Following a string of delays and an anticipated late-October launch, Huawei's Mate X folding phone has finally gone on sale in China for a mere $2400 (16,999 Chinese Yuan). Or, at least, it was on sale. The phone has reportedly sold out in just minutes, though more rounds of sales are expected to happen in the coming days.
Read MoreHuawei Mate X’s flexible display may avoid scratches thanks to a plastic polymer layer
Huawei’s first foldable phone — the Mate X — may finally see the light of day this November 15 after a twice-deferred launch since June. The delays were partly in view of the company's trade hurdles concerning Android, and largely to make hardware refinements to avoid a Galaxy Fold-like recall. Huawei took this time to hone the Mate X’s out-folding display with a layer of transparent polyimide (PI), which should prevent the screen from scratching.
Read More[Update: Regulatory photos] Huawei's folding Mate X phone spotted in executive's hands with visible design tweaks
Huawei 's consumer division chief Yu Chengdong was spotted in an airport in China by reporter Li Wei apparently waving around a slightly redesigned version of the Huawei Mate X. The phone was previously delayed amid Huawei's drama with the US government, while Samsung was also having its own folding phone troubles. In the meantime, the company has made a few subtle tweaks to the as-yet-unreleased Mate X.
Read MoreCringe for the hinge as JerryRigEverything bends his first folding phone the wrong way
Folding phones may seem futuristic, but Samsung's snafu with the Galaxy Fold made it clear that durability will be a serious question when it comes to flexible displays and folding designs. To that end, Zack over at JerryRigEverything managed to get his hands on the Royole Flexpie, which is the first folding smartphone you can actually buy. The phone was subsequently put through the full suite of scratching, bending, crunching tests, with surprising results.
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[Update: Moto exec talks plans] Lenovo reportedly close to releasing new Motorola RAZR with folding display for $1,500
The phone to be seen with in the mid-noughties was undoubtedly the Moto RAZR, which oozed futuristic style with its thin clamshell design and aluminum body. Many millions were sold before it was usurped by better devices, but now it looks like Lenovo — Motorola's current parent company — is going to bring it back.
Read MoreTCL wants to make foldable phones that don't cost thousands of dollars
At a private briefing during MWC (that evidently wasn't all that private), TCL showed us some concepts of foldable screens and devices it's been working on. The devices don't have names, release dates, or even really a considered use case - they're just explorations of form factor and engineering, not reflections of upcoming product designs. They're neat to look at, but that's really all you can say about them at this point. Well, almost.
The one part of them that does have a name is TCL's "Dragon Hinge," which uses a complex system of gears to facilitate the folding motion of these concept devices.
Read MoreHuawei's Mate X is a $2600 foldable phone that looks like it's from the future
By holding its event ahead of Mobile World Congress (MWC) for the first time in a few years, Samsung ensured maximum hype surrounding the announcement of the Samsung Galaxy Fold. Some of that hype may have died down once the design and the $1,980 price tag came to light, but the general vibe is that it's nice to have an exciting new form-factor in what has become a relatively stale industry. As the press conferences from the other major tech companies get underway here in Barcelona, we expect to see a few more devices with flexible screens, and the first of those to be unveiled is the Huawei Mate X.
Read MoreXiaomi president confirms double-folding phone with hands-on video
Folding phones are the future, according to Samsung and Royole. Whether you agree with that or not, they're coming soon, and Xiaomi has officially entered the field of play. In a Weibo post by the Chinese company's president Lin Bin, he shared a video of himself using the flexible device.
Read More[Update: Display specs] Samsung just announced its foldable phone and display technology, coming next year
At the Samsung Developer Conference today, Samsung announced its new Infinity folding display, the basis for an upcoming foldable smartphone that we now know will launch in 2019, news Google let slip earlier today. The device didn't have any specifications detailed, but the concept is certainly interesting.
Samsung's folding phone will actually have three screens - a large display that will unfold the phone into a small tablet, and a smaller display which sits on the outside of the phone for use in one-handed operation.
Read More[Update: Samsung announces] Google says Samsung's foldable phone will launch in 2019
At its annual Dev Summit in Mountain View this morning, Android VP Dave Burke announced that Google was partnering to optimize the Android platform for an upcoming foldable device... built by Samsung. The foldable phone in question will launch next year according to Burke, who appears to have confirmed something Samsung hasn't itself yet announced. We're currently at Samsung's Developer Conference in San Francisco, which overlaps directly with the Android Dev Summit.
No details were provided about the device other than to say it's foldable, so we're waiting for Samsung to offer up additional information.
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