I tried the Huawei Mate X7, and it’s a serious threat to Samsung

Huawei has just announced the global release of its new foldable phone, the Huawei Mate X7, at a grand event in Dubai, and I had the opportunity to join the company and get my first impressions of the new book-style foldable. Needless to say, this was the perfect occasion to see just how good the new Mate X7 camera is. Feel free to check the photo samples in the gallery below and sounds off in the comments if you think it's better than the camera of the Galaxy Fold 7.

At first glance, the Mate X7 looks very similar to the previous model, the X6, but I think Huawei has made some very meaningful improvements exactly where it counts.

Check out the Huawei Mate X7 from many different angles in the gallery below! The phone looks very similar to the X6, but it actually has ever so slightly bigger displays, while its folded thickness has been reduced from 9.9 mm to 9.5 mm.

So, Huawei obviously isn't trying to wow anyone with an exceptionally thin foldable this year, but the phone is pleasantly thin already, so that's not really a problem. There is a big story behind the new, fancy camera bump shape – Huawei says this is the "Time-Space Gate" design – you look into it, light travels through it and opens up the universe... you know – one of the crazier stories behind the new design language. But, bottom line is: it looks just as cool as before.

Unfortunately, I haven't gotten to running performance benchmarks on the Huawei Mate X7 yet (let's just say Huawei isn't a big fan of benchmarks apps running on their phones), so I can't make big statements, but we know the Mate X7 has Huawei’s newest chipset, the Kirin 9030, which is expected to be significantly faster than last generation’s Kirin 9020.

Some very early preliminary benchmarks I’ve seen suggest an improvement of up to around 33%, which would be amazing, but don't quote me on that yet.

As reliable as a non-folding phone?

I recently used the Mate X6 for a couple months, and it didn't give me the impression of a flimsy phone at all. However, these are foldables, so it's always good to hear about new durability enhancements, of which Huawei has many on the Mate X7.

For starters, there is a new version of their Kunlun glass (Huawei's alternative to the Corning Gorilla Glass) on the cover screen, which should be even harder to crack, thanks to a 20% improved protection against drops. Meanwhile, the foldable screen is reinforced by a new internal structure and improved hinge design that are said to make it more resistant to impacts and bending.

Perhaps best of all is the news that the Mate X7 comes with IP58 + IP59 certification for dust and water resistance. This makes it one of the few foldables out there with official dust resistance, which is a big thing, because we know dust is probably the biggest danger to foldable phones.

All of these engineering enhancements bring the Huawei Mate X7 even closer to a standard flagship phone, reliability-wise.

The foldable with a no-compromise camera

Now, while most foldable phones come with significant camera compromises, due to understandable thickness, weight and cost concerns, Huawei has typically wanted its X series to differentiate itself with very capable camera hardware, and the Mate X7 only takes things further, with improvements across the board.

From a bigger, 1/1.28" 50MP main camera sensor, to the improved 3.5x telephoto with wider, F2.2 aperture for more light intake, to radically upgraded computational algorithms, the Huawei Mate X7 is claimed to be as capable and as powerful as normal, non-folding camera flagships (think the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra). I had the opportunity to take a lot of photos while testing the phone here in Dubai, and while we need to wait for PhoneArena’s official Camera Score and more in-depth impressions, I think the photos you'll see in the following gallery look quite good.
The meaningful upgrades in the Huawei Mate X7 don't stop here.

For example, I’m sure you’ll love the fact that the battery has grown from 5110 mAh to the very, very impressive 5600 mAh. There is also Bluetooth 6 and Wi-Fi 7 connectivity on board, and did I mention the new screens are also brighter, at up to 3000 nits for the cover screen and 2500 nits for the foldable one?



Of course, the usual caveat about the software limitations is in order, and yes, the workarounds to get Google services up and running still work here, so, if you want to get this Huawei phone and use it in the West - you can. But please wait until I have more time to review the Mate X7 - this will allow me to really test everything out so you can make a safe and informed decision.

To be honest, even though Samsung doesn’t need to be worried just yet, it has to keep this thought in the back of its head, which is – what will happen if, all of a sudden, Huawei can do business with American companies again? I can tell you this: it’ll need to step up its game, that’s what will have to happen, if it doesn’t want to find itself in some big, big trouble. Why? Because even as is, the Huawei Mate X7 is a dangerously well-rounded, powerful and capable foldable phone, and with a flagship camera at that.