By David Kirton and Eduardo Baptista
GUANGZHOU/BEIJING, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Huawei launched its new flagship foldable smartphone series on Monday as it seeks to defend its lead in the Chinese market for premium handsets against Apple and Xiaomi, both of which are also unveiling new products.
Phones in the new Mate XT2 series, which fold out twice to open into a tablet-sized screen, feature Huawei's new Kirin 9050 Pro chip.
But they are not cheap. Prices start from 19,999 yuan ($2,980) with the most expensive
version costing 24,999 yuan ($3,725). Sales will start on September 12.
"Pricing right now is a real challenge, because memory costs have risen sharply. We adopted a lot of new technology, and the cost pressure has been enormous," Huawei Executive Director Richard Yu told a press conference.
Huawei says the new chip's design allows it to deliver more computing power while using less electricity. The design architecture, called LogicFolding, is part of the "Tau Scaling Law" principle Huawei unveiled in May to help the company overcome U.S. restrictions on access to advanced technology.
Xiaomi launches a rival foldable phone later on Monday, while Apple unveils its latest iPhone series on Wednesday, with expectations high that it too will be unveiling a foldable phone.
Huawei is currently the only major brand to sell a so-called tri-fold phone. The Chinese tech giant is, however, barred from selling in the U.S. as Washington has deemed the company a national security risk.
South Korea's Samsung Electronics, currently the world's biggest seller of foldable phones, launched a tri-fold in December but reportedly discontinued sales after three months. It expanded its line-up of foldable offerings in July to include a passport-sized foldable phone.
Huawei's Mate XT2 phones feature a redesigned folding mechanism, improved water resistance as well as a screen feature that prevents people nearby from seeing what is displayed. They also have upgraded cameras and deliver 42% better overall performance than their predecessor series based on company tests.
Shares in Xiaomi sank 3% in afternoon trade after Huawei unveiled the new series.
Huawei leads China's smartphone market with a 22.6% share in the second quarter, ahead of Apple's 18.1%, according to consultancy IDC. Xiaomi has 12.4% of the market.
Huawei is even more dominant in folding phones, accounting for 68% of shipments in China in the second quarter, according to Smart Analytics Global, a U.S.-based research company.
($1 = 6.7103 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by David Kirton in Guangzhou, Eduardo Baptista in Beijing; Additional reporting by Che Pan in Beijing; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
