Huawei and Xiaomi unveiled their latest foldable phones this week as the Chinese tech giants seek to take the lead from their rivals. appleis rumored to launch its first foldable iPhone on Wednesday.
xiaomiThe world’s third-largest smartphone player on Monday launched the Xiaomi 18 Fold, a passport-sized device similar to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 launched earlier this year. Huawei on Monday unveiled the Mate XT2, the third generation of its pioneering tri-fold smartphone.
These launches are no coincidence. Apple is rumored to be holding an event on Wednesday where it will unveil its first foldable iPhone, a major new product under new CEO John Ternus.
Neil Shah, a partner at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC on Tuesday that “there is a huge demand within the Apple community for a foldable iPhone.” “A lot of people are holding off on switching to Samsung. Some people have switched, but they might come back if they come out with a great foldable iPhone.”
According to Counterpoint Research, Apple could ship 6 million foldable iPhones this year, giving it a 25% share of the global market. According to Counterpoint, this share could increase to 40% by 2027.
Foldable smartphones continue to experience strong growth despite being some of the most expensive devices on the market.
Globally, Apple’s main rival will be Samsung, which pioneered the foldable category by launching its first foldable device in 2019.
But in China, Apple will compete with a number of players, led by Huawei, which controls more than two-thirds of the country’s foldable market.
Shah said “aspirational Chinese consumers” are likely to want Apple’s latest devices.
“There will be a lot of upgrades towards foldable iPhones from the existing installed base in China,” Shah said.
Consumers will have a lot of options to choose from after Samsung releases its latest foldable device in July.
“This is not an innocent decision by these vendors,” Francisco Geronimo, vice president of mobile devices at IDC, told CNBC.
“They knew Apple was going to develop a foldable product, so they were trying to get ahead of the curve, and more importantly, they were trying to make sure that when Apple products hit the shelves, their products would be there for consumers to compare.”
Huawei and Xiaomi chips
Huawei and Xiaomi this week touted foldable devices equipped with chips of their own design.
According to Xiaomi, the Xiaomi 18 Fold is equipped with the latest smartphone processor, XRing O3, manufactured using an advanced process.
Huawei said its Mate XT2 is the first device to feature a new semiconductor technology called LogicFolding, which is designed to move electrical signals across a chip.
