Smartphone maker Huawei has announced it is going to launch the highly anticipated Mate X foldable smartphone in South Africa later this year. The announcement was made by Huawei South Africa general manager Likun Zhao at an event in Johannesburg.
Zhao said South Africa is one of the first markets to get the premium device. He added the Mate X would be launched in either June or July and will go on sale in South Africa within weeks of its global debut.
“We will focus on operator sales and discuss with them how to design the offer and package for premium customers,” Zhao said, reported Tech Central.
Huawei South Africa marketing director Akhram Mohamed has confirmed Mate X won’t come cheap. The foldable smartphone is estimated to get a whopping €2,300 price tag (or about R38 000 before taxes). The handset’s pricing is yet to be announced officially.
As far as specifications are concerned, Huawei Mate X comes with three displays- a 6.6-inch (2,480 x 1,148) display on the front, a 6.3-inch (2,480 x 892) display on the rear, and an 8-inch (2,480 x 2,200) tablet-like display when the device is unfolded.
The handset is powered by the HiSilicon Kirin 980 chipset and houses Huawei’s Balong 5000 chip for 5G connectivity. It will have 8GB of RAM and 512GB of internal storage and a Leica triple-camera system on the rear of the device. There are two dual Sim slots on board. The phone has a 4 500mAh battery, which is split between the two panels. It uses Huawei’s new 55W supercharging system, which the company claims will charge the handset from flat to 85 percent in just 30 minutes.
The Huawei Mate X will be available in only one color option in South Africa and that is Interstellar Blue. A full protection case for the handset will be available when the device ships. More case options will likely be made available by the time the device launches.
