Huawei Pushes Back Release of Mate X Foldable Smartphone to September

After Samsung delayed the Galaxy Fold to address complaints made by the first testers, Huawei is now pushing back its foldable smartphone as well.

According to a new report from CNBC, the Chinese phone maker has decided to push the release of the Mate X from June to September, noting that it’s taking a “cautious” approach to the handset’s release following the issue-ridden launch of Samsung’s Galaxy Fold.

A Huawei spokesperson said that the manufacturer is doing additional testing with mobile carriers around the world as well as app developers. The Mate X is Huawei’s first 5G-enabled phone, so it stands to reason that the company is testing compatibility with global carriers before launching the device. Same goes for developers: with the phone featuring a foldable display, Huawei will want to make sure apps work as intended when the device is unfolded.



With everything else that’s going on with Huawei, it’s understandable that the company is being cautious with its upcoming phone. “We don’t want to launch a product to destroy our reputation,” a spokesperson for the Chinese company told CNBC.

The delay comes after Samsung paused its release of the Galaxy Fold this spring. The $1,980 USD foldable phone was scheduled to go on sale in the United States on April 26, but Samsung hit the brakes right before the phone’s launch due to numerous screen problems on review units. Samsung said a new release date for the phone will be announced in “the coming weeks.”

It looks like Huawei is simply using the Fold’s troubles as an excuse to take extra time with its foldable device’s software before putting it in the hands of consumers instead of doing so with software updates, which is what it probably planned to do until it was blacklisted by Google and other North American companies.