Huawei Mate X3 v/s Vivo X Fold+: Which is better?
What's the story
Huawei's latest foldable smartphone, Mate X3, is now official.
The device bears modern aesthetics, a new hinge mechanism, an IPX8 rating, high-refresh AMOLED screens, two-way satellite communication, Qualcomm's flagship-level chipset, and a fast-charging battery.
It takes on the recently launched Vivo X Fold+, which offers some notable features for its price.
Here, we compare the two offerings to find out which one is better.
Details
The Mate X3 can survive rain
The Mate X3 and X Fold+ have a book-style folding design. The former gets IPX8-rated water resistance and 'Kunlun Glass' protection.
Huawei's foldable phone has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, whereas X Fold+ has an ultrasonic fingerprint reader on the inner and outer screens.
The X Fold+ is heavier (311g v/s 239g) and also thicker than the Mate X3 (6.28mm v/s 5.3mm).
Design
Both phones support a 120Hz screen refresh rate
The Mate X3 has a 7.85-inch WQXGA+ (2224x2496 pixels) OLED primary screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. It has a 6.4-inch Full-HD+ (1080x2504 pixels) LTPO OLED cover screen with a 1-120Hz refresh rate.
The X Fold+ has an 8.03-inch Full-HD+ (1916x2160 pixels) E5 LTPO AMOLED main screen and a 6.53-inch Full-HD+ (1080x2520 pixels) cover screen, both with a 120Hz refresh rate.
Cameras
The X Fold+ has a 48MP ultra-wide camera
The Mate X3 is equipped with a 50MP (f/1.8, OIS) main, a 13MP (f/2.2) ultra-wide, and a 12MP (f/3.4, OIS) telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom.
The X Fold+ offers a 50MP (f/1.57, OIS) primary, a 48MP (f/2.2) ultra-wide, 12MP (f/1.98) portrait camera, and 8MP (f/3.4, OIS) periscope sensor with 5x optical zoom.
For selfies, they have 8MP (f/2.4) and 16MP (f/2.45) cameras, respectively.
Internals
Snapdraon 8+ Gen 1 SoC is common to both handsets
The Mate X3 and X Fold+ are backed by a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC. They come in 12GB/256GB and 12GB/512GB configurations. The X3 also gets a 12GB/1TB variant.
They boot EMUI 13.1 and OriginOS Ocean, respectively.
The X3 packs a 4,800mAh with 66W fast-charging, while the X Fold+ houses a 4,730mAh battery and supports 80W charging. The handsets also support 50W wireless charging.
Price
What is the cost of these foldable smartphones?
The Mate X3 costs CNY 12,999 (nearly Rs. 1,55,800), CNY 13,999 (around Rs. 1,67,800), and CNY 15,999 (roughly Rs. 1,91,800), for its 12GB/256GB, 12GB/512GB, 12GB/1TB models, respectively. It will go on sale in China starting April 7.
The X Fold+ was launched at CNY 9,999 (around Rs. 1,19,800) for its 12GB/256GB configuration. Its 12GB/512GB model is priced at CNY 10,999 (approximately Rs. 1,31,800).
Verdict
Which foldable device is a better deal?
Despite missing some bells and whistles, Vivo's X Fold+ is a better buy than Huawei's Mate X3. It gets support for Google's app suite, services, and 5G technology, all of which are missing on Mate X3.
Additionally, the X Fold+ offers marginally bigger displays, a more capable ZEISS co-engineered camera setup, and faster-wired charging. It is also less expensive than Mate X3.