable aperture, a 40MP ultrawide and a 50MP periscope telephoto. There’s also stylus support and HarmonyOS 7, giving the tablet-sized display a bit more to do than simply make everything bigger. But with 10.2 inches to play with, who can complain?
The Mate XT2 also offers an optional privacy OLED display, which narrows the viewing angle, making it harder for someone beside you on the train to read your screen. It’s available on the 16GB/1TB version for an additional ¥1,000 (~AUD$200). That version also supports a 120Hz refresh rate on the inner display, up from 90Hz on the standard model. Pretty useful if you’re dealing with a nosy commuter or colleague.
Huawei Mate XT2 – Key Specs
- Display: 6.5-inch outer OLED; 10.2-inch inner OLED
- Processor: Kirin 9050 Pro
- Memory and storage: 16GB RAM; 256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB, depending on configuration
- Battery: 5,600mAh
- Charging: Up to 66W wired, 50W wireless
- Rear cameras: 50MP main, 40MP ultrawide, 50MP periscope telephoto
- Operating system: HarmonyOS 7.0
1/8Is It Coming To Australia? Mate XT2 Price and Availability
The Mate XT2 starts at ¥19,999 (around AUD$4,139), with Chinese sales kicking off on 12 September. The privacy-screen version starts at ¥24,999 (AUD$5,174), while a 2TB collector’s edition is also available. Australian pricing and availability have not been confirmed.
Regardless of whether it makes it to our shores, there’s quite a bit to admire already. The folding design is impressive, and Huawei’s new chip architecture gives us another reason to watch what the company does next. Whether the Kirin 9050 Pro lives up to Richard Yu’s enthusiasm is something we’ll leave to those who manage to get their hands on one.
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