With the release of the MateBook Fold Ultimate Design, its first commercial model with a flexible screen, and, concurrently, its first notebook based on HarmonyOS for PCs with a proprietary chip, Huawei has formally entered the foldable laptop market. As the name suggests, the laptop aims to blend performance, style, and inventive use in a format exclusive to the brand.
Opening the MateBook Fold reveals a sizable 18-inch LTPO OLED panel with a 4:3 aspect ratio and 3.3K resolution. Folded, the screen reduces to a 13-inch size, which facilitates carrying. While brightness reaches a peak of 1600 nits, the display is strengthened with an internal carbon fiber layer, tripling its impact resistance. The declared contrast in HDR is 2,000,000:1; the color coverage is wide (P3).
Richened by a leather finish in three color variants—Forged Shadow Black, Sky White, and Cloud Blue—the device’s design still reflects Huawei’s aesthetic language. Exclusive elements in the black variant include a golden line known as the “Black Gold Waistline” and the “Forging Shadow Cloud Pattern” on the back.
To lower mechanical stress on the flexible panel, Huawei has developed a new hinge with a 285mm mechanism, the biggest in the sector according to the company, with a three-stage shaft and drop-shaped opening. To guarantee more stability and fluidity in movement, the machining precision of the axis has been doubled and the hovering torque—that force enabling the screen to remain stable when only partially opened—has risen by 400%. One can constantly change the opening angle up to 150 degrees.
An ultra-thin inverted gravity vapor chamber and a dual diamond-cut aluminum fan have been tailored to the thermal needs of the foldable form factor.
Regarding software, the MateBook Fold runs HarmonyOS 5 in desktop form with goals focused on device integration. The system guarantees advanced multitasking and rapid transfers of up to 160 MB/s by means of the interconnection via distributed soft bus and supports up to four simultaneous connections. With a new series of dedicated touch gestures—from swiping for comments and videos to five-finger “waterfall browsing up to the activation of the virtual keyboard with eight fingers—Huawei promises a unified ecosystem between smartphones, tablets, and PCs.
The company has only confirmed the use of an unidentified internal chip; it has not yet revealed the particular details of the integrated processor, despite the official announcement.
The MateBook Fold Ultimate Design is positioned at the upper end of the market. Offering Sky White and Cloud Blue colors, the model with 32 GB of RAM and 1 TB of SSD is priced at 23,999 yuan (about 3,300 euros). Only Forged Shadow Black has the top edition with 32 GB of RAM and 2 TB of storage; it is on sale for 26,999 yuan (roughly 3,720 euros). Vmall already allows one to pre-order the notebook in China. Currently, nothing is known about availability in other markets.
DATA SHEET of MateBook Fold
- Display : 18″ foldable LTPO OLED (3296 × 2472 resolution, 4:3)—13″ folded (2472 × 1648, 3:2), 700 nits brightness (typical), 1600 nits (peak HDR), 2,000,000:1 contrast, P3 color gamut
Processor : Huawei proprietary chip (not specified) - Operating System: HarmonyOS 5 (PC)
Memory : 32 GB RAM
Storage : 1TB or 2TB SSD
Camera : Front 8 MP
Audio: four microphones, six speakers
Connectivity : WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.2
Battery : 74.69 Wh, lithium-polymer
Ports : 2 × USB-C (one side, one top)
Security : Fingerprint sensor in the power button
Dimensions (open): 382.5 × 288.5 × 7.3–7.6 mm
Dimensions (closed): 288.5 × 193.7 × 14.9 mm
Weight : 1.16 kg (without keyboard)
Colors : Forged Shadow Black, Sky White, Cloud Blue