Xiaomi and Huawei Launch New Foldables Ahead of Expected Apple Event

Chinese consumer hardware giants Xiaomi and Huawei introduced their latest foldable smartphones this week, moving to capture market share ahead of an anticipated product announcement from Apple. The launches come as Apple prepares for a Wednesday event where the company, led by Chief Executive Officer John Ternus, is widely expected to unveil its first foldable iPhone, according to reporting by CNBC Business.

On Monday, Xiaomi, the world's third-largest smartphone maker by volume, revealed the Xiaomi 18 Fold. The passport-sized handset shares a form factor with Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8, which debuted earlier this year in July. On the same day, Huawei unveiled the Mate XT2, representing the third generation of the trifold smartphone architecture that the Shenzhen-based company originally pioneered.

Both manufacturers emphasized proprietary semiconductor technology inside their new hardware. Xiaomi said the Xiaomi 18 Fold is powered by its custom XRing O3 smartphone processor, built on an advanced manufacturing process. Huawei reported that its Mate XT2 is the first device to utilize LogicFolding, a new semiconductor technique designed to move electrical signals across a chip.

The competitive dynamics differ significantly between global and domestic markets. Globally, Samsung remains Apple's primary opponent in the foldable segment, having introduced the category's first commercial device in 2019. Within China, however, Huawei holds a dominant market position, commanding more than two-thirds of the country's foldable smartphone sales.

Market research firm Counterpoint Research projects that Apple could ship 6 million foldable iPhones in its initial launch year, securing a 25% global market share that could expand to 40% by 2027. Neil Shah, a partner at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC on Tuesday that there is "significant pent-up demand for a foldable iPhone within the Apple community." Shah noted that while some iOS users previously migrated to Samsung, many held off on switching and may return if Apple presents a strong alternative. He added that "aspiring Chinese consumers" are likely to seek the new device, expecting "lots of upgrades from the existing install base in China happening toward the foldable iPhone."

Industry analysts view the preemptive debuts by Huawei and Xiaomi as a tactical effort to establish consumer mindshare before Apple enters retail channels. Francisco Jeronimo, vice president covering mobile devices at IDC, told CNBC that the release timing was deliberate. "This is not an innocent decision by these vendors," Jeronimo said, noting that competitors timed their announcements so that "when the Apple products hit the stores, their product is there so consumers can compare."