Never have the waters been more divided in the world of foldable smartphones than with the current offerings of the Huawei Mate X T and the Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold. While the first folds in a Z shape and the latter a U shape, such nuances have far-reaching implications that will interest the tech-savvy buyer.
Huawei Mate XT features a single flexible OLED screen which folds twice to achieve its iconic Z-design. Such a design enables users to enjoy three modes: a 6.4-inch phone, a 7.9-inch mini-tablet, and a 10.2-inch widescreen tablet. Although the 16:11 aspect ratio is ideal on the wide screen, it reduces letterboxing while watching videos. However, it is worrisome that the entire display is visible while in phone mode because flexible OLED displays have plastic substrates that tend to be more scratch-sensitive than glass. Huawei tries to fix this by providing a case with a long edge cover, but it is prone to damage because it is partly exposed.
Where Samsung’s Galaxy Z TriFold goes in a different direction is in how it relies on two separate AMOLED screens that are connected in a U fold by two hinges of varying sizes. This design ensures that none of the foldable screens are in contact with each other when it’s shut but, in turn, forgoes the mid-range tablet form factor in between. Where it takes a page out of another Samsung device’s design in terms of hinge size on one side is in the Galaxy Z Fold 7, but it goes for a wider hinge on the other side for ease of unfurling.
In terms of display technology, Samsung Dynamic AMOLED Display boasts an adaptive refresh rate of 120Hz on both the cover screen and internal display, with a peak brightness of 1,600 nits compared to its rival’s 90Hz OLED with a peak brightness of 850 nits. In reply, Mate XT boasts better pixel density with 382 ppi compared to Samsung’s 269 ppi on its primary screen. Additionally, its thinner bezels provide an immersion level of its visual presentation. The active matrix thin-film transistor component of AMOLED displays is faster for pixel transitions and touch inputs.
Powering the Galaxy Z Trifold is the Qualcomm SD 8 Elite chipset based on 3nm architecture, optimizations made specifically for Samsung, allowing the battery life to last longer compared to the bigger screen. Huawei’s Kirin 9010, on the other hand, is produced using a 7nm process, less energy-efficient but still optimal for common tasks. These handsets feature 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and a maximum of 1TB of storage, but the main aspect here is the Samsung One UI 8 based on Android 16, supporting seven years’ worth of software updates, compared to the Huawei EMUI 14.2 based on Android, lacking Google services in the package due to trade restrictions.
Battery technology is one of the rare instances of a tie, since both have 5,600mAh capacity in their battery packaging. However, their respective charging systems vary, where Huawei’s device has 66W wired and 55W wireless charging through its proprietary technology, and Samsung’s 45W wired and traditional wireless charging through Qi. It is possible that the lower refresh rate on the Mate X contributes to its ability to last longer, if its 12-hour flight endurance is to be believed.
The cameras mirror the priorities of each brand. The 200MP primary sensor with f/1.7 and OIS, 12MP ultra-wide, 10MP 3x telecamera, and dual 10MP front cameras bring several unique high-end features to the Tri-Fold. The 50MP primary with variable aperture (f/1.4-4.0) sensor, 12MP ultra-wide, 12MP periscope telecamera with 5.5x optical zoom-superior telephoto reach in very low lighting conditions but more likely to suffer noise, and 8MP front single camera may have both advantages and disadvantages in different situations.
Another area where the two brands demonstrate significantly different expertise is materials science, with the included design expertise in both for unique and high-end materials. The Armor Aluminum Carbon Fiber finish on the back of the body can give the extra strength with lighter quality, while the curved lines, leather, or gold are added to make it both feel and look high-end. IPX8 water resistance, achieved on the Mate Xs 2, allows water to go into the device when submerged, but with limitations that can cause no damage, while IP48 on the foldables by Samsung will offer protection from water and dust when submerged in 1.5 meters of water for up to 30 minutes, protecting against particulates bigger than 1mm, an enhancement of hinge sealing on more foldables but still lacking in IP68 protection provided in the otherwise competing Pixel 10 Pro Fold.
The choices made through heavy input from adept engineers will soon make sense. The importance in foldability becomes even clearer in that the extra versatility with this hardware is attained with compromise in environmental protection in the flexible OLED display. A more protected, foldable design in the Samsung fold is enabled with faster and brighter images that take many priorities for both brands and solve them, including protecting the fold from all conditions that might make it more unreliable in all sorts of climactical conditions, letting go of many in-between designs for the fold. The priorities for the brands will soon define that in this technology option, literally hinge on which one matters most or least.
