The Chinese technology giant unveiled its Mate XT, the industry’s first tri-foldable phone, on Tuesday just hours after Apple introduced its artificial intelligence-enhanced iPhone 16 lineup.
Both the Mate XT and iPhone 16 will go on sale on Sept. 20, though the Mate XT is expected to be available only in China.
“Apple hasn’t fallen, but Huawei has truly risen again,” commented one user on Weibo, China’s equivalent to X.
A video that purports to show Apple store employees in China going to a Huawei store to watch the Huawei product launch also became the No.
2 trending item on Weibo for 13 hours, garnering 91 million views and more than 6,600 comments.
The launch of the Mate XT follows Huawei’s re-emergence in the 5G premium smartphone market last year with its Mate 60 series and this year with its high-end Pura series phones that have domestically produced semiconductors.
Versions with more sophisticated features such as larger memory will cost as much as 23,999 yuan ($3,300).
A Weibo poll on the Mate XT showed that only 966 of some 9,200 respondents said they planned to buy it.
More than 4,700 said they were put off by the price while another 3,500 said they were not considering purchasing it at the moment.
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Hours after Apple debuted its lineup of iPhone 16s with enhanced AI, the Chinese tech giant unveiled on Tuesday the Mate XT, the first tri-foldable phone in the market.
Sept. 16 will mark the release date of the iPhone 16 and Mate XT. 20, despite the fact that the Mate XT is only anticipated to be offered in China.
On Weibo, the Chinese version of XML, a user remarked, “HUAWEI has truly risen again, but Apple hasn’t fallen.”.
“Times are changing,” another person wrote. I. S. The penalties are pointless. ****.
Additionally, a video that appears to show Chinese staff members of Apple stores visiting a Huawei store to witness the launch of a Huawei product rose to the No. 2 trending post on Weibo for 13 hours, receiving over 6,600 comments and 91 million views.
Huawei made a comeback to the 5G premium smartphone market last year with the launch of the Mate 60 series, and this year with the release of the high-end Pura series phones, which use semiconductors made in the country. The Mate XT follows in that footsteps.
China has hailed all of them as victories over the U.S. S. sanctions that have kept the company from accessing advanced U.S. technology since 2019. S. chips as well as additional technologies.
Huawei disputes Washington’s view of it as a threat to national security. I. s. Export restrictions on highly developed U.S. goods are now part of the sanctions. S. Washington is trying to stop China’s military from advancing technologically, so it is giving chips to all Chinese companies.
Supporters of Huawei also pointed out that Apple has not yet revealed a Chinese AI partner to power its iPhone 16 product line, and that Apple Intelligence, the business’s AI software, will only be accessible in Chinese starting in 2019.
Despite its patriotic pride, many people felt that the Mate XT’s starting price of 19,999 yuan was too high for the average consumer and insensitive during a period of slow economic growth when many are already facing financial instability.
More expensive versions, up to 23,999 yuan ($3,300), will have more advanced features like more memory.
Of about 9,200 respondents, only 966 stated they intended to purchase the Mate XT, according to a Weibo poll. In addition, 3,500 people stated they were not currently considering buying it, while over 4,700 people stated the price was a turnoff.
A man going by the surname Xu identified himself as a Huawei supporter and said, “No matter how much I like the product, the price tag just sounds crazy to me,” at a Huawei store in Beijing.
Perhaps Huawei isn’t really after individuals who are similar to me, he continued.
$1 is equivalent to 7 points 1138 Chinese Yuan Renminbi.
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Edwina Gibbs and Anne Marie Roantree edited the reporting, which was done by the Beijing Newsroom.
