Huawei launches the Mate X2 with a new "Pinnacle Design", a secondary display and an astronomical price-tag

Huawei has confirmed the switch to an inward-folding design with the launch of its new foldable flagship, the Mate X2. However, it has clearly put a lot of work into trying to distinguish it from the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold line. Its "Pinnacle Design" results in a long edge that gradually shrinks in thickness from 8.2mm at one end to just 4.4mm at the other. 

This tweak enables the Mate X2 to stay at about 14mm in height when closed. The device also boasts a new "multi-dimensional" hinge that allows its main 8-inch OLED display to fold into a "teardrop" shape. This might have been done to enhance its durability, as it lacks ultra-thin glass for this tablet-sized screen.

Therefore, the Mate X2 seems to boast many advantages alluded to in its pre-launch leaks, new secondary display included. Then again, both of its FHD+ panels have a refresh rate of 90Hz, not 120Hz as predicted earlier.

Nevertheless, Huawei insists that its main display has a “magnetically-controlled nano optical layer”, which reduces its reflectivity (and, thus, potentially enhance readability) to as little as 1.5%, whereas the Galaxy Z Fold2 has one of 5% or more (according to Huawei, at least). This flexible screen is also indeed free of camera cut-outs.

Its single 16MP "selfie" camera is found in the front-facing 6.45-inch screen instead. Its main quad cameras have a 50MP primary sensor and an 8MP periscope zoom lens. Otherwise, the Mate X2 has 4,500mAh battery, which charges at 55W, as opposed to 66W in the Mate 40 Pro series.

The new folding phablet is powered by the same, increasingly rare, Kirin 9000 SoC, which might help explain its starting price, which is high even for its device tier. Its base 256GB internal storage model is set at 17,999 yuan (~US$2,785), while its 512GB top-end is 18,999 yuan (~$2,939), despite the fact both have only 8GB of RAM.

They will be released to both physical and online stores in China on February 25, 2021. However, Huawei never mentioned an international launch for this new Mate X2.