Huawei is about to ruin the iPhone 16 event for me, as this is huge (literally)

You know, this has been a year where every smartphone event seems to spin around one acronym – AI.

Artificial intelligence is great and all, but surely some of us are already a bit tired of hearing about it, and would rather see companies go back to smartphone design innovation instead.

Maybe surprise us with something new, rather than focus on just the same AI talking points as every other phone company in 2024.

Samsung and Google had their turn. Now Apple's iPhone 16 series event is closing in, and you can bet your ready-for-the-apocalypse gold bars that the trillion dollar company will be saying "AI" and "Apple Intelligence" quite a bit during its event too, which is its own "clever" spin on "Artificial Intelligence."

But what if there was another, quite rival company, quite far away, that's actually getting ready to surprise us with some insane smartphone design innovations, and at the exact same time as Apple showcases its new iPhones, no less?

Well, funny you should mention that, because rumors have it that this is exactly what's about to happen. And for someone like me, Apple's event will be massively overshadowed by it…

Who's "someone like me," exactly? Good question. I'm a folding phone enthusiast, who wants his phone to be able to do more than just "phone stuff;" for example – be a tablet, too.

But before we get to the innovative phone that I believe will rain hard on the iPhone 16's parade next week, at least in my eyes, let's talk about foldable phones, and what makes them awesome…

Here's why I love folding phones, and you might too

While they don't have the mainstream appeal of traditional slab phones, folding phones are becoming ever so known and popular thanks to Samsung, and its Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Z Fold series.

Those are available in many, many regions, and I see more and more people actually using them over the recent years; not just me anymore, thankfully!

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold, in particular, has been my daily driver for a while now, replacing my iPhone, and bringing me back on team Android successfully, but not without caveats.

We'll talk about those later, but first – the good stuff – it's a phone, a tablet, and a PC. Something no iPhone will likely ever dare to aspire to, as to not dip into iPad and MacBook sales, God forbid!

But Samsung kind of has to innovate and take the kind of financial risks Apple can get away without; the Korean company took a huge shot in the dark with foldables, and I believe it's paying off, and we're all better off for it.

Now more and more people are learning that their phone can be more than just a video-watching, social media messaging device.

The Galaxy Z Fold does the normal phone stuff well, but unfold it, and you get a small tablet – now your content is bigger, and you can multitask to your heart's content. Two apps, three apps at a time, or more? Go ahead, buddy, Samsung doesn't limit what you can do with your tech, like Apple does.

But even better – what if you don't have a PC at home? Which, I'm learning now a lot of people don't. Well, hook up your Galaxy Z Fold to a TV, and you get a full-blown desktop experience; your phone becomes your PC, with a taskbar, windowed apps, file management, desktop web browsing – you name it!

And I just love that. I love how much I can squeeze out of my Galaxy Z Fold. I love making the most out of a single, ultra-capable device that doesn't limit me. But now, the caveats…

Why "normal" folding phones – Galaxy Z Fold in particular – don't work out for me too well, and seem like a preview for something better

A lot of Chinese folding phones don't have the following issue anymore, but Samsung still does, all the way up to the newest Galaxy Z Fold 6 – the phone is far too narrow, when closed.

Your apps don't look right, or feel right, on this tall, narrow outer display, and indeed I never got used to it.

You may be thinking unfolding it would fix the problem – just use that big foldable screen instead? Well, that one's too square-ish. Apps don't look or feel right on that one either, often blown up, with different and less familiar layouts, videos rarely fitting the aspect ratio and getting squashed to nearly a normal phone screen's size, despite the fact you're using a large display. It's not widescreen, as it should be.

So both screens on the Galaxy Z Fold series have been a no-no for me. I want a more traditional smartphone experience, but also the option to unfold that smartphone and get a tablet when I need it. A good, widescreen tablet, not a square one…

And evidently Samsung doesn't plan on improving in that area, despite many people, including myself, complaining about it for years, and despite brands out of China already delivering better options.

Speaking of brands out of China – they sure do love one-upping each other and innovating.

The fastest charging, for example, always arrives on Chinese phones first. But what if someone decides to one-up all foldable phones too? By, you know, making a triple foldable?

Well, "something better" is coming very soon – a triple folding phone that can turn into a widescreen tablet? Yes, please

Sure, we've seen Samsung demo prototypes, and we've seen patents and heard rumors of such phones coming, but they never seem to… Maybe it's too hard, too expensive, too early to expect triple foldable phones? Apparently not…

Richard Yu, an executive director at Huawei, was spotted just casually rocking a triple-folding phone last month. Reports out of China say the man was attending a ceremony in Shanghai, and was obviously asked questions about this never-before-seen phone that he was using. His answer to when it's getting released was supposedly September! This month!



A report from more recently says Huawei is getting ready for a "grand ceremony" event, China-only (for now), set for September 10. And what do you know – that's also the exact day of Apple's iPhone 16 event! What a coincidence.

The poster for Huawei's event, while abstract and unassuming at first, actually seems to hint strongly at a triple-folding, Z-form-factor smartphone indeed.


Now, we don't know how much it'll cost, when it's coming to the US and Europe, or whether it'll actually be a winner in terms of design and durability, but there's no reason not to be optimistic.

This is not a small square tablet with a narrow outer display like the Galaxy Z Fold 6. It's a legitimate widescreen tablet; like, a "real" one, that folds into a traditional smartphone. It's seemingly the best of both worlds, and this time – without any compromises.

On top of that, when folded, Huawei's secret not-so-secret upcoming triple foldable seems to remain impressively thin – again, as if you have a normal smartphone in your pocket – normal size, thickness; that just so happens to unfold into a huge, widescreen tablet!

And let me tell you, as a Galaxy Z Fold user – that one's thick, narrow and heavy candybar design is getting old to me quickly. I wanted Samsung to improve upon it further with this year's Z Fold 6 iteration, but alas, it did not. Just made it more angular.

Well, okay, Samsung, getting too comfortable, are ya? Fine, let's see what Huawei has in store for us in a few days. Some healthy competition will do us all good.

All I know for sure is that I'll be keeping one eye on the Apple event and one eye on the Huawei event simultaneously. And unlike the Apple event, I actually expect to be surprised during the Huawei event, but we'll see soon enough, won't we?

What do you think about the upcoming triple-folding phones? Too much, or exactly what you wanted?

Will Huawei overshadow the iPhone 16 event for you this year too? Will it bury the Galaxy Z Fold?

What are your thoughts on the Chinese giant's upcoming triple foldable, and are you interested in such phones? Because they're coming…

Share your thoughts with your fellow tech enthusiasts in the comments section below!