In Shenzhen, five days before Apple's scheduled iPhone 17 reveal, Huawei unveiled the Mate XTs — a trifold smartphone priced at roughly $2,520, lower than its predecessor and equipped with a more powerful homegrown chip. The gesture is less about a single device than about a declaration: that Chinese technology, operating within its own ecosystem, can set the terms of competition in the most demanding corner of the consumer market. Whether Apple answers with a foldable of its own or holds its ground on familiar form will say much about where the next chapter of this rivalry is written.
South China Morning Post
· Sep 04, 2025
· technology
· 1 min read
High
Sourcing: Verified
Huawei launches affordable $2,500 trifold Mate XTs ahead of Apple iPhone 17
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Technology
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Bias & Framing
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Geopolitical Impact
🌎
Huawei's affordable trifold smartphone with proprietary Kirin chipset and HarmonyOS signals China's technological self-sufficiency push and intensifies US-China tech competition ahead of Apple's iPhone 17.
Escalation Risk
moderate
Confidence
HIGH
China
United States
European Union
Asia-Pacific
Global smartphone market
Huawei's continued innovation despite US sanctions demonstrates China's advancing semiconductor independence and HarmonyOS ecosystem maturation. The strategic timing before iPhone 17 reflects competitive positioning in premium markets. This reinforces China's tech sovereignty narrative and reduces reliance on US-controlled supply chains, while challenging Apple's market dominance in high-end devices.
Similar to Soviet technological competition during the Cold War, where parallel systems (COMECON vs. Western markets) developed independently. Huawei's HarmonyOS mirrors this bifurcation of global tech ecosystems.
Economic Lens
📈
Huawei's $2,500 trifold Mate XTs with self-developed Kirin chip and HarmonyOS signals intensifying smartphone competition and Chinese tech self-sufficiency, pressuring Apple's premium positioning.
Market Signal
mixed
Confidence
HIGH
Consumer Electronics & Smartphones
Semiconductor Manufacturing
Software/Operating Systems
Luxury Consumer Goods
Technology Hardware
Consumers gain more affordable premium foldable options with advanced features; however, ecosystem fragmentation (HarmonyOS vs iOS/Android) may limit app availability and cross-device compatibility, creating switching costs.
Demonstrates China's progress in semiconductor self-sufficiency amid US sanctions, likely prompting continued Western export controls on advanced chip technology. May accelerate regulatory scrutiny of tech ecosystems and data sovereignty concerns.